Large Investors Pushing Disney Into Culture War, Says Author of “Woke, Inc.”

The bestselling author of Woke, Inc. said that
Disney’s
biggest investors are “whispering” in the ear of executives and encouraging them
to oppose
controversial Florida
education legislation
.

Vivek Ramaswamy, whose
book
makes the case that corporations should not
wade into politics
, asserted that the enormous money managers that have invested heavily in Disney and other companies are calling some of the shots when it comes to corporate political forays such as the one Disney is
engaged in
.

Disney is in the
national spotlight
after it came out against the Florida legislation, which is called the Parental Rights in Education bill but has been branded the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by detractors. Disney initially did not take a position on the legislation, which would ban classroom instruction of
sexual orientation
and
gender identity
through the third grade, but, under pressure, the company has since voiced its full-throated opposition.

Ramaswamy said on Fox News that one talking point about Disney’s decision to lobby against the Florida legislation is that CEO Bob Chapek’s hand was forced by activist employees who complained and demonstrated against Disney’s neutrality on the matter. Ramaswamy contends that Chapek’s decision was moved by more than just employee pushback.

LARRY FINK DEFENDS BLACKROCK AGAINST ACCUSATIONS IT IS ‘WOKE’

“There’s a quieter undercurrent here, too,” Ramaswamy said, pointing out that Disney’s three largest shareholders (who own a combined 15.3% of the company) are
BlackRock
, Vanguard Group, and State Street.

Those firms are among the largest asset managers in the United States, and Ramaswamy said they are directly influencing Chapek’s moves. Ramaswamy said the money managers “quietly tell them that exactly these are the kinds of social agendas that they want to see them push.”

“Actually, if you’re a CEO in a public company today, you find yourself sandwiched not just between your progressive, woke employees. … It’s that when you look at your alleged bosses, the ‘shareholders,’ they’re actually quietly whispering in your ear that they want to see you doing the same things too,” he said. “So it runs far deeper, and it’s far more complicated.”

Ramaswamy pointed out that Disney’s three largest shareholders are unlike an individual investor (for example, Elon Musk, who just bought a
massive stake
in Twitter), but are composed of everyday people who entrust institutions, such as BlackRock, Vanguard Group, and State Street, to manage their money.

He went on to say that the money managers are “betraying their true clients” by pushing Disney and other companies to wade into the realm of politics and stakeholder prioritization.

Stakeholder capitalism discards the understanding that the singular purpose of a corporation is to serve its shareholders and instead emphasizes providing value to customers, employees, suppliers, and communities. Recent years have seen a
shift on Wall Street toward embracing stakeholder capitalism
in addition to a focus on environmental, social, and governance standards.

Larry Fink, the founder and CEO of BlackRock, has faced criticism for his company’s involvement in issues such as climate change and domestic political matters while conducting business in China, which is accused of committing
genocide
against ethnic Uyghurs.

In his annual letter to CEOs, Fink rebutted complaints that BlackRock has gone “
woke
.”

“Stakeholder capitalism is not about politics. It is not a social or ideological agenda. It is not ‘woke.’ It is capitalism, driven by mutually beneficial relationships between you and the employees, customers, suppliers, and communities your company relies on to prosper,” Fink said. “This is the power of capitalism.”

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Last year, Fink’s company began
tapping into the Chinese market
by offering mutual funds and investment products to Chinese investors — the first foreign-owned firm to be allowed to do so.

Conservative group Consumers’ Research is engaged in
an ad campaign
targeting BlackRock and Fink for its ties to China.