Murder, What Murder? Nothing To See But Us Innkeepers Playing Ostrich.

MayorBob.

Posted to Etcetera on Sat Nov 11, 2006 at 08:01:23 AM EST (promoted by port1080). RSS.

Murder is a commonplace on the streets of Philadelphia this year.  With 320 people already murdered and two full months left to go this year, the city looks to be on track to eclipse last year's total of 377 murders.  The violence is so awful and the body count so constant that most of the media has reported on this phenomenon of a city killing itself with a vengeance.  The nightly newscast carries the names of the latest victims with the locations of their seemingly senseless deaths.  City officials have called for an end to the violence.  Community activists have asked for an end to gun sales.  Thus far, the guns keep being sold to those ready to use them and the violence continues.  But, despite all of the facts being basically everywhere, one organization in Philly has a novel approach to dealing with it, as the hotel association counsels acting like it doesn't exist.

The Greater Philadelphia Hotel Association interests are limited to a few things: attracting people to the city, making their stay as safe and pleasurable as possible, and encouraging them to come back again.  Philadelphia has so much to offer in the way of cultural and historical landmarks, not to mention artistic venues that visiting the city should be a pleasure.  Thus, anyone checking into any of the 10,000 plus hotel rooms in Center City can expect to receive a complimentary copy of Philadelphia magazine.  Until this month, that is.  The Hotel Association has decided to ask member hotels to not distribute any copies of November's issue because of this story, a treatment on the murder epidemic in Philly.  The Hotel Association believes placing the magazine in the hands of tourists and visitors is a bad thing, because it will give them the wrong idea about the "City of Brotherly Love."  The wrong idea the Hotel Association believes the article gives is that these murders occur everywhere throughout the city and that very few of them occurred near any of the hotels.

An interactive map showing where the killings were occurring through October 31st reveals the Hotel Association has a point.  Only three murders occurred in or near center city.  According to Larry Platt, Philadelphia magazine's editor, the Hotel Association executive director Ed Grose told him the murders were a "North Philadelphia problem."  Although the map does show few of the murders occurred in Center City, it also does show heavy pockets of killings outside of North Philadelphia.  In the mind of Platt, this is a "Philadelphia problem" and not one limited to one neighborhood.  Denying the magazine's coverage was sensationalistic, Platt viewed Grose's reaction as trying to sweep another problem under the rug and symptomatic of what he calls "Philadelphia insecurity."  Grose's call to Hotel Association members was direct and to the point:

"I recommend that you review your position on what effect this article and cover will have on your guests who are staying in your guestrooms.  I feel that sensationalizing the murder rate in our city will have a negative effect on our customers."

Grose's request is being complied with by two of Philadelphia's finer hotels.  The managing director of the Loew's Hotel said the magazine would be "seriously alarming to our guests."  The director of public relations at the Four Seasons says the cover story runs counter to the image the hotel wishes to convey to its guests about what their hotel experience hopefully will be - "warm and comforting" and isn't what the hotel wants to project in the way of an image of the city.  An executive with the city's tourism commission doesn't have a problem with the story and doesn't see what good will come of banning the magazine, "I don't think you can just change the perception like that."