This update has a lot of fluff in it, and by fluff, I mean SNOW! This round contains a number of shows that recap the Disney World Marathon Weekend, which will likely go down in history as one of the oddest weekends ever at the parks. Welcoming the runners was wind, rain, sleet, and, yes, snow. Be sure to check out some great shows below. If you're interested in marathon-based shows, download Be Out Guest, Running to Disney, Those Darn Cats, WaltCast, WDW Radio, and WDW Today. History buffs will really like WTTM, Disney Tidbits, and Mouse Comedy. There's humor all spread out across most of them, too! This was definitely a fun batch to listen to.
If you are interested in listening to any of these episodes, I have links to subscribe for most of these shows in my post HERE. Also, if you're willing, you can help these shows out by posting a review over on iTunes. The more they get, the higher up they appear on searches. If you do start listening to a podcast as a result of what you've seen on here, please let the podcasters know!
As always, please note that this again is not a comprehensive list of the Disney Podcasts that are out there. Mike Hamilton has created Disneypodcastdirectory.net, which he periodically updates with new podcasts and removes dead casts. He also has the automated RSS (historical) feeds of the podcasts. This is more of a cross-section of what is currently being talked about…perhaps something may sound interesting, and you'll subscribe to listen to that topic.
Any and all comments are welcomed! Also, if you know of another podcast that fits here, let me know.
- 01/22/10 – Episode 145, This is a catch-up show, with a Mouse call, several additions to the roll call, and lots of listener e-mails. A word of warning, however…that first roll call addition is a hard one to listen to…great news under tough circumstances. Lots of interest in Club 8, with several people joining (still considering it here). Also, a listener suggestion for Disney's new theme park: Dichterland! There, they will serve the world-renowned Ripper meal. One interesting followup question was regarding a special type of perfume that Bryan's wife wears that reminds him of Main Street…Jonathan immediately thinks it's a popcorn scent. The visual just has me cracking up…she's walking in Liberty Square with this popcorn-scented perfume on when about 200 birds swoop down and attack. Time: 1:39:49
- 01/22/10 – Episode 145, This is a catch-up show, with a Mouse call, several additions to the roll call, and lots of listener e-mails. A word of warning, however…that first roll call addition is a hard one to listen to…great news under tough circumstances. Lots of interest in Club 8, with several people joining (still considering it here). Also, a listener suggestion for Disney's new theme park: Dichterland! There, they will serve the world-renowned Ripper meal. One interesting followup question was regarding a special type of perfume that Bryan's wife wears that reminds him of Main Street…Jonathan immediately thinks it's a popcorn scent. The visual just has me cracking up…she's walking in Liberty Square with this popcorn-scented perfume on when about 200 birds swoop down and attack. Time: 1:39:49
- 01/17/10 – Episode 195, Good show on Disney's Magical Express. Someday, Mike will get to experience it (he's not big on flying). For those who do like flying, lots of good information on how the program works. We've used it on 5 trips and absolutely love it! Time: 32:37
- 01/21/10 – Episode 196, in this Marathon Weekend Wrap-up show, we finally hear of Mike professing his love to Rikki by accidentally send a loving text to her instead of his wife. Moral: don't text when tired! Pam joins the show to talk about the highlights of a very eventful weekend. Time: 48:31
- 01/17/10 – Episode 195, Good show on Disney's Magical Express. Someday, Mike will get to experience it (he's not big on flying). For those who do like flying, lots of good information on how the program works. We've used it on 5 trips and absolutely love it! Time: 32:37
- 01/16/10 – Special 2009 New Year's Blast! Everyone from the show is down at Epcot to celebrate the end of the year, and they take you on their journey. The insanity really begins about 34 minutes in with a Beverley Challenge (down 15 cups in a minute). Pluto, of course, has never tasted it, which may explain why he won. Time: 1:06:09
- 01/16/10 – Special 2009 New Year's Blast! Everyone from the show is down at Epcot to celebrate the end of the year, and they take you on their journey. The insanity really begins about 34 minutes in with a Beverley Challenge (down 15 cups in a minute). Pluto, of course, has never tasted it, which may explain why he won. Time: 1:06:09
