In weird 2020 news, Walt Disney World was apparently digitally altering photos of unmasked guests but has since changed its mind about the practice.
In a photo posted to a private Disney park Facebook group and obtained by Walt Disney World Today, a rider appears to wear a digitally edited face mask. Disney spokespeople confirmed to USA Today and The Washington Post that the company did briefly add masks to photos of guests who weren’t wearing them correctly or whose masks had slipped during the ride, but confirmed that it won’t do so anymore.
Despite a massive spike in COVID-19 cases in Florida, Walt Disney World reopened its park in Orlando to guests over the summer — with some new restrictions. Guests have to make a reservation ahead of time to limit park attendance, wear a face covering to enter, and have their temperature checked throughout the park. The park outlines the kinds of masks that are acceptable for park entrance, noting online that open face shields, neck gaiters, open-chin triangle bandanas, and anything made of mesh or with valves will not suffice.
That doesn’t necessarily stop people from taking their masks off inside the park, though. Although guests are told to keep their masks on at all times except when eating or swimming, proper mask wearing is tricky to enforce. To discourage mask removal within the park, the company has been withholding its photos from guests who appear unmasked in them. (Disney’s PhotoPasses allow guests to scan their wristbands for photo opportunities within the park and receive professional photos in a linked account a few days later.)
Here’s the rub: In spite of social distancing guidelines, Disney World guests will probably end up on a ride with people not in their party, some of whom might not be wearing a mask properly.
So, for reasons that aren’t totally clear, the company went a step further and began Photoshopping masks on unmasked guests in its photos. In a photo posted to Facebook, the faces of the riders in the back row of an Animal Kingdom attraction appear to be digitally altered.
“Got all of our photo pass photos from yesterday except [the] Dinosaur [ride],” the Facebook user captioned the photo, per the USA Today report. “Just finally got it and you can see Disney has already started digitally adding masks so everyone can still get their photos. The woman behind us apparently wasn’t wearing hers.”
Check out the tweet above and WDW News Today for a closer look. As the site notes, the woman in the back row of the ride appears to be sporting “face mask clip art.”
A Disney spokesperson told the Post that the company started digitally adding masks to allow guests whose masks slipped mid-ride to still purchase photos, so they wouldn’t be depicted in violation of park rules.
In a statement to USA Today, spokesperson Jacquee Wahler said it would no longer make the digital alterations and that it had started the practice because guests wanted it.
“In response to guest requests, we tested modifying some ride photos,” Wahler said. “We are no longer doing this and continue to expect guests to wear face coverings except when actively eating or drinking while stationary.”
It isn’t clear whether Disney will continue withholding PhotoPass images from unmasked guests.
Bottom line? Be a good citizen and wear a mask. Or you could just stay home.