The Department of Tourism will continue using ”Love the Philippines” in promoting the country as a tourist destination in Asia despite the controversy involving the rebranding strategy.
“I think that is evident,” DOT Secretary Christina Frasco told reporters on Wednesday when asked if the government would retain the slogan, which was only introduced on June 27.
On Monday, the department terminated its contract with DDB Philippines, the ad agency behind the campaign, after it admitted to using foreign stock footage in a promotional video following online criticism.
The DOT recently launched an investigation into claims that parts of the video showing footage of the rice terraces, dolphins jumping out of the water, a fisherman, sand dunes, and a plane approaching the runway were allegedly sourced from Storyblocks, which offers stock video clips for a fee.
Acknowledging its error, DDB Philippines apologized to Frasco, the DOT, and the Filipino people.
It said the audiovisual presentation was ”intended to be a mood video to excite internal stakeholders about the campaign.”
“While the use of stock footage in mood videos is standard practice in the industry, the use of foreign stock footage was an unfortunate oversight on our agency’s part. Proper screening and approval processes should have been strictly followed,” DDB said in a statement on Sunday.
“The use of foreign stock footage in a campaign promoting the Philippines is highly inappropriate and contradictory to the DOT’s objectives,” it added.
Still, DDB said it was an ”isolated incident” and that the AVP had already been removed from social media platforms.
