Florida’s Fourth Estate

‘Billy Flanigan: The Happiest Man on Earth’ follows Disney World’s longest contracted performer, Billy Flanigan, as he cycles seven thousand miles cross-country delivering ‘Flanigrams’ to friends and family when theme parks and businesses were shut down at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s a pretty tall order to live up to when you’re known as the Happiest Place on Earth. Is it just hyperbole or do some people—young and not so young—experience a bit of nirvana topped with pixie dust as soon as they cross the threshold of a Disney theme park and get a glimpse of Mickey and Minnie? Depends on who you ask. On this episode of Florida’s Fourth Estate, hosts Ginger Gadsden and Matt Austin speak with Dr. Abigail Disney, whose grandfather was Roy Disney and great-uncle was Walt Disney. They are the two men who built Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Abigail Disney is quick to point out you would be hard-pressed to find anyone else who loves Disney more than she does. But these days, her love hurts and is cutting to the core of Disney culture as she questions why some loyal employees can’t make ends meet. Some of them claim they can barely afford food while others say they know cast members who have slept in cars because they can’t afford an apartment or home. She said it wasn’t always that way. “I grew up with my grandfather going through the cast member entrance to the park and I remember the people who work there with incredible affection,” Disney said. “And there was a great deal of affection between them and my grandfather as well.” Disney added she saw the relationship shift over the decades as management changed. “I saw the nature of the way workers were treated there and frankly, everywhere else, in America over the last 50 years. And I wanted to make a film about why it changed so dramatically... and what we can do about it,” she said. Her new documentary, “The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales” takes a walk down memory lane as she fondly recalls the early days of Disneyland. The theme park in Anaheim, California opened in 1955. She has many happy memories of park visits there, so it is troubling when she hears stories about cast members who are struggling. And while looking for answers, Disney has come across a lot of people who don’t appreciate her opening previously shut doors. “I would say I probably love Disney more than any other super fan could possibly love Disney. It’s in my DNA, it’s down to my toes, and I remember every detail and every nuance of both of those parks,” she said. “I will tell you, though, if you really, really, really love something, then you have to see it truthfully and you have to speak the truth about it and it’s not perfect. I wish it were.” Disney said she knows not everyone will understand her plight or even agree with it, but she believes the company she shares a name with can and must do better by its workers. “Disney can make money and still be a visionary company, a company that supports the wellbeing of their employees. Both of these things can coexist,” she said. “Unfortunately, the way we run businesses in this country, we’ve come to believe these things are mutually exclusive, that managements must always get workers for as little as they can possibly get workers.” Disney said it’s not the amount of money CEOs make that bothers her. “I don’t have a problem with your $65 million, I really don’t. Bless you, you’re welcome to it. But don’t take it until everybody’s fed,” Disney said. News 6 has also reached out to Walt Disney World for comment, but the company has not responded. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The State of Florida is cracking down on illegal voting. Governor Desantis announced 20 felons were charged with election fraud. News 6 reached out to some of the suspects and found several thought their rights had been restored. News 6 Investigator Louis Bolden takes a closer look at the confusion and why lawmakers are now pointing fingers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There’s more to the Sunshine State than Florida Man, gators and hurricanes. How well do you know the state you call home? With nearly a thousand people moving to Florida every day there are bound to be some gaps in state knowledge. Quick, when did Florida become a state? What’s the population of the Sunshine State? If you got both of those right then chances are you have generations of Florida blood running through your veins. In case you are wondering, Florida became the 27th state on March 3, 1845. This year Florida is expected to have 22 million residents making it the 3rd most populous state in the country. This week on Florida’s Fourth Estate anchors Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden are putting you to the test and learning a few things along the way. They want to know what you know about the state so many people love to berate. So, they invited Steve Griffiths on to help out. He is not a name you may recognize but Matt and Ginger work with him daily. He is their floor director, but, he has also managed trivia nights in years past and still goes strong on the trivia scene. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two of the messages have one thing in common, hair. Ginger said she got a message from a viewer and the subject was “That Stupid wig on your head.” Inside she said there was a whole paragraph. “I didn’t even know what to say to this woman so I just didn’t say anything,” Ginger said. One viewer also reached out to Matt about his hair. “Matt my name is Denise I watch the news every day and I hope I don’t afend (sic) you but your new hair style (sic) needs to go. You are very handsome (sic),” the message read. “So, I started doing something a little bit different with my hair. Just a little bit.” Matt said. “I got this new hair apparatus for my wife right, and she was like ‘You should use it’ and I started using it and it just gave me a little extra zhoosh.” The hate didn’t end there, Matt also said a viewer sent him a very long message bashing several things about him but finishes with “I am not trying to abase (sic) or degrade you in any way.” and “Have a nice day.” Hear more about the hatemail on Florida’s Fourth Estate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Clayton