The aim of this research project is a critical analysis of dark tourism in relation to its application to Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York, USA. This dissertation will analyse dark tourism, related to Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, shade of dark tourism, Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, and strategies of them, then to depth analysis of details of Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum.
The literature review shows secondary research and quantitative research, conducted on dark tourism is, the shade framework of dark tourism and some strategies of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum. This indicates analyses structure of the case study.
Through this dissertation, the author aim and objectives were achieved, and further suggestions and analysis are provided which could help Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum better match their aim and mission.
Chapter 1. Introduction
In this section, why Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum have been chosen as a case study are explained.
September 11th, 2001 North America suffered a most serious terrorist attack by al – Qaeda. The World Trade Center in New York was destroyed and many people died in this attack. Nowadays, American and New York government decide build Ground Zero in the site of the World Trade Center and build the 9/11 Memorial Museum for people to remembers and understand how terrible terrorism is. After the 9/11 attacks, there are many people remembered victims through in many ways, and visitor numbers increased. In recent years, the dark tourism has start to develop (Sharpley and Stone, 2009), and the 9/11 attacks shocked the whole world thus, Ground Zero as a new building and the 9/11 Memorial Museum as the main memorial place, these are the main reasons for the author choosing them as a case study. These are related to dark tourism.
Aim:
To undertake critical analysis of dark tourism in relation to its application to Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum.
Objectives:
To critically evaluate dark tourism.
To analyse Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum as memorial sites.
To evaluate tourism management strategies in relation to balancing the negative and positive side of dark tourism relating to tourism at Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum.
Chapter 2. Literature Review
2.1 Introduction
This part is composed of research and information into the meaning of dark tourism and its various shades shade, the situation of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum, and the strategies used to manage Ground Zero and memorial museum.
2.2 Evaluation of dark tourism
Each tourism product has a complex design, therefore it is not can easy to definite dark tourism as “dark” or “light” (Stone, 2006). In this situation, in order to distinguish dark tourism, the author needs a prudent scale to argue and analyse the shade of dark tourism. Stone (2006) made a summary of the different shade of dark tourism.
Table 1: shade of dark tourism
Sources:
Stone (2006): A dark tourism spectrum: perceived product features of dark tourism within a “darkest – lightest” framework of supply.
Each dark tourism site could be analysed by this framework, to define its shade. For Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum the author will use this table to analyse the shade from the definition of dark tourism mentioned above, it is easy to see that dark tourism relates to death and suffering, Stone (2006) referring to Miles (2002) suggests that the difference between “sites of death and suffering” and “sites associated with death and suffering” should be understood. The former is the site at a place where there has been death and suffering, and the latter is a site which is connected to death and suffering. Ground Zero was built at the site of the World Trade Center, which was destroyed in 2001 and in which almost 3000 people died (CNN news 2009), Ground Zero corresponds to the “sites of death and suffering”. On the other hand 9/11 Memorial Museum is not built on the site of the World Trade Center, it just close to the site and its main purpose is to function as a memorial, so this museum is part of the “sites associated with death and suffering”.
However, thorough other aspect in table 1 and based on the main theory from Stone (2006) and Miles (2002) , the shades of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum and impact of dark tourism will be analysed late in the Findings section.
2.3 An analysis of Ground Zero.
In 09/11/2001, there was an attack by terrorists and the World Trade Center was destroyed, New York is currently rebuilding this site which has a new name “Ground Zero”. 9/11 was the deadliest terrorist attack in the history of mankind, and now there is a different attitude to related to this site.
On May 1, 2011 President Obama announced that American Navy Seals had killed Osama bin Laden who was the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. Alter (2011) points out that when America heard this news they celebrated and reflected on, most of them going to the grounds of the White House in Washington and to Ground Zero in New York. In this way Ground Zero may be a place for Americans to remember the people who died on 11th September. Although the World Trade Center was destroyed, but now when the people look at Ground Zero, they will recall the memory of 9/11 and they mourn the dead people. In order to offer a good place to people for memory the government is building a museum in 2006 and put into use in 2011 (9/11 Memorial Museum). As can be seen from this place today, Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial museum becomes the main place to have a memory of dead people.
These information which mentioned above show one of the main purpose of Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum is to remember victims. In this sense, the provide information help the author achieve the objective 2, which is Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum are memorial sites in New York.
Memory as the main reason for Ground Zero, and in recent years, especially after 9/11 American government has been ceaselessly the implementating stringent anti- terrorism measures. Miller (2011) points that
“…the 9/11 terrorist attacks set the stage for the “War on Terrorism,” in the form of subsequent U.S led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.”
