There’s nothing like Australia’s violence on tourists…at least according to Google
News in Sydney’s media of a young Scottish tourist who had been bashed by a group of youths in Sydney this week got me thinking, is violence in Australia towards foreigners worse than anywhere else or is it just because we’re here that we hear about it?
Recent news of attacks on Indian students in Melbourne, fatally and critically attacked Irishmen in Coogee, a disabled Canadian bashed with the pole from his own wheelchair and now a Scottish man forced to undergo brain surgery after getting bashed in Sydney has all been at the forefront of Australian media in only the last few months but I delved a little further to see if this news was travelling beyond our shores.
There’s no denying that once something is published online it’s pretty much accessible to the entire world but I conducted an experiment on Google last night seeing what happened when I typed “tourist bashed” into its global search engine, Google.com.
I was shocked to find that out of the 11 stories on the first page of the global Google search, ten were related to tourists being attacked in Australia, the other was in New Zealand. So I searched again with “tourist attacked”. The result, four out of nine. What about “backpacker attacked?” A whopping six out of seven news stories were related to Australian assaults on backpackers.
I assume Tourism Australia’s new campaign involving contributions from Australians will include a cross-section of racial backgrounds but is this enough to demonstrate Australia as a country with a cultural understanding? How can Tourism Australia’s new campaign combat Google’s search results?
As a kid – and still to some extent now – I perceive(d) the US as somewhere I would like to visit but somewhere I would be more concerned about my safety then perhaps if I travelled to the UK or Europe. I attribute this to the ‘bang, bang, shoot-em-up’ genre of films and TV shows that is dominated by the US that I watched growing up and so perhaps my concerns may be unfairly influenced.
Nevertheless, despite the lack of such films coming out of Australia what concerns me is the real stories of student and tourist bashings having a negative impact on future backpackers to this country. I don’t want my country to be perceived by the British version of me as “somewhere to think about safety” and perhaps choose an alternative destination because “I don’t want to spend my whole time worrying.” Perhaps I’m just paranoid but do we want to risk losing the business of those who just might share that same paranoia?
I realise the realists will simply say, “Nowhere is safe anymore and you have to be vigilant wherever you go” but Tourism Australia needs to act to ensure we aren’t perceived like the USA is perceived by some. It’s one thing to show off our magnificent coastline and spectacular outback but TA must reassure travellers there’s not pole-wielding thugs hiding in the bushes waiting to pounce.
By Alice Terlikowski · April 8th, 2010 at 9:46 am
Comments
9 Apr 10
11:05 am
Did the Scottish guy have a sign around is neck saying “Tourist” therefore sending out an invitation for a beating? No, he was just unlucky to run into a gang looking for trouble at 3.30am.
In this booze-fueled nation alcohol related violence is endemic. And there’s no filter system to sort tourists from locals.
Perhaps ask the Australian Hotels Association what they think. They’ll probably say smoking isn’t harmful and pokies don’t create gambling problems and there has been a massive decline in alcohol related violence since 1902.
9 Apr 10
2:49 pm
Whilst I agree with Greg that tourists are not the only victims of alcohol fuelled rage, it is concerning that the proliferation of these stories taint Australia’s (and Sydney’s) image as a safe place to visit.
After attending the TA Market Briefing today, it was interesting to note certain markets perceive Australia as “safe, but not welcoming” (UK) and others perceive Australia as “welcoming, but not safe” (India).
It is not TA’s sole responsibility to ensure that these perceptions are changed.
It is our responsibility as an industry to educate travellers on how they can stay safe and ensure every experience we can control in Australia is positive.
It is parent’s of these teenagers responsibility to educate them about tolerance and acceptance of other cultures and their accents. (is anyone else wondering what are two 13 year olds doing out at 3.30am in the morning in the first place?)
