MIAMI BEACH, Fla. -- Concerned by what it perceives as biased
reporting by the consumer press, the cruise industry is launching a
public relations campaign to "educate and inform" the public and
travel agents about issues facing the industry.
As reported, the campaign is a joint initiative involving the
International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL) and Cruise Lines
International Association.
The industry group is called the Cruise Industry Coalition, and
its campaign will be implemented by CLIA's public relations agency,
Diana Orban Associates of Morristown, N.J.
New York-based CLIA is the marketing and travel agent training
association for major cruise lines in North America, and
Washington-based ICCL is the industry's lobbying group, concerned
with regulatory and legal matters.
The coalition said it intends to address "communities, travel
industry associations, suppliers, the media, academics and key
influencers to keep the public informed of developments in the
cruise industry, especially efforts demonstrating good corporate
citizenship and industry growth."
According to ICCL president Michael Crye, the coalition "will
seek to tell [the industry's] positive story to the public and
enlist its aid in, for example, keeping the oceans clean and being
gracious visitors to the many destinations we touch."
CLIA president James Godsman said, "We want to preserve and
reinforce the industry's image [of being an entertaining vacation
experience], while at the same time touch on the serious side of
the business and the industry's dedication to the public it
serves."
At a panel during the Seatrade Cruise Shipping Convention here,
which featured an exchange of views between reporters and
cruise-line public relations officials, industry officials said
they detected a pronounced bias against the industry by some
reporters in the consumer media.
Reporters, appearing on the panel in response to an invitation
from ICCL, said that any appearance of bias was a result of a lack
of information by journalists who normally do not cover the cruise
industry.
To address that issue, the coalition plans to set up a toll-free
phone number to facilitate media inquiries and referrals to expert
news sources within the industry.
Other activities will include charitable events in communities
that host cruise ships; educational symposia; research studies; an
expanded Web site; media tours; university and environmental group
partnerships, and youth programs.