WESTERN BUREAU:
JAMAICA'S TOURISM sector continues to reel from a spate of negative international coverage portraying the island as unsafe for visitors, according to industry players.
"There is a lot of negative coverage about Jamaica overseas which makes it difficult to sell the island as a destination spot," explained Ava Cornwall, a travel operator from Island Style Travel in Philadelphia.
"The case of the missing American journalist has gotten a lot of press coverage in addition to the high crime rate in the country. Safety is a major concern for travellers and regardless of how much advertising one does if the destination is perceived to be unsafe then it is bound to play on the mind of a tourist".
Last May, an American travel writer, Claudia Kirschhoch, while on vacation at the Beaches Negril Resort, mysteriously disappeared and hasn't been seen or heard of since. Her disappearance has not only generated a lot of overseas media interest but has propelled Jamaica's problem of crime and violence into the international spotlight.
Only two weeks ago, the Washington Post, in an article entitled "Trouble in Paradise" which enlightened the problem of crime in the Caribbean, again brought up the disappearance of the travel writer and the crime situation in Jamaica.
Marlene Seaton of Excellent Travel and Tour in Atlanta noted that it was those kinds of articles that turn the minds of travellers away from a particular destination.
Winston Pringlin, a tour operator from England, agreed. According to him, as a result of all the negative publicity about Jamaica, the European market was becoming increasingly difficult to sell. "It is not the local coverage of problems that is damaging to Jamaica's tourism," he said. "It is when documentaries are shown on stations like the BBC highlighting the worst of Jamaica and also when scathing articles about the country are written by foreign journalists. It is my belief that Jamaica's tourism is in serious trouble."
The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), while acknowledging that bad press overseas has been taking its toll on the industry, it feels that negative local coverage is equally devastating. In a recent statement, the agency charged that "we should be all mindful of the fact that any news concerning Jamaica's tourist industry is instantly accessible worldwide. The extent to which the industry is successful now and in the future is dependent on the support of all Jamaicans, including those with media access".