And most importantly, with 443+ articles about this incident to date, the media also has a greater responsibility to temper their shock reporting on this issue. To all journalists, read this ..http://www.aim.org/media-monitor/the-media-role-in-violence/
9 Apr 10
3:38 pm
I doubt that TA or anyone involved in briefings spends much time on the ground. Australia is a safe and welcoming destination. So much so that many want to stay.
13 Apr 10
2:27 pm
“If it bleeds, it leads” is still the mantra of the media and,unfortunately,always will be. We all know how hard it is to get positive tourism articles into the news cycle, much less as leading stories: bad news sells and has longevity to boot! Alice`s article above is sobering news,indeed.
The recent grounding of a Chinese bulk carrier off Rockhampton has sparked panicked cancellation inquiries from international tourists, worried that the whole Great Barrier Reef has been damaged!!! Just one freighter and lots of nebulous reporting can have this effect. Quite frightening.
Maybe TA could work towards managing such negative media by coordinating good-news releases relevant to such instances? Tourism Tropical North Queensland put out large newspaper ads down South after Cyclone Ului to highlight the fact that Mackay is over 600 km from Cairns and that it was unaffected. This is the sort of pro-active action that could counter unfavourable reporting.
Separately ,I believe that TA should put pressure on the federal government to encourage State Police and Government agencies responsible for tourism precincts to increase their presence: I have seen special tourism police in action in Thailand and heard of similar units in Bali.Those countries obviously value their tourism industry highly enough to cater to it to this extent: surely, we can at least expect extra patrols in tourism areas?
Tourism is a huge earner for Australia and needs all the help it can get to compete with less regulated and,thus, cheaper destinations. We operators pay a princely sum to meet the obligations Government departments (at all levels) demand to operate legally; we deserve competent and effective assistance in these areas.
13 Apr 10
2:32 pm
Several weeks ago I wrote a comment on the Matt McCourt Website Travel story. Obviously someone down there in your office thought it a little too direct, and, oh gosh, politically incorrect. What a pity we’ve all become so wimpy in this industry. But that’s your choice Thumbrella. Was I so wrong in thinking that you were a voice of the industry, warts and all?
Oh, and by the way, my comments were original material, of which I don’t have a copy. Could you kindly send them back to me. Thanks and regards,
Tony Laurent
AirlieBeach.com
13 Apr 10
2:47 pm
Thanks Tony.
Unfortunately we had to remove your comment for legal reasons.
I will email it to you now.
Cheers,
Alice – Thumbrella
13 Apr 10
3:26 pm
If you think Thumbrella is wimpy think again; just follow a few stories on Mumbrella: Good short punchy comments, the usual pool of idiots, some attack and run -for-cover stuff, and some great humour on top.
You really gotta push the envelope to get removed so yours must have been a real wart, Tony.
13 Apr 10
4:42 pm
Thanks Greg, I tried my best.
14 Apr 10
2:09 am
Agree with Greg Cole on everything he is saying here.
I’d like to add that while any incident of violence (no matter if related to alcohol, racism or other factors, no matter if against Scottish tourists, Indian students or Lebanese Australians) is a reason to worry and to take action, there’s not much Tourism Australia or the tourism industry as such can do to make it go away. Do you really think promoting Australia in tourism marketing as a safe and culturally understanding destination will convince people abroad if the media, even though in an exaggerated way, tells them it isn’t?
Since 1995, I’ve been to Australia four times on extended stays, and I have witnessed an increasing climate of aggression in some, though often unexpected places: While I used to cycle through Redfern at night to get home from friends’ places without ever feeling unsafe, I got into more than one critical situation in the odd backpacker hostel or pub. So what the backpacking industry can do is to get stricter on refusing alcohol to intoxicated people and on banning violent guests not only from their own establishment, but also informing others about them.
Having said that, these incidents usually don’t make headline news around the world, except maybe in the UK. Neither the case of the Indian student nor the Scottish backpacker received any coverage in continental European media, and probably not much more anywhere outside their home countries. Even cyclone Ului wasn’t even mentioned in the news in Germany. Australia is far away, and only the most prominent cases, such as the Cronulla riots in 2005 or bizarre outback murders, make it into the global media.
