Disney exec Dana Walden’s friendship with Kamala Harris may have

Disney exec Dana Walden’s friendship with Kamala Harris may have

Disney govt Dana Walden’s shut friendship with former Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris may have harm her probabilities to succeed Bob Iger as head of the media conglomerate, according to a report.

Sources told Variety that the relationship risked making Disney a goal for the Republican Trump administration, with the publication noting the White House has shown no hesitation about combating highly effective media companies.

Walden’s relationship with Harris, which dates again to the mid-Nineties, is rooted in a previous friendship between their husbands, veteran music govt Matt Walden and Hollywood lawyer Doug Emhoff.

Dana Walden (left), a top Disney govt, has been shut pals with former Vice President Kamala Harris for many years.

Harris has publicly credited the Waldens with introducing her to Emhoff.

Dana Walden has also been a regular monetary backer of Harris’s political profession — courting again to the latter’s campaigns for San Francisco district lawyer, California lawyer normal, US senator and president.

Dana Walden, the co-chair of Disney’s leisure division that oversees tv and streaming, was thought-about a finalist alongside D’Amaro, the theme parks boss, in the race to exchange Iger.

Disney’s board announced this week that it selected D’Amaro, who has been credited with helming the company’s most worthwhile unit. He will formally step into Iger’s sneakers next month, while Walden shall be elevated to a new place as chief artistic officer.

Another issue that may have performed a component in the resolution to faucet D’Amaro was Walden’s dealing with of Jimmy Kimmel’s temporary suspension in the fall, according to Variety.

Sources told the outlet that the Kimmel saga was widely considered within the company as a public relations debacle catastrophe.

Walden (second from proper) misplaced out in the race to succeed Disney CEO Bob Iger (far proper). Josh D’Amaro (second from left), who heads Disney Experiences, was given the nod. Disney Chair James Gorman is seen far left. by way of REUTERS

A Disney source rejected the account, telling The Post: “That is completely false and just uninformed speculation from people who weren’t involved in the decision.”

“Dana’s expanded remit and long-term role reflect the Board’s confidence in her leadership,” the individual added.

Kimmel was suspended after a monologue about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk wherein the host accused “the MAGA gang” of politicizing the capturing and aligning themselves with the killer.

Kimmel also drew backlash for remarks critics considered as mocking or minimizing the means Kirk was being memorialized, saying some conservatives had been treating him “like a martyr, like Martin Luther King Jr.”

Sources steered to Variety that Disney handed over Walden in order to not put a goal on the company’s again for President Trump. Getty Images

The comments sparked outrage from conservative teams and station house owners, main a number of ABC associates to drag the present.

Within days, Disney suspended “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” amid political stress and threats of regulatory scrutiny, only to reinstate the program following public backlash and lengthen Kimmel’s contract.

Walden was credited by Kimmel himself with serving to him navigate the fallout and suppose by way of the controversy during his suspension.

Disney paid $15 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Trump following on-air remarks by ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos. ABC

Meanwhile, Trump has waged an aggressive authorized campaign against major media organizations including Disney. He has filed multi-billion-dollar defamation lawsuits during his latest campaign and while in workplace.

Just a month before the inauguration last yr, Disney agreed to pay $15 million to Trump’s library plus $1 million in authorized charges after ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos misstated the end result of the E. Jean Carroll civil verdict on air.

Months before the ABC settlement, CBS’s company dad or mum Paramount agreed to a $16 million cost to Trump to settle a declare that “60 Minutes” deceptively edited an interview with Harris with the intention to make her look more favorable and enhance her possibilities of successful the election.

Trump has also launched multi-billion greenback lawsuits pending against the BBC, the New York Times, the Des Moines Register and the Wall Street Journal, which is owned by The Post’s company dad or mum News Corp.

The Post has sought remark from Harris and the White House.

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