Whitehorse:  The Government of Yukon’s decision not to promote the Yukon on the Discovery Channel’s Klondike miniseries is another example of the Yukon Party's Department of Tourism dropping the ball when it comes to marketing, says Klondike MLA Sandy Silver.  The program reached 1.9-million viewers in Canada and 3.4-million American viewers during its Monday night opening.

“This was a great opportunity to promote the Yukon and encourage viewers from across North America to visit the place where the Klondike Gold Rush actually happened,” he said.  “I’m surprised the government didn’t try to take advantage of that.”

The MLA for Klondike raised the issue of the Government of Yukon buying advertising on the History Channel program Yukon Gold last year and was told it was not a priority. Silver noted viewers who tuned in to Klondike did see commercials from the State of Alaska.

“Our neighbours certainly thought marketing their tourism product on this program was a good idea,” he said.  “Why did Yukon not take the opportunity?  It is part of the mandate of the department to promote the Klondike Gold Rush.”

Silver watched the opening night at an event hosted by the Klondike Visitor Association (KVA).

“KVA did a great job pulling this event together. They developed an excellent rapport with the production company, who was more than willing to contribute to the KVA's marketing ideas. Despite some artistic license issues I would say people in the room quite enjoyed the program,” he said.  “Many people were asking the same question as myself – where is the advertising encouraging viewers to make the trip to the Yukon?”

Silver added that while commercial spots might be too expensive, the possibility of a Tourism Yukon banner displayed on the bottom of the screen could have been possible, had the government reached out to the Discovery Channel.  The government could also have advertised on the Discovery Channel’s website.

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Jason Cunning 667-8942