Disneyland executives apparently sent emails to California health officials following the measles outbreak urging them to emphasize that the theme park was not responsible for the spread and that vaccinated people are safe to visit, The Associated Press reports.
The messages from executives were found in documents obtained by The AP. Disneyland was not trying to downplay the seriousness of the outbreak, in fact the theme park worked with officials to alert the public. But clearly there was, and still is, a warranted concern about how the outbreak will affect business.
The emails obtained via a public records request show that Disneyland forward suggestions to the California Department of Public Health and tried to insert language into an update from the Orange County Health Care Agency.
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“Basically, our goal is to ensure people know that the exposure period at the Disneyland Resort is now over, that this has nothing to do with Disneyland and this could happen anywhere,” Disneyland Resort’s vice president of communications, Cathi Killian, wrote to state health agency spokesman Ron Owens a week after the first infections were detected. She added: “Can you please let us know if you are able to help us on this front?”
On Thursday, Disneyland spokeswoman Lisa Haines said the theme park was in constant contact with health authorities during the outbreak “in order to ensure that factual and accurate information flowed both ways to avoid confusion and properly inform the public.”
It’s not uncommon for companies to reach out with suggestions during a disease outbreak, according to crisis communications experts. And suggestions can be helpful if they don’t distort the accurate message.
“At the end of the day, you are trying to balance potentially competing interests, but you are also trying to give people the best advice possible,” said Glen Nowak, a former spokesman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who now heads the Center for Health and Risk Communication at the University of Georgia.
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