In the past, there have been other terrorist attacks on America, but none created such a great influence, in the sense of 9/11 which meant terrorist declared war on humans, and after this event the American government made a strong response to terrorism, and the rebuilding at the site of the World Trade Center means people do not bow to terrorism (Walsh, 2001). In this situation, Ground Zero will be a sign of war on terrorism. Because of the 9/11 terrorism attacks, the U.S government launched a massive counterattack to terrorism, and also affect on the policies and strategies. More details will be analysed in the Findings later.
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2.4 Strategies of Ground Zero and 9/11 memorial museum.
Sliverstein et al., (2012) in their report refer to after the 9/11 the main signification and action of the World Trade Center is rebuild and memorial. Ground Zero is the new building on the site of the World Trade Center and today the main place to remember 9/11 victims is at the 9/11 Memorial Museum. The author summarises a time line about the main actions of America and New York between 2001 to 2011.
Table 2: Main strategies of America and New York after the 9/11
This table just a summarise of the main strategies and action that government used in the past 10 years. Through this table could help the author clean understand the main action of American and New York government to do after 9/11 terrorism attacks. In the findings, the author will use this table to analysis more detail of the government do and related to the significants of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum to analyses. Except strategies and policies on table 2, the author will based on Porter’s (1985) generic strategy to make a professional strategies anaysis of Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum. There are two ways which suitable for Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum to achieve their mission and help the author achieve objective 3: differentiation and cost leadership. Although the Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum are nonprofits making organisations but their main purpose is make more people understand 9/11 and how horrible terrorism is. In this situation, Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum also needed strategies to develop them.
When an organisation uses a different strategy, it seeks to offer something unique to its customers that they will appreciate. This can be found in marketing sales or the actual product or service. This strategy usually involves charging a premium price to customers to cover the higher production costs and added-value feature. If a organisation uses the cost leadership strategy then it aims to be the lowest-cost producer in the industry to which it belongs. This strategy is usually employed by a large business that produces a standard with little differentiation. It will offer discounts on the products to further increase profits and market share (Porter, 2004). The basis of above-average performance within an industry is sustainable competitive advantage.
A cost leadership approach means a firm sets out to become the low cost producer in its industry. Note that a cost leader must achieve parity or at least proximity on the bases of differentiation, even though it relies on cost leadership for its competitive advantage, if more than one company aim for cost leadership, usually this is disastrous, it is often achieved by economies of scale. In this case study, the Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum are free for tourists, although some other museum also feel free but the Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum try to add more value on their products. In the museum, the organisation offers more useful value and information to customers (9/11 Memorial Museum Organisation) more service details will be analysed in the Findings.
The differentiation approach means that a firm seeks to be unique in its industry along some dimensions that are widely valued by buyers (Porter 2004). A differentiator can not ignore its cost position. In all areas that do not affect its differentiation, it should try to decrease the cost; in the differentiation area, the costs should at least be lower than the price premium it receives from the buyers. The areas of differentiation can be product, distribution, sales, marketing, service and image. In this paper, because of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum are free for customers, therefore the cost of products in not gong to be the center of analysis in this paper. How are Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum different? Based on Donofrio (2010) and Nevins (2005) refer that 9/11 is the most serious and horrible terrorist attack in the history of mankind, and caused a very serious impact on humans, especially families. In this respect, Ground Zero as the site of this terribel incident it has a special meaning, but also it is the most direct place for people to have a memorial for 9/11. For 9/11 Memorial Museum, today this site has become one of the most important places for people to remember 9/11. Because the place of Ground Zero is crowded by traffic, if too many people go there to for remembrance it will impact on traffic, so the government built a museum near by the site of the World Trade Center. For the reasons mentioned above, the Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum are different from other museum and dark tourism sites. Differentiation strategy is suitable for them to provide a high level of products and services. In the findings the author will make more analysis about these two strategies.
2.5 Conclusion
This chapter makes a summarised evaluation of dark tourism, the author pays more attention on the shade of Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, this is in order to understand the nature of dark tourism, and the other part assess the impact of dark tourism will be analysed in the Findings. Because the author considered understanding nature of the dark tourism could help author to better analysis. Dark tourism is a whole industry, in this paper the author chose Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum as case study, so in this part author also give some short evaluation of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum, a simple analysis the shade of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum, and what their mean, it gives out a brief summary of them. The part of 2.2 – 3 the author based on the characteristics of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum point out two suitable strategies for them to develop, achieve their mission and try to offer a high level of service and information to tourists.