Sellars grew up in Fruitland Park and has since gone on to become a rising star in the professional rodeo circuit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is a new option for getting your dog off the couch and outside for some exercise this summer. Linden Hollow Sheep Farm in St. Cloud lets dogs tap into their wild side. Natalie Cole said her grandma started the unique business with shelties. “We used to show Shetland sheepdogs in confirmation and we wanted to compete with them in herding as well. So, my grandma got a few sheep for herself to work her dog and we started from there when I was very little and have been going since then,” Cole said. Cole gave News 6 anchors Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden a behind-the-scenes look at the training on Florida’s Fourth Estate. She said when people bring their domesticated dogs out to the property, some of them act like “they are born and bred on a farm.” “It’s just hard-wired (in their) DNA. So, when they say that they have their pup that lives in an apartment and they want to bring it out for herding lessons and it comes out and does what it is supposed to do, it doesn’t surprise me at all,” she added. Ginger takes her dog Finn to the farm and says when he goes, he gets a great workout and comes home tired. Other than tapping into their natural instincts, Cole said dogs also get a boost in their confidence after visiting the farm. “I will have some people come out that say, ‘You know, my dog is a little timid, my dog is a little afraid of people’ and stuff like that, so a lot of times, we’ll bring the dogs out here if they are bred for this and we get them on sheep and a totally different dog just comes alive. They are not afraid of things. They come out of their shell, they learn how to do this and it’s something that they love and it keeps their brain busy and it’s a good stimulation for them,” Cole said. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Florida's Fourth Estate talks to two of Florida's biggest social media influencers. They explain how a hobby became a big business. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all know gas and grocery prices have climbed substantially since this time last year. What you may not have noticed is that even though some products are still being sold at the same price, the sizes are shrinking. For instance, you likely remember Gatorade selling large 32-ounce drinks. Now their slimmed-down bottles are just 28 ounces. UCF business professor Anand Krishnamoorthy says it’s called “Shrinkflation” and says it is here to stay. To make sure their customers don’t feel too bad about it, Krishnamoorthy says companies often pass it off as “product innovation.” “Gatorade in this case, PepsiCo. argued that the size of the packaging decreased not because they wanted to provide less of the item, but because these containers are becoming less easy to hold so what they did is they introduced a groove in the middle of the packaging which makes a product easier to hold, so this is positioned less as shrinkage, more as product innovation,” said Krishnamoorthy. Krishnamoorthy says something similar happened with bar soap as well. He says soap was originally square. Then, over time manufacturers put a groove in the soap so it would be easier to hold. Then, he says the groove got deeper and deeper, meaning less product for consumers, even though the prices remained the same. But, Krishnamoorthy says companies are not always working to fool customers, sometimes they do just make valid changes. For instance, “There might be cases where there is actual innovation going on because Bounty for a long time has claimed that their paper towels are more absorbent today, as a result of which you don’t need as much paper towel.” Krishnamoorthy says chocolate bars also used to be a lot longer 15 years ago. But, changing the size of the sugary snack could be a part of trying to reduce the number of calories people are consuming. With costs rising, Krishnamoorthy says many companies are struggling to stay profitable and even after the market stabilizes package sizes likely won’t go back to their original sizes. You can learn more about shrinkflation on Florida’s Fourth Estate. In this episode, you can also learn more about this year’s Fireworks at The Fountain returning to Lake Eola. You can check out Florida’s Fourth Estate with Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden wherever you enjoy listening to podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Florida: Where some of the best stories in the country are born.  Based in Orlando, journalist Katrina Scales voices a selection of the day's top headlines, along with a nugget of Florida knowledge you may have never heard before.  Ready by 7:00 a.m. every weekday morning. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You likely know John Morgan from billboards across Florida or from his commercials featuring the popular tagline “For The People.” You may not know that Morgan actually got his start in law following what he calls an “ugly legal battle” with Disney that involved his brother Tim. “He was paralyzed out at Disney World and he was paralyzed on the water,” Morgan said. Morgan said his brother was not adequately compensated due to the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which happens to be locked in a political battle that could cause Disney to lose its special governing authority. “The reason that his case, that he could never sue Disney World is because Reedy Creek was owned by Disney, so that was his employer and they had comp immunity so that Tim was never able to bring a lawsuit,” Morgan said. Morgan said the whole experience was a nightmare, “Disney treated Tim terribly,” he said. “They just fought him like he was a combatant enemy, even on his comp benefits and I was 19. We were poor as hell, and here we were with my brother a C6, C7 quadriplegic with this gigantic company. And, then they finally said to him they said ‘Well we will put you back to work,’ so they could get out of paying him benefits. They said ‘We will make you an operator from 11 at night until 7 in the morning.’” This experience steered Morgan’s career. “When Disney was messing with Tim, I became as mad at Disney as Ron Desantis is at Disney and that was — those moments in my life — was my inspiration for becoming a personal injury lawyer. I said then and there that my life’s work was going to be representing people who were powerless, hopeless and helpless against big corporations like Walt Disney World. That’s all I’ve ever done. I’ve never applied for a job anywhere else. Everybody that knows my story knows this is the story. So, it’s been interesting to hear Reedy Creek’s name come up after all those years after Tim was hurt in 1977.