Visit Orlando spends $600,000 on Taylor Swift ad | Commentary

We have a lot of ground to cover today, including a controversial cop-training program coming to Kissimmee and a Florida school whose leader canceled Autism Awareness Week over concerns that it was “demonic.”

But first, let’s talk about Taylor Swift.

More specifically, let’s talk about the $600,000 that Orange County’s taxpayer-funded tourism bureau, Visit Orlando, is spending to air a 30-second commercial during Swift’s new on-demand version of her “Eras Tour.”

I’ve long argued that theme parks should pay for their own darn advertising — the way virtually every other business does — rather than rely on taxpayers.

But Orange County steers about $100 million a year to Visit Orlando. And fans of this corporate welfare always argue that they’re not just promoting the theme parks, but also museums, cultural attractions and mom-and-pop ventures.

Well, I encourage you to watch this 30-second ad that cost more than half a million dollars. It opens by featuring a family at Disney. (Mom’s even wearing mouse ears to help promote the Disney brand.)

Then it features SeaWorld. Then Universal. Then it goes back to Disney. Then SeaWorld. Then Disney again. Then SeaWorld. Then Disney for a fourth time. Then back to Universal.

Perhaps to prebut the expected criticism, the ad concludes with an image of a couple kayaking in a river that appears to be real and not on theme-park property.

The ad’s not bad. But make no mistake: This is a $600,000 taxpayer-subsidized promotion for theme parks, particularly for Disney.

And would you like to guess where Visit Orlando is paying to air this ad? On Disney+. That’s the streaming service carrying the Swift concert.

You’d think Disney could use its own resources to promote its own theme parks. Then again, why would this multi-billion-dollar company use its own money when Orange County politicians are willing to use their tax dollars?

Keep in mind: The same county refuses to use one nickel of that hotel-tax money to improve this region’s sad-sack transit system.

Compare that to Las Vegas, where that tourism town’s visitors bureau — which is also funded by hotel taxes — helps pay for transit solutions. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority actually runs Sin City’s monorail system.

Visit Orlando gets $96 million. Lynx gets $54 million. That’s messed up | Commentary

Here, local leaders would rather talk about raising your sales taxes.

Listen, these are all choices. And in Central Florida, the choice is often theme parks over residents. And in this particular case, the choice was to spend a lot of money promoting Disney on a Disney-owned network.

Tourism businesses don’t contribute squat to Visit Orlando | Commentary

‘Demonic’ education

Last week, the Palm Beach Post carried this disturbing story: “Private Palm Beach County school cancels autism week after pastor says activities ‘demonic.’”

According to the paper, families at the school were baffled when the pastor sent out a school-wide email equating heightened awareness of autism with “idolatry,” which he considered “demonic.”

You might be inclined to just shake your head and think: Just another Flori-duh story. But don’t dismiss it too quickly. Because there’s something you should remember: You helped pay for this nonsense.

That’s because this school, Trinity Christian Academy in Lake Worth, is a major recipient of public money through the state’s voucher program. Records show it is receiving more than $2 million this year alone.

If you’re wondering how a place like this qualifies, it’s because — as the Orlando Sentinel has written hundreds of times — practically any school qualifies. In this state’s wildly unregulated system, schools can receive millions of tax dollars with proving they’re actually educating kids, hiring qualified teachers or even teaching factual information.

They are, as the Sentinel’s award-winning series was titled, “Schools without Rules.”

I’d argue taxpayers deserve to know what kind of education their tax dollars are supporting. But Florida politicians have decided that school “choice” shouldn’t be burdened by pesky things like standards and transparency … which is how you end up with high school dropouts working as “teachers” and autism awareness equated with demons.

Questionable cop training

A controversial training seminar for police officers is coming to Central Florida in two weeks.

How controversial? Well, after the New Jersey Attorney General reviewed video from a past “Street Cop Training Conference” — and concluded speakers glorified violence, touted unconstitutional tactics, demeaned women and minorities and made weird references to their own genitals — he ordered more than 200 Garden State officers who attended the conference to be re-trained.

CBS News offered a detailed report: “Hundreds of New Jersey officers retrained after attending controversial Street Cop conference.”

Now the 2024 Street Cop Training Conference is coming to the Gaylord Palms resort in Kissimmee on April 28.

The program’s leaders offered a partial apology and say they’ve amended their ways, while also arguing some aspects of their training program were unfairly maligned. But you have to wonder why departments would choose this program at all, given its history. (And $699 listed price.)

Well, the Orlando Police Department said it wasn’t sending any officers. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said it was paying to send two officers “specifically to assess whether it is professional and on the right track.” And the Osceola sheriff’s office didn’t respond to questions about whether it was sending any officers or paying for them.

This seems like one to keep an eye on.

Godspeed. Seriously.

Finally, did you see where Boeing is getting into the space race, debuting a new rocket program designed to carry humans?

Everyone obviously hopes for the best. But, given all the scary headlines Boeing’s planes have made in recent months, this is an interesting time for the company to decide it also wants to get into space travel.

I’m just saying: Somebody better double check the door plugs. And the flight-control system. And the engine cover.

smaxwell@orlandosentinel.com

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