In the Lombardy Region the States General on Tourist Information – Travel for you

JOURNALISTS, PUBLISHERS, TRAVELERS: TOURIST INFORMATION STARTS FROM COLLABORATION BETWEEN PLAYERS IN THE SECTOR from left: Stefano Passaquindici, Sabrina Talarico, Barbara Mazzali, Paolo Brambilla Generative AI and its use in journalism among the main topics of …

In the Lombardy Region the States General on Tourist Information - Travel for you
JOURNALISTS, PUBLISHERS, TRAVELERS: TOURIST INFORMATION STARTS FROM COLLABORATION BETWEEN PLAYERS IN THE SECTOR
from left: Stefano Passaquindici, Sabrina Talarico, Barbara Mazzali, Paolo Brambilla
Generative AI and its use in journalism among the main topics of the States General, as a challenge to be grasped and exploited.

It is necessary to open a dialogue with the Order of Journalists to adapt the order law to the new professions and the multi-channel communication approach.

AGEI, association of Italian geographers available to collaborate with the Order of Journalists to promote the accuracy of information related to the world of travel.

Milan 4 October 2024

Artificial intelligence is aexceptional opportunity to increase the efficiency and productivity of the journalist, who maintains a crucial role both for the production of content and for the validation of information. This is one of the assessments that emerged from the States General on Tourist Information organized by GIST, Italian Tourist Press Group, in collaboration with Lombardy Regionwith the patronage of ENIT and the Ministry of Tourism.

The works of the States General, in which they participated further 300 people between journalists, institutions and stakeholders from the world of tourism, closed with a press conference in which they were present Sabrina Talarico GIST president, Barbara Mazzali tourism councilor of the Lombardy Region, Stefano Passaquindici honorary president GIST e Paolo Brambilla councilor of the Order of Journalists of Lombardy.

In the current editorial panorama of the tourism sector, where sources are multiple and uncontrolled, it is necessary to restore value to individual professionalisms, to return to putting integrity, transparency and the journalist’s signature as an authoritative and qualitative source at the centre. Give back the fair value to the readeroften disoriented by uncoordinated information, poorly qualified both in terms of sources and contents.

from left: Pier Giorgio Oliveti, Ornella D’Alessio, Federico Geremei, Mark Perna, Sabrina Talarico, Stefano Passaquindici, Alessandra Gesuelli, Domenico Palladino

A larger one is needed professionalization of tourism journalists, which will also be favored byA.Ge.I.association of Italian geographers. Who made herself available, through the president Elena dell’Agnese professor of geography at the University of Milan Bicocca, to collaborate with the GIST and the National Order of Journalists for the definition of training courses and association interactions.

The need also emerged from the working tables of the States General, which will translate into an official request review the order lawwhich should adapt to the new professions and communication approaches linked to the world of journalistic specialisations, of which tourism is part.

Tourism – he declared Sabrina Talarico president of GIST – closed 2023 with record numbers: 451 million visitors, (+3.3%), 100 billion in tourist spending, 74 billion in revenue to the treasury, 3 million employed, per capita spending of 350 euros . The sector represents 13% of GDP and the estimate for the next few years is of net growth. In contrast to this growth, tourist publishing is in severe crisis, both in terms of space occupied within the media and quality of content”.

“The States General of Tourist Information – continued Talarico – have explored all the issues related to information linked to the tourism sector, drawn up a road map for the future, suggested advantageous solutions for the media, which encourage courageous choices to protect free information, taken up the technological challenges, which they must not do fear of journalists. The States General represented a moment of analysis, reflection and concrete proposals, examined the present, analyzed the challenges and opportunities of travel publishing, which must find a balance between financial sustainability and independence of the media. The ultimate goal is to restore authority to tourist information, rebuild the pact of trust with readers and create a virtuous circle that sees tourism publishing as the main means of promoting Italian tourism”.

From the 4 working tables, coordinated by Domenico Palladino, Mark Perna, Alessandra Gesuelli, Ada Mascheroni, Ornella D’Alessio, Pier Giorgio Oliveti and Federico Geremeia final summary document resulted.

From left, Stefano Passaquindici, Sabrina Talarico and Barbara Mazzali

The final summary document of the States General GIST on Tourist Information

To survive by innovating, publishing in the travel sector must focus on three pairs of key factors: 1) recognisability and involvement of the reference communities, 2) verticality and integration of contents, 3) dialogue and cooperation with intermediation entities. In a global scenario characterized by the new demands of “never ending tourism”, the authority of a sustainable editorial proposal passes through the valorisation of information assets existing and the creation of integrated systemsbeyond the physiological creation of new languages. This requires a collective commitment from investors, publishers and trade institutions to create the appropriate conditions to pursue two primary objectives: synergies between different content producers e acquisition of skills transversal entrepreneurial initiatives, also through ad hoc regulatory interventions.

In the current editorial landscape of the tourism sector it is necessary restore value to individual professionalism, returning to center stage the integrity, transparency and signature of the journalist as a recognized authoritative source. This approach is functional to recovering the trust of the own audience consolidatedwhich must be preserved, and that of the younger generations. It is essential to have a targeted dialogue with your own community of reference, to intercept and follow their needs and inspirations. Even in the travel guide sector, work on quality and the selection of excellence must be accompanied by a multiplatform approach that responds to current market demands.

Acknowledging the need for improvement knowledge and skills in sustainability in its various meanings (environmental, social and economic), the need has emerged to urge the National Order of Journalists to establish a more active organization of ethical courses – in person and online – as part of mandatory continuous professional training, held by experts and qualified teachers in the field to facilitate the creation of new specializations in the field of journalism and provide colleagues knowledge and tools appropriate to improve their skills in the field. The objective is to develop a better interpretation and representation of the territories towards readers.

The journalist is and remains the eyewitness of facts, the interpreter of reality, the information validator and also the unique referent of what it produced. The journalist not only puts his pen into it, but also his face, making every piece of content human, authentic and unique. AI can generate convincing texts, it is however essential to monitor the phenomenon of hallucinations, where generative AI can create distortions or non-existent facts. There in-depth knowledge of tourist destinations and theaccess to updated data they are fundamental assets. The ability to integrate this knowledge with creative, personalized storytelling is what distinguishes human content from AI-generated content. The added value of those who create and disseminate tourism editorial content lies in the ability to interpret data and transform it into engaging stories.

Gist – Italian Tourist Press Group
Viale Vittorio Veneto 24 – 20124 MILAN
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