Australia is still perceived as a safe and welcoming destination abroad. If tourists are afraid of something, it’s Australian wildlife rather than Australian people. And that perception is much more distorted than that of urban drunkards or outback lunatics.
Please respond!
14 Apr 10
12:33 pm
Thanks for that comment, Peter. It`s welcome news to hear we don`t rate in Germany unless we have Fascist riots or a deranged killer prowling around (PR types, take note!) Continental Europe has always been a good market for Australia and I personally like their more nature/indigenous/adventure-oriented travel philosophy.
Unfortunately, the UK, the US and some Asian (Japan, Taiwan,Korea,etc) countries are more sensitive to the media beat ups John West rejects. They also happen to make up a majority of Australia`s tourism market.That`s the bind.
Once again,I`ll mention a competitor tourist destination and judge it`s performance: Thailand, with bigger riots than Cronulla causing the worst political violence there in 20 years, will prove a timely acid test on PR v intending tourist`s perception of risk.
I reckon the backpacking market will disregard the strife in Bangkok and head there anyway: what do you folks think?
14 Apr 10
1:03 pm
Wars and violence and protests and bombs and general unrest operate in parallel with tourism in all corners of the world. One might come into contact with it and barely notice it, one might never see it, one might be unfortunate enough to be hurt by it.
For backpackers in places like Thailand or Israel the rewards far outweigh the risks so headlong into these countries they will always go.
14 Apr 10
1:51 pm
Some would argue that Australians are simply not very good drinkers…..
Seriously, in my opinion Australia has always been a bit rough and boozy, recall holidays on Mornington Peninsula outside Melbourne in the 70s when every weekend seemed to entail huge pub brawls….. conversely, in Budapest, though Hungarians drink like fish, and open all hours, have never seen a fight in or near a bar, but does happen very occasionally, and stops very quickly.
Would be an interesting sociological study, Oz does have high levels of youth depression and suicide….. but many travellers would not be interested if Australia was too staid and safe….
14 Apr 10
3:43 pm
Stop it Andrew, you’re makin me thirsty…
15 Apr 10
5:23 pm
The ABC’s Hungry Beast did a story on street violence in Coolangatta/Tweed Heads last night. It nailed this issue pretty well. No police around but lots of drunk bored drongos looking for trouble. Add to the volatile mix our historic British habit of drinking to obliterate dwindling brain cell activity and a lack of police presence. Publicans keen to make a buck usually turn a blind eye. It makes for a nasty combination of facts that scares tourists as well as locals out for a night of peaceful fun.
Try writing an honest travel story about a Friday or Saturday night on the town in Coolangatta/Tweed Heads, or Melbourne or Sydney for that matter that doesn’t point out the obvious reality, that you really can’t afford to lose your wits when you’re around thugs looking for trouble.
Visit Australia but hire a personal bodyguard when you go out on the town?
21 Apr 10
1:04 pm
Idiots are found worldwide. The media highlighting incidents and encouraging their reporting tends to be a more parochial problem.
You can argue backwards, forwards and sideways about exactly how many tourists it deters, but there is no doubt that more balanced reporting would largely alleviate potential toursits` angst.
Deadly jellyfish, man eating sharks, venomous snakes, terrorists, thieves, brigands, kidnappers and more such critters thrive throughout Asia: how often do fatal encounters between them and international tourists make headlines around the world?
Media management at TA should see how Thailand copes: there may be applicable lessons (short of a military coup, of course!).
10 May 10
5:50 pm
To anyone who followed this thread, I have some English lads promoting local tours in Thailand and they inform me occupancy in the tourist regions down by around 60%.
Whether the cause is the threat of Political violence, volcanic ash or the GFC, either way, we are not alone when it comes to doing it tough.
Have your say