- 01/17/10 – Episode 24, A little Disney news is here, but the meat of the show revolves around the "top ten" products introduced at the recent CES (that's the Consumer Electronics Show, for you luddites). Time: 8:05
- 01/17/10 – Episode 24, A little Disney news is here, but the meat of the show revolves around the "top ten" products introduced at the recent CES (that's the Consumer Electronics Show, for you luddites). Time: 8:05
- 01/22/10 – Episode 65, I love this show! They're short, but they're packed with information about an attraction that you'd otherwise likely never hear about. This episode showcases the Carousel of Progress, a favorite among Disney purists! Time: 14:52
- 01/22/10 – Episode 65, I love this show! They're short, but they're packed with information about an attraction that you'd otherwise likely never hear about. This episode showcases the Carousel of Progress, a favorite among Disney purists! Time: 14:52
- 01/20/10 – Episode 33, News and Rumours begin the show, as they take a look at what's going at WDW and Disneyland Pars. Following that is another installment of Adam's trip to Disney World last year. The answers to the latest trivia contest are revealed and, about an hour in, we are introduced to a new segment called "Around the World in Eighty Segments!" They're going to try to create an audio guidebook for both WDW and Disneyland Paris, one section at a time. They start out with the Magic Kingdom's Main Street USA. Time: 1:44:12
- 01/20/10 – Episode 33, News and Rumours begin the show, as they take a look at what's going at WDW and Disneyland Pars. Following that is another installment of Adam's trip to Disney World last year. The answers to the latest trivia contest are revealed and, about an hour in, we are introduced to a new segment called "Around the World in Eighty Segments!" They're going to try to create an audio guidebook for both WDW and Disneyland Paris, one section at a time. They start out with the Magic Kingdom's Main Street USA. Time: 1:44:12
- 01/20/10 – Episode 190, Happy 4th anniversary to the show! This is the Tuesday night chat show, sponsored by Highland Park Scotch, not to be confused by the French Ge-ner-ic (pronounced je-nair-EEK) brand of Scotch. How these guys mistook Xanadu with Highway to Hell, I'll never know. Confused yet? This is common for this interactive, stream of consciousness chat-based show! Time: 1:46:50
- 01/21/10 – Episode 191, advertisement for David's newest release: Disney Park Essentials, Vol. 2, with lots of audio samples. Time: 55:01
- 01/22/10 – Episode 192, advertisement for David's release of a very inclusive Epcot CD/download from the past 27 years. 6 hours of rare audio are included. Time: 28:23
- 01/20/10 – Episode 190, Happy 4th anniversary to the show! This is the Tuesday night chat show, sponsored by Highland Park Scotch, not to be confused by the French Ge-ner-ic (pronounced je-nair-EEK) brand of Scotch. How these guys mistook Xanadu with Highway to Hell, I'll never know. Confused yet? This is common for this interactive, stream of consciousness chat-based show! Time: 1:46:50
- 01/18/10 – Greg vacates the usual order for a special episode. He brings on special guest Geoff Mitchell of the Main Street Editions and White Apple Studios web sites to discuss the two Disney theme parks in Tokyo. Being a renowned artist, he gives a unique and detailed perspective of some of the intricacies of Tokyo Disney and DisneySea. Time: 2:11:48
- 01/18/10 – Greg vacates the usual order for a special episode. He brings on special guest Geoff Mitchell of the Main Street Editions and White Apple Studios web sites to discuss the two Disney theme parks in Tokyo. Being a renowned artist, he gives a unique and detailed perspective of some of the intricacies of Tokyo Disney and DisneySea. Time: 2:11:48
- 01/17/10 – Episode 250, Ricky gives us the news around the world and the tip of the day before starting a talk about Disney's newest promotion, Give a Day, Get a Disney Day. Included is feedback from listeners about their experiences – both positive and negative. Hopefully things will smooth out now that the early rush is over. Skipper Ben follows with his trip report from his most recent visit down to Orlando.
- 01/17/10 – Episode 250, Ricky gives us the news around the world and the tip of the day before starting a talk about Disney's newest promotion, Give a Day, Get a Disney Day. Included is feedback from listeners about their experiences – both positive and negative. Hopefully things will smooth out now that the early rush is over. Skipper Ben follows with his trip report from his most recent visit down to Orlando.