In part 2.2 of literature review, the author gives out an overall framework and structure of the whole paper, and expounded which different aspects the author considered and analysed to achieve the aim of this paper based on other authors’ theories which author researched through secondary research and qualitative research.
Chapter Three: Methodology
3.1 Introduction
There are many different approach and methods to collect data and information in order to achieve the ultimate goal and solve the research question. This chapter mentions how and why the research data were collected, and also advantages and disadvantages of the chosen methods and how to remedy the disadvantage are presented. The data collected are reliable, credible, and authentic. Steward and Kamins (1993) point out that the main research methods could be divided into primary research, secondary research, qualitative research and quantitative research. As the author determined the overall use of secondary research was chosen in this project to achieve the aim, so methodology will provide sufficient justification to explain why secondary research was selected. Thoms (2009) points out that successful research should include the following elements: purpose, question, approach, and method. Hart (2007. p28) argues that the procedure for formulating a method is a system of methods and rules to be collected and analysis of data and information. In the following paragraph the author will follow Thoms (2009) and Hart’s (2007) elements to present the methodology and analyse why secondary research was chosen to collect the data and how to analyse the information .
3.2 The Research Process
To determine the choice of approach in the research process, the author will use the following ”Research Process ‘Onion model”, introduced by Saunders et al. (2003) is used. The research process onion allows the researcher to identify the many different layers in the research process and to eliminate or identify the most suitable process.
The research process ‘onion’ consists of the following five different layers:
The model is used by starting from step one, the outer layer, which illustrates research philosophy, and peeling away the layers when different criteria have been set until reaching the end, which introduces the possible data collection methods. Once the last step has been reached, the parameters of the research have been established.
3.3 Type of research
The first stage of the research onion is called research philosophy. Saunders et al (2003, p. 83) argue that the research philosophy depends on “…the way that you think about the development of the knowledge.” There are four main philosophies that are used to approach the research: positivist, interpretive, realism, and phenomenology.
There are two features of positivism philosophy, they are belief that the natural and the social sciences could help the author achieve the aim through the collection of data and information and to explain, then offer an external reality data support and explain the points (Bryman 2001). On the other hand, the interpretivistic philosophy asserts that the assumptions of both philosophies are unwarranted; especially in cases where the objectives of study are influenced by many factors, and are extremely difficult to isolate and control in experimental laboratory settings (Hirschheim and Klein 1994). The realistic philosophy shares two features with a positivism philosophy: a belief that the natural and the social sciences should apply the same kinds of approach to the collection of data and to explanation, and a commitment to the view that there is an external reality to which scientists direct their attention (Bryman 2001).
The first three are not appropriate to this study as the positivist paradigm requires mainly quantitative data and uses large samples; interpretive paradigm is more concerned with generating theories and realism investigates relationship between two variables. The latter one has been used for this study as it was the most suitable for this type of research.
The phenomenological approach can be applied to a single case, which is appropriate to this research study as the researcher used one Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum as a case study for investigation. The use of phenomenology in the scenario then was to look into what presented itself that is the tourist attraction, its facilities and performance and then explore ‘behind the scenes’ and question how the tourism operators sell themselves and of any special techniques which are used to do this. This is summarized by Mariampolski (2001):
“According to phenomenology, the purpose of the human sciences – which presumably includes market research – is to pry beneath the surface to expose these categories and habits of mind that shape out perceptions.”
This research study lends itself to a realistic approach, where the author recognises that areas such as ‘strategy’ and ‘visitors attitudes’ cannot be measured and studied in the same way physical process can. Instead, the author wants to discover the mechanisms that brought Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum prosper and where possible, will try to measure the theory applied within the study. ”The existence of competing, or even explanations is one of the features of realist research.” (Fisher, 2004. p 16)
3.4 Research strategies and approach
The research objectives were to investigate the key metrics as indicators for success; this involved conducting secondary research by studying data and reports. Based on the objectives, it can be said that this research is an explanatory study. According to Robson (1993), this is a type of discovery is:
“What is happening; to seek new insights; to ask questions and to assess phenomena in a new light.”
Exploratory studies are about discovering new information and generating ideas and hypotheses. The researcher explored the factors that contribute to Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, and how these places gaining a competitive advantage as these were unknown prior to conducting the study.
