The promotion of tourism on radio waves

Consumers in tourism are increasingly demanding, looking to base their travel decision-making on relevant and credible tourist information. Media are an important vehicle for information and communication and may positively or negatively influence the image that the potential consumer has of a tourist destination or service. In recent years, new media have gained significant prominence in terms of increasing use by consumers and tourism organizations;however, traditional media such as radio continue to play an important role, not only through the dissemination of news but also through the diversity of information they convey about places, communities, events, and cultural heritage. The aim of this chapter is to understand the role radio plays in the transmission of sound spaces within tourist content. The results of the study indicate that in Portugal there are programmes on public radio characterized by informative and/or promotional tourism purposes and a prevailing focus on cultural heritage. This study will also point out how radio's potential is not being fully exploited by tourism markets, particularly in terms of sound capture and on-the-spot contact with tourism agents. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021.

Boundaries of distance. Local media relevance for citizens: Measuring consumption, digital extensions and information levels

Local media are decisive for communities in the context of a global culture. In Portugal, communicating for a more geographically restricted area deals with permanent hazards, especially in the journalistic scope, from both structural and organizational points of view. Arguably weakened and lacking from institutional support, Portuguese local media, ranging from printed media, radio, and television to online broadcasts, still thrive on uncertainty. Also, from an academic point view, little is known about the audiences’ perceptions towards these local media. In doing so, this article presents the data collected from an online survey of 139 consumers of local media, thus concluding: traditional media (printed and FM) are still the most consumed formats, compared to the online scope;the COVID-19 pandemic was not decisive to increase local media consumption habits;seeking for information is the fundamental reason to follow local media;participants understand that websites and Facebook, mainly, are the most dynamic digital spaces that local media foster, thus giving them a very good evaluation;half of the sample have already interacted with broadcasters, especially to suggest ideas for journalistic approaches;in a global perspective, participants are pleased with the news coverage of local media towards local matters. Future research should implement complementary scientific approaches, based on in-depth perspectives to fully understand motivations to engage with local media and other social representations towards these mass media. © 2021, Bastas Publishing. All rights reserved.