Tourism as Advertised in Hawaii
For this paper, I choose to focus on Hawaii. Hawaii is a state composed of the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, Kauai, Molokai, Lanai, Niihau, and Kahoolawe. I choose Hawaii due to its portrayal in popular culture as a modern paradise, and wanted to see how the reality measured up to my perceptions. I will begin by discussing tourism as advertised. I will start with the history of tourism on the island, then how Hawaii is portrayed through marketing and advertisements and conclude this section with who is said to benefit from tourism. I will then discuss the aspects of tourism that aren’t advertised including who actually benefits from tourism in Hawaii, the effect of tourism on culture and finally on how the …show more content…
The native hawaiian’s have some of the lowest education rates with less than half of with a high school diploma, and less than a fifth with a bachelor 's degree. The natives also have a higher rate of poverty and the lowest mean family income of any major ethnic group in the state. The dominance of the tourist industry results in the state government having a vested interest in the industries well-being and many decisions have not been in the natives best interest. During the Gulf war, the state allocated six million dollars to the Hawaii Visitors Bureau for television commercials. During this period one of the largest layoffs of hotel employees occurred, with the newly unemployed hawaiians receiving little state support. The expansion of the tourism industry has destroyed many traditional jobs, and the jobs created by the industry are low pay. The revenue from tourism doesn’t trickle down to the native islanders. There is significant foreign investment by japanese and mainland american’s in the island leading to most of the profit from tourism to leak out of the state. Including government owned lands, over 95% of the land in Hawaii is owned by …show more content…
The native language of Hawaii is falling into disuse, since the major industry on the island is dominated by english. Unlike other areas, once the language disappears from the islands, it will disappear from the world. Hula marketing derives from the commoditization of the traditional polynesian dance, the hula. Hula is a dance accompanied by dance and chant originally used in a spiritual capacity, celebratory capacity or to bring a community closer together. Throughout the years, hula has transformed into more of a spectacle on display for the entertainment of tourists, including the hula girl bobblehead souvenirs. The expansion of the tourism industry has either destroyed or monetized native sacred or historical sites. On the island of Kauai, an ancient burial ground was excavated and relocated in order to build condominiums for a new resort. The relocated burial site was then used in advertisements for the resort. The tourism industry has turned culture into profit, and if not stopped may dilute hawaiian culture into a caricature of
For this paper, I choose to focus on Hawaii. Hawaii is a state composed of the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, Kauai, Molokai, Lanai, Niihau, and Kahoolawe. I choose Hawaii due to its portrayal in popular culture as a modern paradise, and wanted to see how the reality measured up to my perceptions. I will begin by discussing tourism as advertised. I will start with the history of tourism on the island, then how Hawaii is portrayed through marketing and advertisements and conclude this section with who is said to benefit from tourism. I will then discuss the aspects of tourism that aren’t advertised including who actually benefits from tourism in Hawaii, the effect of tourism on culture and finally on how the …show more content…
The native hawaiian’s have some of the lowest education rates with less than half of with a high school diploma, and less than a fifth with a bachelor 's degree. The natives also have a higher rate of poverty and the lowest mean family income of any major ethnic group in the state. The dominance of the tourist industry results in the state government having a vested interest in the industries well-being and many decisions have not been in the natives best interest. During the Gulf war, the state allocated six million dollars to the Hawaii Visitors Bureau for television commercials. During this period one of the largest layoffs of hotel employees occurred, with the newly unemployed hawaiians receiving little state support. The expansion of the tourism industry has destroyed many traditional jobs, and the jobs created by the industry are low pay. The revenue from tourism doesn’t trickle down to the native islanders. There is significant foreign investment by japanese and mainland american’s in the island leading to most of the profit from tourism to leak out of the state. Including government owned lands, over 95% of the land in Hawaii is owned by …show more content…
The native language of Hawaii is falling into disuse, since the major industry on the island is dominated by english. Unlike other areas, once the language disappears from the islands, it will disappear from the world. Hula marketing derives from the commoditization of the traditional polynesian dance, the hula. Hula is a dance accompanied by dance and chant originally used in a spiritual capacity, celebratory capacity or to bring a community closer together. Throughout the years, hula has transformed into more of a spectacle on display for the entertainment of tourists, including the hula girl bobblehead souvenirs. The expansion of the tourism industry has either destroyed or monetized native sacred or historical sites. On the island of Kauai, an ancient burial ground was excavated and relocated in order to build condominiums for a new resort. The relocated burial site was then used in advertisements for the resort. The tourism industry has turned culture into profit, and if not stopped may dilute hawaiian culture into a caricature of