- 01/17/10 – On their first show of the new year, Nathan and Jim give their outlook of the Disney company for 2010. There's a lot of speculation, with all the changes that have occurred in upper-management positions throughout the Disney company. Time: 49:34
- 01/17/10 – On their first show of the new year, Nathan and Jim give their outlook of the Disney company for 2010. There's a lot of speculation, with all the changes that have occurred in upper-management positions throughout the Disney company. Time: 49:34
- 01/19/10 – Greg, Mike, and Shaft start off the first hour of the show with a look at a recently-published "Top Ten Things you Never Knew About Disneyland" (in which a plethora of "BS!" is called on several disingenuous entries. It's inconceivable! (you'll understand if you listen)) before they give the soapbox to Mike so he can have a talk about a recent Veteran's Administration hospital visit that he experienced. Having gone through a bunch of problems myself during my experience, I truly hope that things get straightened out. I'll stop now before I get even madder at a system that has nearly caused me to go into a fit of depression. Time: 1:34:10
- 01/19/10 – Greg, Mike, and Shaft start off the first hour of the show with a look at a recently-published "Top Ten Things you Never Knew About Disneyland" (in which a plethora of "BS!" is called on several disingenuous entries. It's inconceivable! (you'll understand if you listen)) before they give the soapbox to Mike so he can have a talk about a recent Veteran's Administration hospital visit that he experienced. Having gone through a bunch of problems myself during my experience, I truly hope that things get straightened out. I'll stop now before I get even madder at a system that has nearly caused me to go into a fit of depression. Time: 1:34:10
- 01/18/10 – Episode 69, Jonathon and Tairy start off the show with an homage to a special gift that Jonathon got from Sir Paul Barrie. Jonathon is treasuring this gift and is keeping it in mint condition in the hopes that it appreciates in value exponentially. The gift? A DVD copy of Disney's G-Force! (yeah, he vows never to watch it…how rude! LMAO). They then get into the meat of the show, which is an examination of the Disneyland Storybook Land Canal Boats. It starts with a Mystery-Science-Theater-3000-ish ride-through of the Anaheim attraction before Tairy gives several historical tidbits about it. After that, the winner/winners of the most recent contest is/are announced. Time: 51:05
- 01/18/10 – Episode 69, Jonathon and Tairy start off the show with an homage to a special gift that Jonathon got from Sir Paul Barrie. Jonathon is treasuring this gift and is keeping it in mint condition in the hopes that it appreciates in value exponentially. The gift? A DVD copy of Disney's G-Force! (yeah, he vows never to watch it…how rude! LMAO). They then get into the meat of the show, which is an examination of the Disneyland Storybook Land Canal Boats. It starts with a Mystery-Science-Theater-3000-ish ride-through of the Anaheim attraction before Tairy gives several historical tidbits about it. After that, the winner/winners of the most recent contest is/are announced. Time: 51:05
- 01/21/10 – Episode 21, this show is full of innuendo, which is probably why I liked it so much! First off, to Will: I want the pictures of Aurora, too! Several of the DPNer's and other non-DPN podcasters meet up in Norway to see the sights, and by sights, I mean the princesses at Akershus. Matt uses a Princess Will and his daughter (yeah, you read that right…listen, and it will make more sense) to try to score phone numbers from the likes of Jasmine, Snow White, and Cinderella. By the way…nice cover art on the show (Tink grew up nicely!) The end-song…OMG!!! Time: 54:24
- 01/21/10 – Episode 21, this show is full of innuendo, which is probably why I liked it so much! First off, to Will: I want the pictures of Aurora, too! Several of the DPNer's and other non-DPN podcasters meet up in Norway to see the sights, and by sights, I mean the princesses at Akershus. Matt uses a Princess Will and his daughter (yeah, you read that right…listen, and it will make more sense) to try to score phone numbers from the likes of Jasmine, Snow White, and Cinderella. By the way…nice cover art on the show (Tink grew up nicely!) The end-song…OMG!!! Time: 54:24
- 01/16/10 – Episode 234, Dan's got the controls again, and he continues the previous show with the last two parts of BBCs Ain't No Mickey Mouse Music. Time: 56:58
- 01/16/10 – Episode 234, Dan's got the controls again, and he continues the previous show with the last two parts of BBCs Ain't No Mickey Mouse Music. Time: 56:58
- 01/18/10 – Episode 381, Shorts show! Much to my chagrin (not caused by Mike and Mark…from many of my online friends), they talk Dumbo. They then give a review of the Sci-Fi Dine-In restaurant at Hollywood Studios (we haven't eaten there but want to). Andrew gives the week in review, and listener feedback wraps it. Time: 35:49
