Park passes for the Media?

[nicdanh]

My husband is a News Photographer for a local News Station & we heard that people who work in the Media are entitled to free park passes?? Does anyone know anything about this?

Thanks!
Michelle

 

[nicdanh]

nobody knows???

 

[nicdanh]

I got the answer I was looking for! It is true!! For all you media people you are entitled to 2 tickets one park a day. I wish we knew this the last million times we went and spent all that money on tickets.

 

[lentesta]

Ask for the "Magic FASTPASS" card they give out during media events. That's even better.

Congratulations!

Len

 

[ThinkAgain]

If your husband is going to be working on this trip, then his employer (TV station, newspaper, magazine, etc.) should pay for his pass.
It's unethical for a journalist to take "freebies" for himself, herself or their families and friends. This is one of the reasons why many Americans think so poorly of journalists.
Please, do the ethical, right thing and pay for your passes.
Sorry to be so strident, but this is really unethical behavior that is being proposed.

 

[ThinkAgain]

And I'm curious, but I don't believe Bob Sehlinger accepts free passes, meals or lodging.

 

[WDWguru]

ThinkAgain, you're absolutely right. I work for a major newspaper and when I go to the Disney press events, I do use the passes they provide, but I would never dream of asking for passes for a personal vacation. In fact, if I did and my employer found out, I could be fired. There is an entire section in our employee manual regarding freebies, what is acceptible and what is to be done with the unsolicited things we receive. For the most part, services and travel are declined unless directly associated with covering an event. Items, review copies, etc, are donated to an appropriate charity or sold to staff and the proceeds donated to a charity.

lentesta... those are AWESOME but unfortunately they only create them for certain events and they are only good for that time period. (I kept one once just to try it on a future trip, but no dice.)

 

[Canuckdad]

If your husband is going to be working on this trip, then his employer (TV station, newspaper, magazine, etc.) should pay for his pass.
It's unethical for a journalist to take "freebies" for himself, herself or their families and friends. This is one of the reasons why many Americans think so poorly of journalists.
Please, do the ethical, right thing and pay for your passes.
Sorry to be so strident, but this is really unethical behavior that is being proposed.

Thoroughly agree with the above. I've worked as a newspaper writer for nearly 20 years, and I wouldn't think of using that position to get a freebie like this. It just casts everybody in journalism as a bunch of freeloaders, which isn't fair. Travel writers are entitled to these passes — why should they have to pay to do their work? But the rest of us should simply do the right thing and pay for the tickets. Please don't do it.

 

[DoomBuggyBabe]

I've been a newspaper reporter/copy editor for 15 years, and every paper I've been employed by has a policy against freebies. We're not allowed to take anything. At my current office, whenever freebies (books, CDs -- a couple of pairs of Mickey ears even showed up recently) are sent in for review or whatever, they get piled in a glass case outside the editor's office and are put up for "sale" to the highest bidder. Proceeds go to charity of the month (this month there's a Red Cross/Katrina fund). If I took free passes and the bosses found out, I'd be fired REAL quick. Besides, taking advantage of the system is just uncool.
Cheers,
Q

 

[lentesta]

And I'm curious, but I don't believe Bob Sehlinger accepts free passes, meals or lodging.

To the best of my knowledge, we pay regular price for everything we review. It amounts to tens of thousands of dollars per year. I was comped airfare and part of my hotel for the last two media events, but not much of those events made it into the Guide. (I didn't get free tickets....odd.) And I don't think anyone - especially anyone who's read the Stitch review - would say those two instances made us go easy on Disney.

Michelle, is your husband on assignment in WDW, or is this a personal vacation?

Len

 

[cleo]

If he's on assignment his company should make arrangements with Disney, who DO check you out before they 'give' you passes. If it's a family vacation he's not entitled to free passes.

 

[nicdanh]

My goodness! I feel very badly you all think I am a bad person. This is a personal family trip & management at my husbands place of business told us that certain people who work in the media are entitled to free passes a couple times a year.

