Jeff Morel came out of the closet at Disney three months later –

Jeff Morell, CEO of The Walt Disney Co., will step down just three months later to “pursue other opportunities,” Morel and Disney CEO Bob Chapek told employees Friday.

“After three months in this new role, it became clear to me that for many reasons this is not right,” Morel told the team via email.

A former BP executive and a spokesman for the Pentagon during the Bush era, he joined Disney earlier this year in a new role that included overseeing Disney communications, government relations and public policy.

All three areas have been explored in recent months as the company sailed through so-called Florida. “Don’t say gay” is the response to the bill. After initially arguing that Disney should remain as apolitical as possible, Chapek and the company suffered a backlash from employees who felt he lacked support.

Eventually, the company would take a public stand against the project, but it was too late and Governor Ron Desantis signed off on the event a few weeks later. Upon signing, Disney argued that it should be reversed or reversed in court.

That stance, in turn, angered Republican state lawmakers who passed a bill (which was also signed by the Landing Party) that abolished Disney’s special precinct around Walt Disney World.

Chapek told the team that Christina Shake will lead global communications, he reports, and is led by Disney general counsel Horace Gutierrez on government relations and public policy. Shake joined Disney earlier this month and was introduced to Morel.

“Christina has a strategic approach and collaborative style, as well as relentless optimism, and highly values ​​our brand and its place in the world,” wrote Chapek Shake. “These attributes will be invaluable as they work to protect and strengthen our reputation.”

Read Chapek’s email to employees below.

Team –

I am writing to share the news that Jeff Morel, our Corporate Director, is leaving the company to pursue other opportunities. Fortunately, the strength and experience of our existing leadership team, including the hiring of a relatively new star, means there is no shortage of talent to manage our reputation-building functions. With Jeff gone, I’m pleased to share the following changes:

First, Christina Sheck will lead the Walt Disney Company’s communications efforts, she will be our executive vice president of global communications, reporting directly to me. In this expanded role, Christina will oversee corporate and segment communications and will continue to be our keynote speaker. Our business segment leaders and content communications will continue to provide duplicate reports on Division leadership and corporate communications, now led by Christina.

We are incredibly lucky to have Christina with us at this important time. Her 30 years of experience include leadership roles in President Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine education program, Instagram communication, and leadership roles in political campaigns and the Obama White House. Christina has a strategic approach and collaborative style, as well as relentless optimism, and highly values ​​our brand and its place in the world. These attributes will be invaluable as they work to protect and strengthen our reputation, and I look forward to working more closely with him.

Thus, government relations and global public policy will now be handled by our Chief Legal Officer, Horatio Gutierrez. Since joining the company earlier this year, Horatio has integrated seamlessly into the Disney family and has quickly become an important advisor to me and the leadership team on a wide variety of topics. Your vast experience in leading these areas will be incredibly helpful in directing our efforts.

In addition to their current direct presentations, Susan Fox, Senior Vice President, Government Affairs, and Yvonne Pei, Senior Vice President, Foreign Affairs, Greater China, will join Dorothy Atwood, Senior Vice President, Global Public Policy, in the keynote address. straight from Horatio. .

Finally, Jenny Cohen, Executive Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility, is now the only one I will report to in her role of leading our CSR and ESG efforts. Jenny is a strong leader and has done an amazing job modernizing our approach in key areas such as environmental sustainability, community investment and philanthropy.

I have incredible confidence in this team and look forward to working with them and all of our leadership to pave the way for the next 100 years of extraordinary Disney fun and experience.