- 01/20/10 – Episode 382, this show is brought to you by the letters: D, A, and K, and the number 3 (I wonder how many missed that!) Featured Topic for this show is the last of the "Bottom Three" at Animal Kingdom. As for Chester and Hester's…I know it's a thorn in a lot of people's sides, but I like it. I think that this is the most obscure storyline in the entire WDW complex. Once you know what was going on in the Imagineers' heads, you'll get a whole new appreciation for the place. Now, I know that most of the experts probably already know the story; for those who don't follow Disney World as "in-depth" as some of us, though…here's the story. Dinoland USA is themed as a campus town for the graduate students who are studying at the Dino Institute. Being graduate students, they occasionally need to have a release, and, as you look around, you'll see some of the college stuff that you'd see at any university. There are lawn chairs on the roofs. The Boneyard has a radio station run by the students who parody their very existence with dinosaur-related music (look at some of the imagineering around the boneyard...there's some amazing theming going on, like a description of the fossil, penned by one of the professors, and notes tacked on by grad students discussing the theory). They attached "osaurus" to the end of a bunch of signs as a prank (that's how the restaurant over there got its name...look at the sign). Apparently, the Dino Institute tried buying up all the land, but one business wouldn't sell...Chester and Hester's gas station. Chester and Hester are 2 folks who converted their gas station into a tourist trap to get the folks trying to get to the Dino Institute. They ended up adding on by buying a lot of stands/attractions from the midway folks, and, in the process, made the tourist trap as gaudy as could be. I think there will be a little more appreciation, once you look at the area with the background story. Time: 31:28
- 01/18/10 – Episode 381, Shorts show! Much to my chagrin (not caused by Mike and Mark…from many of my online friends), they talk Dumbo. They then give a review of the Sci-Fi Dine-In restaurant at Hollywood Studios (we haven't eaten there but want to). Andrew gives the week in review, and listener feedback wraps it. Time: 35:49
- 01/22/10 – Episode 45, Gordon issued a challenge to runners from the Disney Marathon weekend to call in and give reports from the event with the qualification that, if he had enough, he'd do an entire episode with almost no talking. It worked…1.25 hours of reports, with almost no Gordon (what does that say?). Some really inspiring stories out there…all of them were great, but Byron, from the Phat Disney Geek blog has a really memorable report about 27 minutes in. Congrats to all on completing their races. Y'all have me seriously contemplating running in 2011. Time:
- 01/22/10 – Episode 45, Gordon issued a challenge to runners from the Disney Marathon weekend to call in and give reports from the event with the qualification that, if he had enough, he'd do an entire episode with almost no talking. It worked…1.25 hours of reports, with almost no Gordon (what does that say?). Some really inspiring stories out there…all of them were great, but Byron, from the Phat Disney Geek blog has a really memorable report about 27 minutes in. Congrats to all on completing their races. Y'all have me seriously contemplating running in 2011. Time:
- 01/19/10 – Episode 87, Baby, It's Cold Outside! Yep…that's a very appropriate title for this show. Lisa and Jennifer chronicle a rather interesting marathon weekend, starting with the insane weather. The treasure of this show, however, is encased in the last 42 minutes of the show. Lisa has the recorder on while she drives around Walt Disney World and towards the airport. Having read the tweets between her and Trace, who is less than enthused with air travel after this trip, I knew this was going to be interesting. Face it, we've all done this at one time or another, language and all, but there are some seriously hilarious line in there, from "private dining" to being eaten by an armadillo or a sasquatch crocodilian thing! Time: 1:13:45
- 01/19/10 – Episode 87, Baby, It's Cold Outside! Yep…that's a very appropriate title for this show. Lisa and Jennifer chronicle a rather interesting marathon weekend, starting with the insane weather. The treasure of this show, however, is encased in the last 42 minutes of the show. Lisa has the recorder on while she drives around Walt Disney World and towards the airport. Having read the tweets between her and Trace, who is less than enthused with air travel after this trip, I knew this was going to be interesting. Face it, we've all done this at one time or another, language and all, but there are some seriously hilarious line in there, from "private dining" to being eaten by an armadillo or a sasquatch crocodilian thing! Time: 1:13:45
- 01/18/10 – Episode 126, Earl is back and loving the parenting thing (for now…wait until they learn the word 'no'). Earl's trapped at the American Adventure and commenting on all the scenery. Best line: Susan B. Anthony is HOT! Before this episode, the only person I ever knew that could link the Village People with the American Adventure is a friend of mine, Ed, who was doing the motions to "YMCA" during Food and Wine '07 and drenched another friend with wine when he hit the glass out of her hand. Now there are two (thanks, Earl!). Do yourself a favor and stay for the end of the show…you'll have a hot lap by the time it's over (it starts off so sweet and innocent, too, before taking an unexpected turn). Time: 48:45
