Shareholders back Disney

Shareholders have voted down two proposals brought forward at the Walt Disney Co. annual meeting to change how the largest entertainment company in the world is governed.

One proposal called for the split of the chief executive and chairman positions, which are held by Robert Iger. At the meeting in Phoenix on Wednesday, the Burbank company said that only about 35.3% of shareholders who cast nonbinding votes in advance of the meeting approved the split.

The other defeated proposal would have given challengers for board seats an easier path to election by allowing their names to appear on the company’s ballots. The proposal received approval from only about 39.8% of shareholders in another nonbinding vote.

The Disney board had recommended voting against both proposals.

Iger also faced tough questioning about alleged liberal bias at ABC News and ESPN.

Justin Danhof, a representative of National Center for Public Policy Research, a free-market think tank, told Iger that he believed this bias — which he said was apparent in ABC News reporter Brian Ross’ coverage of the July 2012 mass shooting in Aurora, Colo. — could decrease Disney’s advertising revenue because many Americans are conservatives. (Ross speculated on air that accused shooter James Holmes could be linked to the Tea Party; ABC News apologized for the mistake.)

In response, Iger said that “over time, we have been guilty of making mistakes” but declined to address specific instances of bias.

“We have at times either presented the news in slightly inaccurate ways through mistakes or in ways that we weren’t necessarily proud of,” Iger said. “But I firmly stand behind the integrity of our news organizations.”

Shares of Disney fell 12 cents, or 0.2%, to $56.36 on Wednesday, a day after reaching an all-time high of $56.48.

A nonbinding vote on the issue of executive pay was approved by about 57.6% of voting shareholders. According to the proxy statement, Iger’s total compensation in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 29 was $40.23 million.

The plan to split the chief executive and chairman positions was put forward by the Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds, which said in the proxy that “leadership of the board should be separate from leadership of management.” The California State Teachers’ Retirement System and the California Public Employees’ Retirement System also supported separation of the positions.

The issue of an independent chairman stretches back to 2004, when Disney shareholders gave then Chairman and CEO Michael Eisner a vote of no confidence. After the vote, the Disney board separated the roles.

But, in fall 2011, the company’s board announced it would make Iger, then chief executive, the new chairman after the 2012 retirement of then-chair John Pepper. Iger’s contract calls for him to retain the chairman position until June 2016. (He is slated to remain chief executive until March 2015.)

Disney lead director Orin Smith said the “decision was made in the best interest of our shareholders.” Smith cited the financial success of Disney under Iger.

Shareholders also reelected all 10 members of the Disney board of directors .

daniel.miller@latimes.com