The approach to the study involved a combination of inductive and deductive approaches, inductive because the researcher collected data and then analysed it to draw conclusions and offer theories; deductive because the researcher studied previous research and evidence through the literature review and then compared it to findings to see how they corresponded or contrasted with each other. ”The strength of inductive arguments is often weaker than deductions. Deductions are certainties but inductive conclusions are probabilities” (Fisher, 2004. p 76)
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These diverse methods area particularly suited for the research as it requires different analysis and allows for more research to be conducted and analysed. Some qualitative data were used for secondary research, involving studying statistic at figures which relates to the three objectives in finding out the indicators of success. Once this data was analysed conclusions were offered to how Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum gains a competitive advantage.
3.5 Research choice
The study will benefit from the use of current secondary data to make clear many of the contradictory findings throughout various authors’ work, therefore, a report-based approach to data collection was adopted, by examining the annual reports and surveys conducted. In the following section the author will analyes why secondary research was chosen.
Gene (1976) points out that secondary research is a way to reanalyse data to answer the question, to achieve the purpose, or use old data to answer a new question. Thus, secondary research is through books, journals, websites, or other researchers’ findings were used to collect data and material.
For primary research and secondary research each have their own advantages, for primary research, Steward and Kamins (1993) indicate that primary research have the following advantages. The first is primary research which could allow the researcher collect the data they want and report it in a beneficial way to support the researcher. The second is primary research enables the author to better grasp and control how the information is collected. The last is the way to help companies who under take primary research to keep information hidden from the competitors and possibly offer an “information advantage” to these companies. Primary research has some deficiencies but for the author, the project’s research will use the secondary research.
The author will first point out is to the advantages of secondary research. Steward and Kamins (1993) also given some advantages of secondary research. The biggest advantage of secondary research is saving time and cost, because secondary research allows the author to use of secondary data to support a point of view and this will be easier, and sometimes secondary research could provide a higher quality of data than from a new research, like primary research. If the author wants to obtain some information about suggestions for problem planning, research hypotheses and research methods, secondary research could provide these additional advantages. In addition, secondary research also helps researchers to clarify the issue they want to study, and previous primary research can help clarify the focus of the study.
Although there are some deficiencies with secondary research, Bryman and Bell (2007, p.334) point out the limitation of secondary research as the following three:
1. Lack of data relating to the research.
2. The data that are collected are complex; some of these data have a large number of respondents and variables.
3. The quality of data is not controllable.
3.6. Construction of the research
For this dissertation, a lot of data were obtained from references source such as books, journals, reports, and networks. Most books which author found were in university library. Not only books, but also a large number of journals, magazines, E – bookwere used. For secondary research, the author also included information from found websites. The network of all the information from the New York government websites, local government websites, other reports, and Emerald, in these data also include information from E – books, these can ensure the data’s authenticity, reliability, accuracy and credibility. Real data are better to support this dissertation, and make this dissertation more credible and make up defect of secondary research.
According to the aim and objectives, there is much information and data to support this dissertation, however, many of these data sources are not irrelevant. For this reason, the author will consider many aspects of this dissertation to choose the relevant, credible, accurate information, the author will also consider the quality of data, year of information, and when it was published.
3.7 Assessment schematic
Rudestam and Newton (2001, p. 60) argue that you need to keep a perspective, and do an evaluation of the advantages of this study, at the same time make a comparative study with same or similar problems.
The purpose of the assessment diagram is to ensure that data collection is credible, reliable, effective and could be used for this study.
1. Survey of major issues:
Analysis of what are the main issues to be investigated and definition of the concept of the author’s work, allows comparison of similar studies.
2. Hypotheses
To enquire and evaluate what hypotheses has been stated and whether the theoretical framework is narrowed or broadened
3.The appropriate data for the study
To question whether the collected data are appropriate and how they have influenced results and findings.
3.8 Conclusion
This chapter explains why the author would choose secondary research to collect and evaluate data. Meanwhile, the author also aware of the limitation of secondary research, therefore, the author would analysis more information and theories to support this study. In this part, the structure will be illustrated that how the author collect information, how to select suitable, correct and accurate information.
Chapter 4 Findings
4.1 Evaluation of Dark Tourism.
Part 4.1 will introduce the situation of “dark tourism” and provide a depth analysis of dark tourism in order for the reader to gain an overall concept of dark tourism, and the details of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum will be given in part 4.2. This paper uses Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum for the case study. The museum is a kind of exhibition showing pictures, voices, and experiences, therefore, this part critically examines the value that contemporary and controversial exhibitions techniques play in the visitor experience at sites of historical significance.
