| Thomas Kohnstamm | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 24, 1975 Seattle, Washington, United States |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Genres | Gonzo, Travel, Non-fiction |
| Notable work(s) | Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? |
Thomas Kohnstamm is an American author, and travel writer who worked previously for Lonely Planet.[1][2][3]
Kohnstamm's travel writing mainly covers Latin America and the Caribbean.[4] [5] In addition to Lonely Planet, he has worked for various magazines and newspapers. Kohnstamm is a graduate of both Stanford University and Bowdoin College, holds an MA in Latin American Studies and speaks both Spanish and Portuguese.[6][7]
Contents |
Kohnstamm’s book Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?, a gonzo style memoir was published by Random House/Three Rivers Press in April 2008.
Kohnstamm came to general public attention prior to the release of Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?. The author drew criticism, and allegedly death threats,[8] after he was quoted as admitting to performing a "desk update" for a guidebook to Colombia.[9][10] He stated in the interview that "They didn't pay me enough to go (to) Colombia. I wrote the book in San Francisco. I got the information from a chick I was dating - an intern in the Colombian Consulate." This quote was incorrectly interpreted as implying that he had updated destination sections of the book, for which he would have been expected to visit the country, rather than merely background material. A quote was also taken from his book that said "...what I can’t plagiarize, I can always make up," calling into question both the accuracy and the practices of his fellow travel writers.[11]
Subsequently Kohnstamm agreed that the situation had been "blown way out of proportion."[9][10] and agreed his "regrettable" and "unfortunate choice of words" about Colombia had come off as "flippant", but claimed they were not merely self promotion, but were 'part of a larger interview and digression'.[9] He argued that the "...what I can’t plagiarize, I can always make up," quote lifted from the book had been intended "to be humorous" when taken in context.[9]
Lonely Planet immediately responded to the furor: Regarding Kohnstamm's claim to have written for the Colombia guide without having revisited the country, Lonely Planet clarified that he had only been commissioned to write the introduction and history chapters for that book, stating "when he was commissioned it was understood that he wouldn't be going to the destination",[12] an explanation confirmed by Kohnstamm, who claimed this quote too had been taken out of context by the Publisher's publicists.[9][13] Lonely Planet's publisher Piers Pickard defended their rate of pay, and the accuracy of their work.[5][10]
Other writers defended Kohnstamm's claims in regards to the behaviour of those in the industry, contrasting with those of Pickard who claimed "no freebies — period", before admitting that they could be taken when "obtained through a tourist office", but not in "exchange for positive content".[10] Pickard also admitted to the practice of completing guides from a desk, but only in "cases where writers cannot travel to dangerous areas" or the scope of the project, suggesting "We can't cover the whole of the Australian outback. That's like imagining our authors sleep in every single hotel".[10] Lonely Planet, through editor Christopher Ward, re-assured their readers that in Kohnstamm's work there were "only the kind of minor inaccuracies we would normally expect of guidebook text that was coming up to its review date",[5] indicating that his description of his own fallacies may have been partly made up too.
Whilst criticism of the author was prevalent with one observing "were I his editor, I’d want his blood",[2] reviews of the actual book were often supportive, with the same reviewer stating "As a reader...I could not get enough of the most depraved travel book of the year". Others praised Kohnstamm's "spirited prose".[14]
Since the publication of Do Travel Writers Go To Hell? Kohnstamm has written articles on subversive travel literature for the travel site Worldhum-The Best Travel Stories on the Internet,[15][16] as well as a variety of articles on destination travel for Forbes.[17][18][19] His guidebook-writing career seems to have ended.