The Disney company, facing a firestorm over its promotion of homosexuality in a children's TV show as well as its new "Beauty and the Beast" movie, now has been hit with a claim that it is peddling "fake news."
The National Center for Public Policy Research said this week it had confronted Disney CEO Robert Iger at a shareholders meeting over the coverage provided by its divisions, including ABC.
Iger said ABC is "extremely fair," despite WikiLeaks' exposure of documents showing Hillary Clinton's campaign coordinated coverage with ABC News chief anchor George Stephanopoulos, the organization said.
"Iger dug in his heels so much at his company's annual shareholder meeting … he claimed ABC News' treatment of Presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama is similar," the organization said.
"I don't think that Mr. Iger has turned on ABC News or ESPN in a very long time," said National Center General Counsel and Free Enterprise Project Director Justin Danhof, who attended the meeting.
"If he bothered to watch his networks, he would realize what President Donald Trump and millions of Americans do – that Disney's media platforms are purveyors of fake news," he said.
"When we presented Mr. Iger with very specific examples of bias and failures of basic journalistic ethics, he dismissed these concerns as being exaggerated. Even when we asked him about a top ABC journalist colluding with a political campaign to smear a perceived political opponent, he claimed he was proud of ABC's efforts and [said] that the network operates in an extremely fair way," added Danhof.
In remarks Danhof prepared for Iger at the meeting, he explained to the Disney chief: "Responding to a  question we asked last year, you said Disney's media outlets were free from bias. Our skepticism about your news organizations' unwillingness to be politically neutral, already shared by millions of Americans, is now loudly joined by the president of the United States. The president has even labeled ABC an 'enemy of the American people,' and coined the term 'fake news.'"
Danhof pointed out WikiLeaks "has provided plenty of evidence that you are not requiring your news organizations to be politically neutral."
"After ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos interviewed 'Clinton Cash' author Peter Schweizer, WikiLeaks exposed communications appearing to show operatives for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign working with Stephanopoulos to delegitimize Schweizer and his work."
Then, he said, there was the email from a top liberal donor to Hillary Clinton "in which it was alleged you wanted 'to be helpful' to the campaign."
The statement noted an ESPN host "claims the network is obsessed with bashing conservatives."
The host recently said: "I feel like there's so many people that I work with that every show, every topic, every angle on it, is hoping to be ... destroying the [political] right on every single thing that comes up. ... I hear it every single day."
Danhof said the ESPN co-host noted, "Can you imagine if I teased this show and said: 'Coming up, why all of you are wrong about Trump and why he's awesome?'"
Iger's response, the center said, was that he was "proud of the efforts of ABC News."
"He claimed comments about ESPN bias made by Danhof and ESPN's own staff are 'completely exaggerated.' He justified negative news coverage of President Trump because 'news can be an adversary,'" the center said.
The center has previously brought the issue of media bias to Disney shareholders in several earlier annual meetings.
Since 2014, center officials have taken part in nearly 200 shareholder meetings "advancing free-market ideals in the areas of health care, energy, taxes, subsidies, regulations, religious freedom, food policies, media bias, gun rights, workers' rights and many other important public policy issues."
Just a day earlier, WND reported the company was moving into a whole new minefield with its promotion of homosexuality to children.
The moves in the company's remake of "Beauty and the Beast" and its television show "Star vs. the Forces of Evil" have prompted a call by Franklin Graham, CEO of Samaritan's Purse and the Billy Graham Association, for a boycott.
"Disney has aired a cartoon with same-sex couples kissing. It has also been announced that their new movie 'Beauty and the Beast' will feature a gay character in an attempt to normalize this lifestyle," he wrote on Facebook.
"They're trying to push the LGBT agenda into the hearts and minds of your children – watch out! Disney has the right to make their cartoons, it's a free country. But as Christians we also have the right not to support their company. I hope Christians everywhere will say no to Disney."
Graham noted that when he was a young boy he met Walt Disney, who was "very gracious to me, my father Billy Graham, and my younger brother when we visited."
Walt Disney, he said, "would be shocked at what has happened to the company that he started," Graham wrote.
The movie trailer is here:
The London Daily Mail has reported on the same-sex kiss in the Disney TV show.
"In an episode of Star vs the Forces of Evil which aired on channel Disney XD a gay couple can be seen sharing a kiss for this first time in the history of the company," the report said. "In the second series of the cartoon, protagonist Star and her friend Marco attend a concert and find themselves surrounded by kissing couples. … Among the crowd two men can be seen sharing a smooch and later in the episode two further lesbian couples are also spotted kissing."
Disney itself appears to endorse and approve of boycotts.
MSNBC reported Disney has opposed proposed legislation in Georgia that would protect the religious rights of business owners.
"They have made several hit Marvel movies (including 'Ant-Man' and the upcoming 'Captain America; Civil War' and 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2') in the Atlanta area, in part because of the state's generous tax breaks," the report said.
"But the company has no interest in being associated with the bill."
It quoted a company spokesman's statement: "Disney and Marvel are inclusive companies, and although we have had great experiences filming in Georgia, we will plan to take our business elsewhere should any legislation allowing discriminatory practices be signed into state law."
The Henadar Drive-in Theatre in Alabama, however, won't be promoting the LGBTQ agenda to children.
The owners stated: "If I can’t sit through a movie with God or Jesus sitting by me then we have no business showing it. I know there will be some that do not agree with this decision. That's fine. We are first and foremost Christians. We will not compromise on what the Bible teaches. We will continue to show family oriented films so you can feel free to come watch wholesome movies without worrying about sex, nudity, homosexuality and foul language. Thank you for your support!"
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