Brave -- Pixar's 2012 release

instead we get "I AM STRONG AND I'M A PRINCESS" which makes it pretty clear that Diz knows they have an image problem with this stuff so Meridia is gonna get called on to do damage control and maybe see if there's folks willing to buy into that message.

Well if you want to separate out intentions, then Disney meant to do that now, and may have meant a to do so a year ago, but Pixar meant to do something else, and succeeded - hence the public backlash.

I don't agree with your 'pretty clear', but that's probably you know pretty clear.

Disney meant to make money on this and whether they make money with good ideas or bad ones doesn't seem to matter to much to them.
Pixar's intent, as I argued at length above, seems notably more watered down than it usually is but that's open to interp.
Public backlash is a delicate thing; the nosejobbed heroine from the princess and the frog was added to the harem as an overidealized vision and there was notably less hue and cry.

Anyways, now there's this:
http://video.disney.com/watch/merida-i-am-a-princess-4dc2af5d4e65d49a9e9eda76
which is hardly a subtle shift of messaging from what they'd been putting out there; this looks like a nike jr. commercial.
good on them for finally recognizing they're dragging a dying stereotype but it's notable that princesses are still fully able bodied and skinny according to that video.

You don't think Disney is aware that the Princess line has an image problem?

I may be misinterpreting - are you saying that Project Merida from the start is an effort from Disney to create a new type of Princess?

no, not at all. i think they tried to fit her into the princess fold, noted the backlash and figured she'd be more helpful (read profitable) as a tonic.