World Travel Journalists Organization announces international jury for Open Passport 2025

Santo Domingo.– With the Open Passport 2025 awards ceremony just weeks away, the World Travel Journalism Organization (WTJO) has unveiled the 15‑member international jury that will evaluate submissions and select the year’s top tourism communicators.

The jury brings together distinguished professionals from across the globe, each recognized for expertise in communication, tourism, journalistic ethics and cultural promotion. Its members include Miguel Ledhesma (Argentina), Luis Polo Roa (Panamá), Kevin Casanova (Colombia), Eliane de Souza (Brazil), Nehir Önen (Turkey), Gaurav Gupta (India), Guillermo Aguilar (Norway), Michael Sulentic (Croatia), Sebastián Carrillo (United States), Sarah Hernández (Dominican Republic), Claudia Peralta (Mexico), Andrés Álvarez (Chile), Dais León (Venezuela), Miguel Chávez (Peru) and Miriam Martínez (Spain).

Over the coming weeks, this diverse panel will deliberate on entries based on excellence, innovation, positive impact and alignment with WTJO’s core values. Its broad representation ensures an inclusive perspective on current best practices in tourism journalism and underscores Pasaporte Abierto’s truly global character.

The awards ceremony takes place on August 26, 2025, in San Juan de Pasto, Colombia. It will cap a regional tour through Nariño and adjacent binational areas extending to September 7. Journalists and communicators from 27 countries are expected to participate in the event and related activities.

By convening such a reputed jury, Pasaporte Abierto 2025 reaffirms its commitment to recognizing quality, ethical standards and the vital role of tourism communicators in fostering a more human, inclusive and transformative travel sector.

Dominican Today up for Investigative Journalism Award

This year, Dominican Today celebrates a nomination in the Investigative Journalism category for Adrian R. Morales’s meticulously researched feature “Influencers, ‘sinvergüencers,’ ‘fakevergüencers,’ and other figures in tourism promotion.” Not only does Morales’s work shine for its depth and rigor, but it also distinguishes itself through an original, playful tone—laced with witty sarcasm—that artfully exposes the quirks and contradictions of today’s promotional machinery.

His reporting offers more than insight; it invigorates Dominican tourism journalism by balancing hard‑hitting analysis with a light‑hearted voice that underscores the very issues troubling the sector.

A decorated voice in his field, Morales claimed the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018, won Investigative Journalism in 2023 and Recognition of the Others in 2024, and served as a juror for the 2020–2021 and 2022 Open Passport editions—underscoring his enduring influence on the global stage.