Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live Saturday
Toronto Says SARS Not Reason to Stay Away
Aired April 26, 2003 - 16:29 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: More on SARS, which has killed 293 people worldwide, 18 of those in Canada. The World Health Organization has issued a travel advisory for Canada's largest city, Toronto. Musicians Elton John and Billy Joel have canceled a Monday concert there. But Canadian officials say that SARS outbreak is under control in Toronto. And in fact, they've launched a marketing campaign to try to bring visitors to the city. David Akin filed this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID AKIN, CTV CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): How do you sell a sick city? If you're Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman, you start by taking your message to CNN.
MEL LASTMAN, MAYOR, TORONTO: Our city is continuing, they're moving the way they always do. They're working. The malls are jammed.
AKIN: But a marketing expert says Lastman should stay out of the spotlight.
DAVID DUNNE, UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO: Mel Lastman, if anything, is invisible in overseas markets.
AKIN: Dunne says Toronto needs an ambassador with international credibility.
DUNNE: The prime minister would be an obvious candidate for that.
AKIN: But it was up to Transport Minister David Collenette to fulfill that role. He was in London Friday, returning from a European conference.
DAVID COLLENETTE, TRANSPORT MINISTER: You know, we agreed that I would try to do some interviews.
AKIN: In fact, the British may have some advice to offer Toronto. Two years ago, an outbreak of hoof-and-mouth disease scared away thousands of foreign visitors.
RAYMOND MATHIAS, VISITBUREAU IN TORONTO: Then what we did, we invited members of the press, travel writers, news broadcasters, come over to Britain, take them around the country so they could see everyday people going on with their work and traveling, and to see that Britain was open to business.
AKIN: Their marketing campaign made Britain seem like fun again.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, AD)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To enjoy the pleasures of Britain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AKIN: In the meantime, Canadian business leaders are urging Ottawa to focus its pitch on Canadians traveling in their own country.
PERRIN BEATTY, MANUFACTURERS AND EXPORTERS: I would like to see the federal government (UNINTELLIGIBLE) an advertising campaign within Canada to say clearly what they've said clearly on their Web site today, there is no reason to restrict travel to and from Toronto.
AKIN: One thing that's not helping, pounding away at the World Health Organization.
DUNNE: And that looks, in overseas markets, as if we're simply in denial.
AKIN (on camera): Experts are agreed on one issue. It makes no sense to push hotel discounts or Toronto attractions until public health officials give the city the all-clear. And that could take two or three weeks.
David Akin, CTV News, Toronto.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired April 26, 2003 - 16:29 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: More on SARS, which has killed 293 people worldwide, 18 of those in Canada. The World Health Organization has issued a travel advisory for Canada's largest city, Toronto. Musicians Elton John and Billy Joel have canceled a Monday concert there. But Canadian officials say that SARS outbreak is under control in Toronto. And in fact, they've launched a marketing campaign to try to bring visitors to the city. David Akin filed this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID AKIN, CTV CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): How do you sell a sick city? If you're Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman, you start by taking your message to CNN.
MEL LASTMAN, MAYOR, TORONTO: Our city is continuing, they're moving the way they always do. They're working. The malls are jammed.
AKIN: But a marketing expert says Lastman should stay out of the spotlight.
DAVID DUNNE, UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO: Mel Lastman, if anything, is invisible in overseas markets.
AKIN: Dunne says Toronto needs an ambassador with international credibility.
DUNNE: The prime minister would be an obvious candidate for that.
AKIN: But it was up to Transport Minister David Collenette to fulfill that role. He was in London Friday, returning from a European conference.
DAVID COLLENETTE, TRANSPORT MINISTER: You know, we agreed that I would try to do some interviews.
AKIN: In fact, the British may have some advice to offer Toronto. Two years ago, an outbreak of hoof-and-mouth disease scared away thousands of foreign visitors.
RAYMOND MATHIAS, VISITBUREAU IN TORONTO: Then what we did, we invited members of the press, travel writers, news broadcasters, come over to Britain, take them around the country so they could see everyday people going on with their work and traveling, and to see that Britain was open to business.
AKIN: Their marketing campaign made Britain seem like fun again.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, AD)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To enjoy the pleasures of Britain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AKIN: In the meantime, Canadian business leaders are urging Ottawa to focus its pitch on Canadians traveling in their own country.
PERRIN BEATTY, MANUFACTURERS AND EXPORTERS: I would like to see the federal government (UNINTELLIGIBLE) an advertising campaign within Canada to say clearly what they've said clearly on their Web site today, there is no reason to restrict travel to and from Toronto.
AKIN: One thing that's not helping, pounding away at the World Health Organization.
DUNNE: And that looks, in overseas markets, as if we're simply in denial.
AKIN (on camera): Experts are agreed on one issue. It makes no sense to push hotel discounts or Toronto attractions until public health officials give the city the all-clear. And that could take two or three weeks.
David Akin, CTV News, Toronto.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
