2006年VOA标准英语-US Tourism Industry Begins Initiative to Improv

By Richard Green
Washington
14 September 2006

The U.S. tourism industry is launching an initiative to bring more foreign visitors to the United States, in an effort to improve  the nation's declining image abroad.  
 

According to a recent survey conducted by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, the image of the United States has steadily¹ declined around the world in recent years. This includes traditional allies, such as Great Britain and Spain.  In both those nations, the survey found, America's image has declined more than 20 percent since 2000.

Representative William Delahunt of the northeastern state of Massachusetts says this trend will have a lasting² negative impact on U.S. foreign policy, if it continues.

"Because, without the support of people in nations that are traditional allies of the United States, we will not have partners in the war on terrorism," he said.

Roger Dow, president and chief executive officer of the Travel Industry of America, says the negative image of the U.S. around the world is also affecting a vital area of the nation's economy.

"Over the past 12 years, we have lost 33 percent of our market share of international travelers. So, this has been going on a long time," he said. "One share point, if we could just improve by one share point, that's eight million visitors, $15 billion in revenue, 150,000 jobs."

The decline has spurred Dow and other leaders of the U.S. travel and tourism industry to launch a new initiative, called Discover America Partnership³.  The program aims to attract 10 million more visitors to the United States each year. 

One of the leaders of the new initiative is Jay Rasulo, who serves as chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.  During a press conference in Washington earlier this week, Rasulo said the program would utilize⁴ "people-to-people" diplomacy⁵ to improve America's sagging⁶ image in the international community.

"But in the effort to win hearts and minds, we have a unique card to play," he said. "That card is an invitation to visit America, to meet our people and to experience first-hand our values.  Because, to see America, is to believe in America."

The initiative cites research that found a 42 percent increase in favorable opinion of the U.S. among those who have visited the country. 

Stevan Porter, the president of InterContinental Hotels Group, and chairman of Discover America Partnership, says the program will encourage international visitors to go beyond the usual tourist attractions in the United States.

"Certainly, there are rival places like Washington, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, that seem to always get a disproportionate share of initial arrivals," he said. "But clearly, as people return for the second trip, and as people come for longer periods of time, it is tremendous to discover the heartland, to sort through the Great Lakes, to go down to the Gulf⁷ Coast, to better understand Florida, to go all the way up to Alaska and, of course, Hawaii."

Travel and tourism officials say potential visitors face a more difficult bureaucratic⁸ process to obtain travel visas to enter the United States since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.  They are supporting a joint⁹ initiative by the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security that would streamline¹⁰ the process, using new technology, while maintaining border security. 

1 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

2 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

3 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

4 utilize   

vt.使用，利用

参考例句：

• The cook will utilize the leftover ham bone to make soup.厨师要用吃剩的猪腿骨做汤。
• You must utilize all available resources.你必须利用一切可以得到的资源。

5 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

6 sagging   

下垂[沉，陷]，松垂，垂度

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is continuously sagging. 敌军的士气不断低落。
• We are sagging south. 我们的船正离开航线向南漂流。

7 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

8 bureaucratic   

adj.官僚的，繁文缛节的

参考例句：

• The sweat of labour washed away his bureaucratic airs.劳动的汗水冲掉了他身上的官气。
• In this company you have to go through complex bureaucratic procedures just to get a new pencil.在这个公司里即使是领一支新铅笔，也必须通过繁琐的手续。

9 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

10 streamline   

vt.使成流线型；使简化；使现代化

参考例句：

• We must streamline our methods.我们必须简化方法。
• Any liquid or gas passing it will have streamline flow.任何通过它的液体或气体将呈流线型的流动。