- 01/18/10 – Episode 126, Earl is back and loving the parenting thing (for now…wait until they learn the word 'no'). Earl's trapped at the American Adventure and commenting on all the scenery. Best line: Susan B. Anthony is HOT! Before this episode, the only person I ever knew that could link the Village People with the American Adventure is a friend of mine, Ed, who was doing the motions to "YMCA" during Food and Wine '07 and drenched another friend with wine when he hit the glass out of her hand. Now there are two (thanks, Earl!). Do yourself a favor and stay for the end of the show…you'll have a hot lap by the time it's over (it starts off so sweet and innocent, too, before taking an unexpected turn). Time: 48:45
- 01/19/10 – Episode 26, On this episode of Dr. Phil, we delve deep into Shawn's dreams and look into why he dreams about Miley Cyrus. Mike Scopa is on to talk about Marathon Weekend, the goods, the bads, and the uglys. Time: 39:25
- 01/19/10 – Episode 26, On this episode of Dr. Phil, we delve deep into Shawn's dreams and look into why he dreams about Miley Cyrus. Mike Scopa is on to talk about Marathon Weekend, the goods, the bads, and the uglys. Time: 39:25
- 01/17/10 – Episode 154, Lou brings on a huge roundtable to talk about the Marathon Weekend and presses the notion that this is quickly becoming one of the bigger events at Walt Disney World. Included is both runners' and spectators' perspectives. As an aside, our thoughts and prayers go out to Lou, Deanna, and their children. I don't feel right just mentioning it here, but those who follow Lou on Facebook know what he's going through. Time: 1:35:38
- 01/17/10 – Episode 154, Lou brings on a huge roundtable to talk about the Marathon Weekend and presses the notion that this is quickly becoming one of the bigger events at Walt Disney World. Included is both runners' and spectators' perspectives. As an aside, our thoughts and prayers go out to Lou, Deanna, and their children. I don't feel right just mentioning it here, but those who follow Lou on Facebook know what he's going through. Time: 1:35:38
- 01/18/10 – Episode 670, These guys are killing me! In this episode, they send me to therapy by making me relive my game show history a mere fifteen seconds in with the opening to Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (click here to read the agony of my story). This was recorded during the December 2009 "Reunion" event – a game show called Who Wants to Earn Their Ears! Okay, I'll keep the critique of the background music away (yeah, I was screaming at the iPod while the sound board tried to keep up with what was going on). Molly, Trace, and Jennifer are the contestants…Trace got robbed (moral: never trust Masayo or Annette). Fun show! Time: 53:03
- 01/20/10 – Episode 671, Listener questions episode. The hosts were on fire in this episode. Here, you'll listen to stories about 5-year old mothers, Jennifer's (of Those Darn Cats fame) beer bath (background story here), and the return of The Unofficial Guide as a host, Testa's Test Track (I could have sworn they were going to go somewhere else with that, but it would have earned their first "explicit" rating on iTunes). We also find out about everyone's ages, too (they're older than I thought!). Time: 36:32
- 01/22/10 – Episode 672, Scopa talks about Marathon Weekend with Matt, Newell, and Annette. Time: 22:21
- 01/18/10 – Episode 670, These guys are killing me! In this episode, they send me to therapy by making me relive my game show history a mere fifteen seconds in with the opening to Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (click here to read the agony of my story). This was recorded during the December 2009 "Reunion" event – a game show called Who Wants to Earn Their Ears! Okay, I'll keep the critique of the background music away (yeah, I was screaming at the iPod while the sound board tried to keep up with what was going on). Molly, Trace, and Jennifer are the contestants…Trace got robbed (moral: never trust Masayo or Annette). Fun show! Time: 53:03
- 01/17/10 –Episode 32, Matt and Nate are in a collecting mood for this show. They bring on Steve Barrett, who has an interesting background even without any Disney involvement. He's worked with LucasArts as well as Scorcese with their host of web sites. He's on this show, however, to talk about a new endeavor he's taking on, dizcollect.com. There is an interesting idea behind this site (which might just put me out of business in the process). He's looking at trying to make website that acts as a repository for all sorts of collections. For example, suppose that you are looking to find a special item that completes a collection. This site can help you find it. Another goal is to create a site that is a clearinghouse for Disney blogs and podcasts (thus killing my blog). After this, Cody Smith of the Global Disney Pinvestigation Blog joins the show to talk about pins…how to get started, etiquette of trading, etc. But wait…he also talks about collecting vinylmation figures (the enhanced additions are really helpful here as I had never seen one before (heard about them a million times, but never seen one). Two are actually opened "live" during the podcast. Time: 1:32:54
