An ABC report says that Tourism NT’s managing director says she will consider hiring an interstate public relations firm again if a report shows it has gained positive press for Alice Springs.
Pulse Communications was contracted in April at a cost of $50,000 to pitch ‘good’ stories about the town to the national media.
The move outraged local film-makers and media outlets who said they were already reporting about what was going on in the town.
Maree Tetlow says she is awaiting a final report on Pulse’s performance, but thinks the company has helped complement tourism campaigns and counteracted negative press.
“It was just something we had to try because we’re spending millions of dollars on these campaigns and if it’s going on deaf ears because people think, yes well this is just propaganda and we know that this is a terrible place and we’ll never want to go there’, then we’re wasting our money,” she said.
A Report by The Mole
