Address to the Association of American Publishers by Michael D. Eisner Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company

Business Wire, Feb 28, 2002

Business & Editorial Page Editors

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 28, 2002

Thank you Bob, thank you Association of American Publishers, and thank you Pat Schroeder for inviting me to speak to you.

I was thrilled at the opportunity to address the leaders of the American publishing industry. You are the ones who keep alive and vibrant the precious world of books and magazines ... although, I imagine that there must be times when you wonder where we will find the great writers of tomorrow. For example, a while ago The Washington Post published a sampling of analogies written by high school English students. Here are a few of them.

First there's -- "The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn't."

Then there's -- "From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie, surreal quality, like when you're on vacation in another city and `Jeopardy' comes on at 7 p.m. instead of 7:30."

Or, how about -- "The politician was gone but unnoticed, like the period after the Dr. on a Dr Pepper can."

This one leaves nothing to doubt -- "The thunder was ominous-sounding, much like the sound of a thin sheet of metal being shaken backstage during the storm scene in a play."

Finally, there's my personal favorite -- "Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever."

Of course, every generation worries about the next one, and I am confident that you will uncover the writing talent of tomorrow.

Since I am one of your biggest admirers, it's clear why I'd want to meet with you today. But, I imagine there are those of you who question whether I would have anything relevant to say to you. After all, you are the captains of the American publishing industry ... and I work for Mickey Mouse. So, this is a reasonable question, for which I have four reasonable answers:

First of all, The Walt Disney Company is a publisher, too. Three of our company's businesses are Hyperion Books, Hyperion Books for Children and Disney Publishing Worldwide ... and we publish a wide range of magazines. Also, through our character-licensing deals with book publishers around the world, we reach more children than any publisher in the world.

Second, many of our non-publishing businesses are rooted in the world of books. Most of our classic animated films are based on literature -- from "Snow White" to "Bambi" to "Aladdin" to "Tarzan" to this fall's "Treasure Planet." And, many of our live action films are as well, whether "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea," "Pollyanna," "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," "The Horse Whisperer" or "The English Patient." What's more, at our theme parks, books are the source for numerous attractions, such as Tom Sawyer's Island, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and Splash Mountain. We have a very popular animated character, Belle, whose persona is based on her love of reading. And, as some of you may remember, our very own spokescricket has paid homage to the world of books.

(VIDEO -- Jiminy Cricket singing his book song)

The third reason I have for speaking to you today is that all of us in this room are in the business of communication. I may be involved more in the entertainment side of things, while some of you are involved more in education and information, but the common denominator is communication. And, as I will be discussing, the world of communication comprises a very big tent that comfortably houses all who excel at it.

Fourth and finally, we share a common enemy. And, as it has been said, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend." By that measure, we are all friends. But, before I spell out who this enemy is, let me back up to Reason Three and provide you with a brief history of mass communication over the last seven centuries ... or, as I call it, from Gutenberg -- to Gates.

(VISUAL -- Timeline)

Here is the Gutenberg-Gates timeline.

It begins ... in 1455, with Johannes Gutenberg's invention of the printing press. Thanks to this technological breakthrough, books became available to the common man.

In 1689 came the first newspaper, a periodical called "The Present State of the New English Affairs."

Now the average Joe could keep abreast of the major events of his day.

Moving right along, we come to the year 1741, when the first magazine appeared, called "A Monthly View of the Political State of the British Colonies." With it came feature stories with in-depth reporting that daily newspapers couldn't offer.

The pace picked up in the late 19th century.

In 1892 came the first motion picture exhibition. 1907 brought the first regular radio broadcasts. In 1927, television arrived. And, in 1975, a guy named Bill Gates started a company called Microsoft that helped transform the computer from a utilitarian office machine into a home appliance that allowed us to enter a world of interactive communication and entertainment.

Of course, the computer is still not a flawless communication tool. Not only does it tend to crash, but software instructions are not always clear for all of us non-technologists.

Consider the young girl whose password for Disney.com is MickeyMinnieGoofyPluto. When she was asked why she picked such a long password, she responded, "Because they say it has to have at least four characters."