Effects of negative media events on tourist’s decisions

Margrete Lexow, International College of Management Sydney
Johan Edelheim, Southern Cross University

Abstract

During the recent years, the role of mass media and its crucial position in the tourism information and decision-making process has increased. The decision to choose one holiday destination over a myriad of available choices is just one of many steps in the tourist’s decision-making process. The question rising from this is whether there is a relationship between what is being communicated by the mass media and the tourist’s stimulus. Tourism operators on Fiji and other holiday destinations have experienced that the messages the mass media are communicating to the public can have a significant impact on the numbers of visitors to the destination. An event published in the mass media is seen as objective and factual because a third party writes it. However, editorial staff of the media controls what is being published, and it is hard, if not impossible, for the tourism operators to control. This paper uses an analytical approach to discuss the relationship between tourism and the effects of news reports on customers decisions-making and motivations resulting in the tourist’s travel behaviour. The findings in this paper indicate that the mass media plays an important role in tourist’s decision-making process.