- 01/17/10 –Episode 32, Matt and Nate are in a collecting mood for this show. They bring on Steve Barrett, who has an interesting background even without any Disney involvement. He's worked with LucasArts as well as Scorcese with their host of web sites. He's on this show, however, to talk about a new endeavor he's taking on, dizcollect.com. There is an interesting idea behind this site (which might just put me out of business in the process). He's looking at trying to make website that acts as a repository for all sorts of collections. For example, suppose that you are looking to find a special item that completes a collection. This site can help you find it. Another goal is to create a site that is a clearinghouse for Disney blogs and podcasts (thus killing my blog). After this, Cody Smith of the Global Disney Pinvestigation Blog joins the show to talk about pins…how to get started, etiquette of trading, etc. But wait…he also talks about collecting vinylmation figures (the enhanced additions are really helpful here as I had never seen one before (heard about them a million times, but never seen one). Two are actually opened "live" during the podcast. Time: 1:32:54
- 01/17/10 – Episode 222, Paul turns the mike over to Magic Joe, who presents some audio keepsakes from yesteryear. Seriously, some of these recordings are from over 40 years ago. In this installment, Joe gives us a ride on the Disneyland Railroad, then………and now. In the "now" section, he records from the Lilly Belle parlor car, complete with dialogue with a Cast Member about its history. Really well put-together, as is the norm for the shows on this podcast. Great job, Paul and Joe! Time: 54:01
- 01/17/10 – Episode 222, Paul turns the mike over to Magic Joe, who presents some audio keepsakes from yesteryear. Seriously, some of these recordings are from over 40 years ago. In this installment, Joe gives us a ride on the Disneyland Railroad, then………and now. In the "now" section, he records from the Lilly Belle parlor car, complete with dialogue with a Cast Member about its history. Really well put-together, as is the norm for the shows on this podcast. Great job, Paul and Joe! Time: 54:01
- 01/16/10 – Episode 45, Aaron gives his views of Disney's The Princess and the Frog. In it, he provides a very intriguing soliloquy on how Disney handled the case of the first African-American Princess in a feature film. The Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Pod podcast was one of the reasons that I shopped for a new iPod – especially one with a "Memo" feature. Aaron tackles some issues that will likely have some folks screaming at their MP3 players, but he provides the start for some really good debate. For example, he considers the way Disney dealt with the race issue as "awkward" and "confusing", and he laid out an argument defending this. The idea that first jumped in my mind was the exact opposite. My view is that I understand Disney's actions for this reason: Had Disney ramped up the rhetoric that "Yes, we have Tiana in a movie", there could be some potential backlash from the African-American community in that Disney is using what many would consider an odd form of discrimination (intended or not) for their financial gain rather than to promote diversity or do a fairy-tale story where the main protagonist is traditionally white. There are plenty of sites out there that would take whatever view they wanted, and some negative publicity has come from those places. I see Disney as keeping wholly neutral on this. Basically, they're in a "damned if you do, and damned if you don't" situation, and they chose "don't". Loving the return of the show! Time: 30:12
- 01/16/10 – Episode 45, Aaron gives his views of Disney's The Princess and the Frog. In it, he provides a very intriguing soliloquy on how Disney handled the case of the first African-American Princess in a feature film. The Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Pod podcast was one of the reasons that I shopped for a new iPod – especially one with a "Memo" feature. Aaron tackles some issues that will likely have some folks screaming at their MP3 players, but he provides the start for some really good debate. For example, he considers the way Disney dealt with the race issue as "awkward" and "confusing", and he laid out an argument defending this. The idea that first jumped in my mind was the exact opposite. My view is that I understand Disney's actions for this reason: Had Disney ramped up the rhetoric that "Yes, we have Tiana in a movie", there could be some potential backlash from the African-American community in that Disney is using what many would consider an odd form of discrimination (intended or not) for their financial gain rather than to promote diversity or do a fairy-tale story where the main protagonist is traditionally white. There are plenty of sites out there that would take whatever view they wanted, and some negative publicity has come from those places. I see Disney as keeping wholly neutral on this. Basically, they're in a "damned if you do, and damned if you don't" situation, and they chose "don't". Loving the return of the show! Time: 30:12
