ISSUE150 米国有米寒假小组11日作业

cckantUID: 2247822

TOPIC: ISSUE150 - "Because of television and worldwide computer connections, people can now become familiar with a great many places that they have never visited. As a result, tourism will soon become obsolete."
WORDS: 535          TIME: 0:42:55          DATE: 2007-2-11

Television and worldwide computer connections nowadays provides a great amount of information about places around the world. The speaker claims that as people become familiar with these places, tourism will soon become obsolete. However, in my opinion, information from internet and television would never replace the tourism, as tourism provides integrated experience which television and internet are unable to parallel. In contrast, I believe the television and worldwide computer connections enhance the prospective of tourism.

To begin with, one should recognize that television and worldwide computer can only provide simulated video and audio images and recounts of others' experience, while tourism provided real, integrated and active experience. On the one hand, information from television and World Wide Web are limited to the experience of others. People absorbing these kinds of information can not be passive. The only way to actually expanding life experience is to visit by one's self. On the other hand, except own experience, any other sources of information about a place are discreet. Television may provides a two dimensional video graphs augmented with comments and some sound, while article from internet may provide detailed trip dairy, and subjective experience approximately expressed in words. However, there is no any other than actually visit that provide a live experience incorporates with smell, slight sound and full pictures of a place which impress oneself, rather than others' selves, most. Therefore, there is no replacement for a real tour.

Moreover, the television and worldwide computer connections promote tourism instead. The powerful marketing stimulation of advertisement for commodities and services are well recognized in the modern economy. This is also true for tourism. Though not many people are interested in geography, most people are interested in new things, distinct environment and diverse experience. Therefore, the information available in the television and internet acts as advertisement that help people recognize the less unknown places which are irrelevant to their regular life but available for leisure. Also, the traveling for holiday purpose is a sort of consumption that one can not see the good and service until they once actually have been there. But the information available through media and internet provided neutral and hence reliable information about the good or service before people determine to purchase.   

In addition, the worldwide computer connections reduce risk associate with traveling and prepares more sophisticated plan, hence make tourism more attractive. People usually are worried about the unexpected incidence while traveling, such as acclimatization problems, loss of money and documents, and emergency unavailability to family and business partners. But with worldwide computer connections, these kinds of risk and troubles are hopefully reduced. For example, with worldwide computer connections, people are able to send and receive fax so to process emergent business event. Or with information shared by billion of people, one is able to have better preparation before trips, special when the destinations are less known.

In sum, as television and worldwide computer connections make no substitution to the real experience of tours, tourism will not become obsolete because of them. Instead, the television and worldwide computer connection well complement to the tourism so that nice prospective of tourism is expected with the development of television and internet on tourism issues.