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Florida’s Fourth Estate is taking a walk on the wild side. As mating season comes to an end and nesting season begins Gatorland said alligators are more active this time of year. You have likely seen stories of them popping up at schools, in pools and in some cases people getting attacked. In one recent encounter an alligator bit a man who mistook the reptile for a dog. Brandon Fisher with Gatorland joined hosts Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden on Florida’s Fourth Estate. He said he has never mistaken a gator for a dog but said their personalities can actually be similar to cats. He said some people nickname them “swamp kittens.” “Cats, they’ll do stuff to (make you think) they’re all cute and cuddly and then all of a sudden turn on you. Gators are the same way,” Fisher said. Fisher said gators lack the part of the brain for feelings and emotions. “They do have their own personalities, some more calm than others, some you can really tell they want to be around you... some of them like their butt scratched, you know right on the back of the tail and they kinda wiggle and move with it,” Fisher said. He went on to say the reptiles he works with every day know and respond to their names. In the wild, gators don’t respond to verbal commands and can end up in places they don’t belong. Fisher said the weirdest place he has heard of an alligator going is into a house that was under construction. If you have an unexpected run-in with an alligator, there are some steps you can take to defend yourself. “Your best bet if you’re in the water and you are able to... stand up make yourself look bigger than that gator is. If you think about it, we still look like monsters to them. They don’t realize that they are bigger than us and can hurt us,” Fisher said. He added, that typically you will not run into a situation like this because they are afraid of people. Host Matt Austin also asked about other popular theories when it comes to escaping a gator attack such as jamming your fingers into its eyes or nose. “The eyeballs is not true. Eyeballs sink right into the sockets in the head to help protect them,” Fisher said. Though a young girl said she was able to fight off an alligator in 2017 by sticking her fingers in its nose. “You might get lucky, but it’s not 100% guaranteed,” Fisher said. He also said punching and kicking the animal’s head will likely just lead to you breaking your hand. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We understand if just the mere thought of talking about a nude resort makes you blush. It’s generally the first response from a lot of people followed quickly by a barrage of questions. What are the rules? Is it family-friendly? How do I get started? Where do I sit? How do I sit? Where do I look? Don’t worry. Here at Florida’s Fourth Estate, we ask all those burning questions, so you don’t have to. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The man who deemed the recent fight between Disney and Florida politicians “like a really ugly middle school ugly middle school breakup” sat down to talk with Florida’s Fourth Estate hosts Ginger Gadsden and Matt Austin about the Reedy Creek Improvement District debacle. “(Disney and Florida politicians) were hot and heavy in this case for, like, five decades sort of each scratching each other’s back and then all of a sudden you know Disney said, ‘Eh, we’re not so fond of this Don’t Say Gay bill, which they only said after a lot of pressure,” Orlando Sentinel columnist Scott Maxwell said. “And then Disney, and this is really important in my mind and it gets overlooked, Disney also said we are going to stop giving you money, which Disney has given to politicians on both sides of the aisle for decades and as soon as that happened the politicians just went apoplectic.” He’s referring to politicians approving a bill that would dissolve the Reedy Creek Improvement District. Maxwell, who has been covering Central Florida for years, calls it a rush job. “Part of the problem here, Ginger, is that you have probably done more research into what Reedy Creek involves than the legislatures and the policymakers who abolished it,” Maxwell said. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill into law in April. If nothing changes, the special district that has given Disney space to self-govern for decades would go away in 2023. On Florida’s Fourth Estate, Maxwell discusses what getting rid of that district could mean for Disney. “There are some people who say, ‘Well, Disney is going to disintegrate and problems will happen if they don’t have these powers.’ I think that’s a bunch of horse hockey,” Maxwell said. “If Disney doesn’t have its own government, you know what Disney will do? It will function just like every other company in the world that doesn’t operate its own government.” Maxwell also discussed the impact on local taxpayers. “Last we checked, there was something like a billion dollars worth of bond indebtedness that Disney has basically assumed right now via Reedy Creek, and if the state takes it over or if Orange County takes it over, that means taxpayers ultimately take it over and we still don’t have good answers on to who is going to be responsible for all of that,” he said. Maxwell also goes on to talk about how all this plays into the DeSantis’ political aspirations on the latest episode of Florida’s Fourth Estate. You can hear his analysis and get a breakdown of this political battle and the week’s most interesting stories in our state from hosts Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden Talk To A Father Daughter Duo Who Were Hit By Lightning. How Did This Happen? Why Is Their Bond Now Stronger Than Ever? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices