DOT responds to photographer's claims about recent publication
The Department of Tourism has addressed the controversy surrounding a photographer's social media post lambasting the Department's cover photo choice on its Philippine Tropics magazine.
On New Year's Eve, the DOT released a statement distancing itself from the publication and clarifying the photographer's claims.
"Philippine Tropics is a private publication and not an official magazine of the DOT," it said.
"The Department did not contract, pay, commission, or direct the magazine to produce its cover or feature story. The content, including the selection of images and text, was produced entirely at the magazine's editorial discretion," the statement added.
The DOT clarified that the magazine used its own content, which the editorial staff gathered from covering activities related to World Expo Osaka 2025.
"Any claim suggesting that the Department or the Secretary used public office or resources for personal promotion is false, misleading, and expressly denied," the Department wrote.
As to the photographer's insinuation that DOT favored the use of the image of Frasco over those of Philippine tourist destinations, the Department said this is "entirely false and without factual basis."
While the Facebook post of the Department had the comments section turned off, users could still leave comments on the Secretary's official page, which shared the statement.
With the post garnering 1,000 laugh reactions, netizens left comments that poked fun and also wondered about the state of tourism in the country.
Days earlier, a photographer went viral on social media after he made a Facebook post expressing frustration about a cover photo of Philippine Tropics magazine. The cover prominently featured the photo of Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco superimposed over the image of a lush cove with an aquamarine sea.
In a since-deleted post, the photographer wrote DOT allegedly commissioned him and his team to shoot almost 320 tourist spots from Regions 1 to 13. According to the photographer, the team produced 236,000 photos and 6,500 video materials.
He then questioned the magazine's choice of cover.
The photographer's post included a photo of the magazine's launch issue, which is free, displayed on a stand.
According to reports, tourism in the Philippines is lagging behind its Southeast Asian neighbors. In the first quarter of 2025, the Philippines received just 2.1 million foreign visitors—3.2% less than in the same period the year before. The figure is much lower than in Malaysia, with 13.4 million visitors arriving between January and April 2025, and Thailand, with 12.1 million.
PhilSTAR L!fe has reached out to Secretary Frasco's team but hasn't heard back as of writing.
