World Day of Travel Journalists aims at global renewal

The celebration this Tuesday of the World Day of Travel Journalists aims with its reflection to face the great geopolitical and economic problems of the Planet with the hope of a constant renewal.

This view is added to the fact that the travel industry has always positioned itself as resilient and antipodal to conflicts, with its message of tolerance, dissemination of culture and understanding among human beings, according to experts in the sector.

The World Organization of Travel Journalism (WTPO) was the creator of this date, and every September 5 it pays tribute to one of the most outstanding professions in the field of information and communications.

In this sense, the establishment of this event aims to revalue the role and trajectory of tourism journalists, inviting social communication professionals to report on the sector in an ethical and responsible manner, in line with social diversity and environmental protection.

The declaration of this World Day arose during the Eighth Congress of Tourism Journalists and Professionals, held on September 5, 2018 in the city of Iguazú, Argentina.

It had the approval of the World Organization of Tourism Journalism (OMPT), the Latin American Alliance of Tourism Journalists, the Iguazú Convention Bureau, the Tourism and Heritage Department of the Municipality of La Serena, national and local governments of America and Europe, the University of La Serena and the National University of Patagonia.

Their documents (points out the interesting site diainternacioalde.com) express the will of many professionals in this field in the world. Tourism journalism is a specialization of the social communication profession dedicated to inform about the different aspects related to tourism.

Moreover, this is possible through the collection of information, analysis and projection of topics related to tourism infrastructure, as well as tourism, cultural and gastronomic activities in the different regions through the mass media.

Such work is expressed through, for example, the Travel Chronicle and the Tourist Note. The tourist journalist is in charge of writing news in printed, television or digital media, reflecting his own and other people’s experiences about places of interest for tourists, as well as denouncing elements that threaten the environment.

This task is related to issues of social interest, analyzing tourist destinations from statistical data, collecting information from the hotel sector, tour operators, travel agencies and entrepreneurs in the tourism area. The WTPO was created on November 11, 2011, with the purpose of linking and training tourism journalism professionals worldwide. It contributes to promote responsible and sustainable tourism development.

Among its main objectives are to revalue and professionalize the tourism activity in the field of communications and journalism, with plurality and inclusion criteria.

It also aims to investigate and denounce irregularities and illegal acts within the tourism sector that threaten the environment, local populations and tourists, as well as to promote the social recognition of tourism journalists through individual and collective incentives.

The WTPO brings together journalists from Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, France, Germany, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay and Venezuela.

With information from Prensa Latina