According to Lennon (2000), dark tourism is a kind of tourism ‘products’ that signify a fundamental shift in the way in which death, disaster and atrocity are being handled. Sharpley and Stone (2011) also point out that dark tourism includes travel to sites about deaths, disasters and atrocities. It can be easy to understand the definition of ‘dark’ tourism (also known as black tourism or grief tourism) as a kind of tourism product, meaning a place that people visit in memory of death, disaster, suffering, violence or atrocity.
One emerging area of special interest has been identified by Lennon et al. (2000) as ‘dark’ tourism. This type of tourism involves visits to ‘dark’ sites such as battlegrounds, scenes of horrific crimes or acts of genocide, for example concentration camps. Dark tourism remains a small niche market, driven by a wide variety of visitor motivations such as mourning, remembrance, education, macabre curiosity or even entertainment, depending on the social, cultural and political context (Stone, 2006). In this study, the author takes a neutral stance on this issue. There are both positive and negative aspects in contemporary exhibition techniques. Consequently, a particularly complex issue revolves around the consumption of dark tourism. People usually visit such dark sites for emotive and controversial ideas. Someone, within contemporary society, visits such places out of respect and remembrance. Someone could obtain a secret pleasure in gazing on the macabre. While, some people contemplate their own mortality at such attractions and exhibitions (Stone, 2006).
Nowadays, visitors are no longer satisfied to loll on the beach or gather around the hotel bar with other tourists. The increasing attention paid to the phenomenon of dark tourism may arguably be symptomatic of the trend within academic circles to identify and label specific forms of tourism, or to subdivide tourism into niche products and markets (Novelli, 2005). Visiting Nazi death camps in eastern Europe as a holiday itinerary, enjoying family picnics on the battlefields in northern France, purchasing souvenirs at Ground Zero and allowing schoolchildren to gaze upon tools of torture at the London Dungeon, are all examples of the macabre exhibition.
Consequently, the term ‘dark tourism’ has been gradually entering the public, such as academic and media discourse. By definition, dark tourism mean the visits, intentional or otherwise, to purposeful / non-purposeful sites which offer a presentation of death or suffering (Stone, 2005).
Likewise, Tarlow (2005) identifies dark tourism as visitations to places where tragedies or historic deaths have occurred and that continue to impact on people`s lives. Dark tourism sites can be divided into several categories and can be defined in terms of site structure and tourist experience features. The usual type of site is interpretive and historical, whether it is located at the primary scene of an atrocity or at a geographically unrelated place. Often taking on the form of a museum, such places exhibit a narrative and an event-based view of violence, leading the tourists through the history and details of a particular tragedy. An ‘in-context’ technique, (Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, 1998) to contextualise via labelling and explanation, characterises such displays and works to present violence as explainable and cognitive through education and information.
4.1-1 Positive affects of dark tourism
Tung and Ritchie (2011) states that tourism is a way for people seek the experiences and open a way to absorption of those experiences. People collect experiences through travel, go different place, meet different people and culture and experiment different life style. Understand world could help us understand ourselves and develop ourselves (Lanterman 2007 referred to Boniface 1998). Although people can learn many things from school, but experiences of life should experiment by people themselves, tourism provides a way to us to learn. In ancient time, Marco Polo traveled to Asia from Europe, when he backed to his country, he brought many advance technology to his country and made European experiment a lot of new things which they never saw before. Today, with developing of dark tourism, there are many new things for tourists to experience enrich themselves.
With the degree of infrastructure and normality that surround the supply of dark tourism, even on varying scales (Stone and Sharpley, 2009), the increasingly socially acceptable gaze on death and its reconceptualisation either for entertainment, education or memorial purpose offers both the individual and collective self a practical confrontational mechanism to begin the process of neutralising the impact of mortality.
The educational meaning of dark tourism. Sharpley et al. (2010) state that in the UK, around 30% of schools undertook tours to battlefields. Visiting battlefields provides an opportunity to bring history to life, for history students to gain an understanding of what it might have been like to be a soldier of the time. Religious Studies students may visit sites of mass slaughter in order to explore the spiritual issues and the reactions of different faiths (Sharpley et al., 2010). For Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, they are a part of history of human, and they as the sign of 9/11 it own a special significant, and visitors could learning many things about terrorism and peace in these. Although a tour may exhibit some particular darkness, the experience of visiting battlefields may provide young people with a chance to explore their reactions to death. This reflects the potential mediating role of dark tourism.
Secondly, is full of memory to visits. Memorialisation and interpretation are two ways of assuaging feelings such as guilt, fear of forgetting, remembrance and reconciliation (Sharpley et al., 2010). A mass number of visitors to Auschwitz may think of their visit as a pilgrimage, particularly visitors who are survivors or family
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