Above, Godaido temple at Matsushima Bay. Photo by Armand Vaquer. Since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, the Japanese tourism industry has been in the doldrums. Part of the problem for the decline in Japan tourist number has been due to the western media's coverage of the problems with the damaged reactors at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
The coverage had been borderline hysterical which led people to believe that all of Japan was a glowing, radioactive mess. Time magazine's website posted an article that seems to be a continuance of the misleading coverage.
In the article, the question is asked:
Eight months after the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan's tourism industry still hasn't rebounded. What will it take to convince tourists it's safe to visit again?
I wonder if anyone at Time bothered to look at a geographical map of Japan. If they did, they would find that the affected area in Fukushima is a relatively small area of northeast Honshu (the main island). The article mentions findings of traces of radioactivity in Tokyo, 150 miles south of Fukushima. I have read many articles on this and much of it is attributed to natural radioactivity. There are other cities around the world with higher radioactivity readings.
What will it take to convince people that it's safe to visit Japan? For one thing, ceasing misleading articles that feed into people's fears would be a major first step.
I have posted several articles on this blog focusing on how safe Japan is to visit. Japan is taking public relations steps to convince people that the country is safe to visit. Celebrities such as Lady Gaga have also spoken out in support of the Japanese tourism industry. The Japanese tourism industry is also planning to offer 10,000 free round-trip airfares to foreigners next year.
Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2099119,00.html#ixzz1dQFp1uDr
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