 

[minnie61650]

My goodness! I feel very badly you all think I am a bad person. This is a personal family trip & management at my husbands place of business told us that certain people who work in the media are entitled to free passes a couple times a year.

I do not think you are a bad person. You were just mistaken. Maybe you thought it was perk in the bussiness. Employees at a Disney store get two or three tickets a year. Now with the help of your fellow Dis members you learned the free passes are not for personal but for business use.
It was an honest mistake.
Have fun at Disney!
Linda

 

[cleo]

I don't think anyone thinks you're a 'bad person'. No one made a comment about the sort of person you are, we just said media isn't entitled to free passes for their family vacations.

Disney is very strict about giving out passes, even to media, and the 2 free passes a year are for work, not for pleasure. That means if you are covering Disney for a story, you can do so twice a year on their dime. Sometimes media will be invited to press events, which don't take away from the 2 'free' passes. But they don't hand over passes for you to use at will. They are quite thorough in making sure you are working while using the pass.

 

[nicdanh]

Cleo

That is untrue about personal trips. These tickets ARE for personal family trips for certain media workers. These tickets will not work for any type of Disney Media event. These tickets are for one park of your choice (no hopping) and you must tell them what date you want to visit that park & that is the date you MUST use. There are alot of restrictions on these tickets.
We were told by management about this family benefit for media workers.

 

[Jennasis]

Been there done that...at Universal. Call the Public Relations department and request a pair of media tix. Generally you will need also to submit a request on COMPANY letterhead with the exact names of your guests. It is my understanding that these tickets are for writers, producers, reporters, camera-people, photographers only and must be in conjunction with a media need. When I went to Universal it happened to be two days before the public opening of IOA and they were doing press previews (not everything was open). I wasn't even aware of this when I planned the trip. I was given two passes that were good for one day and I could hop between parks. I needed to show my press passes when I picked up the tickets at guests services. Also, in my letter to the PR department I had to explain to them the nature of my media need. In my case I was "casing" the park to try to get my news director to let me do a story involving the parks. I was information gathering.

So as the other posters said, getting it as a freebie/perk, is journalistically unethical (though almost EVERY ONE of my fellow cameramen/reporters did it this way). You must have a journalistic NEED to be in the park to get a free pass. ALSO my letter of request had to be signed by the news director according to PR.

An a side note, my news director shot down my story idea. Dangit!

 

[bethzfl]

I say Have Fun! And use the pass.. It's not like you won't be spending oodles of money there. I would take a free pass anyday.

 

[Jennasis]

Beth, they are not entitled to the pass. IT's basically a work permit that a working news gathering crew needs to have to be in the park taking photos, interviewing, or such. It isn't so that "hard working" journalists and photogs can take themselves or their families on a cheap trip. Again, I'm not saying that a GREAT many of the guys and gals in my old newsroom didn't do it that way, but it isn't supposed to be done that way.

 

[bethzfl]

Beth, they are not entitled to the pass. IT's basically a work permit that a working news gathering crew needs to have to be in the park taking photos, interviewing, or such. It isn't so that "hard working" journalists and photogs can take themselves or their families on a cheap trip. Again, I'm not saying that a GREAT many of the guys and gals in my old newsroom didn't do it that way, but it isn't supposed to be done that way.

I get your point.. I just know that several people that give the OP a hard time would take a pass like that in a second.. it's human nature to take any monetary break you can get.

But I'm NOT an arguer, I totally understand what the pass is meant to be used for. And yeah, it is technically wrong.

 

[Jennasis]

I get your point.. I just know that several people that give the OP a hard time would take a pass like that in a second.. it's human nature to take any monetary break you can get.

But I'm NOT an arguer, I totally understand what the pass is meant to be used for. And yeah, it is technically wrong.

That's ok! I'm the girl who buys a new mug each visit and wouldn't dream of sticking a toe in a resort pool unless I was a guest! You are right...SOOOOOO many of my coworkers snapped up a deal like that without hesitation. I was even more annoyed to find out that production assistants and editors (video editors) and other NON-field type personnel were lying to get the passes, saying they were producers, reporters or photographers. Even an intern managed to snag one! It's insane!