The latest tourist war in New Mexico involves a different kind if visitor: aliens from outer space.
“Instead of highlighting New Mexico’s picturesque desert landscapes, art galleries or centuries-old culture, the ads feature drooling, grotesque office workers from outer space chatting about their personal lives,” says the AP.
To some, the 30-second TV spots — which lead in roundabout fashion to the tag line that New Mexico may be “the best place in the Universe” — are provocative, funny and bold.
But critics see nothing funny about the ads. They say the attention called to the state could impair its huge $5.1 billion tourism industry.
Critics say the reptilian spacemen may be more apt to baffle or frighten away a tourist than influence them to take a visit.
“New Mexico has a lot to offer — we don’t need to bring our standards down,” said Ken Mompellier, head of the CVB in Las Cruces. That area has refused to use the alien ads.
Report by David Wilkening
