travel journalism acking?


posts if they had up to 20,000 followers, and $500 (£380) if they had 70,000 followers. One blogger was paid $250 (£190) to post five tweets a month and had only 1,000 followers. They also charged for photography, Twitter parties, modelling, freelance articles and sponsored videos. Overall, nearly 50 per cent those surveyed made less than $15,000 (£11,400) and 7 per cent made more than $100,000 (£76,000). Travel blogger Erin Holmes, (www.explorewitherin.com)


says she earned a six-figure income from her previous blog and earned $2,000 (£1,520) from a two-week press trip on top of expenses. She has also written for magazines both for free and paid.


A


nother successful blogger with no journalism background is Paul Johnson, who set up www. aluxurytravelblog.com in 2005 after a career in web design and marketing. Johnson’s prime income comes from hotels, tourist boards and


tour operators looking for exposure. “If we’re talking dollars, it’s possible to earn five figures from just one trip if you have a strong following,” he says. “I think the top-level influencers are considered to be more


important now than print journalists because of their reach. However, there’s a huge number of people who proclaim themselves ‘influencers’ when the reality is they probably hold a limited level of influence.” Johnson thinks the quality of travel


journalism has been ‘greatly eroded’, adding: “I think bloggers and influencers have merged with journalists. Some journalists now run blogs – some bloggers call themselves journalists. There’s no clear distinction between the two nowadays.” Susan Grossman, lecturer in travel


writing on the MA in journalism at the University of Westminster, also believes boundaries are becoming blurred. “I am deeply concerned that advertorial is often disguised as travel writing and some publications fail to highlight it as such,” she says. Grossman refers to the British Guild of


Travel Writers’ code of conduct, which states members will accept press trips only on the understanding they are ‘in no way obliged to publicise any or all of the operation concerned and that the provision of such facilities will not influence their judgment’. There are indications the tide is turning


theJournalist | 13 $500


Amount charged for an Instagram post with 70,000 followers


and not all ‘likes’ result in transactions. A report from the 2018 Edelman Trust Barometer favoured credibility and journalism over popularity. So will that prompt professional travel bloggers and influencers to turn to print media to gain more standing?


Hide feels travel sections will become increasingly tied into sponsorship, with articles such as Ten Places to Stay in The Highlands and a picture of a Volvo. “I feel travel journalists like me are living on borrowed


time,” he says. “I wouldn’t quite say travel journalism is in crisis, but it’s one step below. I talk to a lot of my travel freelance colleagues and we are all on the verge of giving up.” On the plus side, the internet has brought more paid-for commissions from abroad. He’s written for the New Zealand Herald and magazines in Indonesia and China. “There are opportunities out there – you just need to keep on pushing,” he says. David Whitley, who writes for National Geographic Traveller and The Sunday Times Travel Magazine, has concerns when print sections cease, adding: “I don’t think anyone has properly made travel online work yet, especially as paid-for, good-quality content.” Grossman believes there will always be a need for travel


writers with journalism skills to see behind the hype. “There will always be a thirst for well-researched


information and good storytelling that evokes a sense of place,” she says. “Bloggers offer bite-sized chunks of information, here today, gone tomorrow. A good writer creates a narrative that keeps the reader searching.”


MAKSYM YEMELYANOV / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO


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