August 7, 2025 • 25 mins
Step into the world of global storytelling with Mark Johanson, an American journalist who's crafted a remarkable career from his base in Santiago, Chile. With bylines in National Geographic, Travel + Leisure, The Guardian and CNN, Mark takes us beyond the typical travel narrative to share how location, language and cultural immersion shape authentic storytelling.
Mark reveals the pivotal moment that transformed his career path—a quarter-life crisis that propelled him from New York's film industry into travel blogging and eventually professional journalism. His perspective on living and working in South America offers fascinating insights into how geographical positioning creates unique opportunities. "The good thing about being based in a random part of the world is that work often comes organically to you," he explains, describing how this advantage helps him tell stories that might otherwise go unexplored.
The conversation delves into Mark's methodical approach to discovering hidden destinations, from reading local-language news sources to maintaining comprehensive lists of emerging trends. We journey alongside him to remote corners of Peru's ancient Qhapaq Ñan road network and Armenia's burgeoning wine country. These experiences highlight his commitment to spotlighting underreported regions and cultures that deserve attention beyond the typical tourist circuit.
Perhaps most compelling is the story behind his book "Mars on Earth"—born from a moment of stark contrast during Chile's 2019 social uprising when he found himself sipping champagne on a luxury hotel rooftop while protesters below faced tear gas. This jarring juxtaposition launched a 1,200-mile journey through Chile's Atacama Desert that became both geographical exploration and personal reckoning. Mark's thoughtful reflections on responsible tourism and the importance of supporting destinations in the Global South offer valuable perspective for travelers seeking more meaningful connections with the places they visit.
Curious about Mark's adventures or want writing inspiration? Follow him @markonthemap across social platforms or visit markjohanson.com to explore his portfolio spanning guidebooks, magazine features and environmental reporting.
Purchase Mark's book here.
Please take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to the Media in Minutes podcast here or anywhere you get your podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/media-in-minutes/id1555710662
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Angela Tuell (00:05):
Welcome to Media in Minutes.
This is your Angela Tuell.
This podcast features in-depthinterviews with those who report
on the world around us.
They share everything fromtheir favorite stories to what
happened behind the lens andgive us a glimpse into their
world From our studio here atCommunications Redefined.
This is Media in Minutes.
Today, we're talking withtravel, food and environmental
(00:32):
journalist Mark Johanson, anAmerican based in Santiago,
chile.
Mark has spent more than adecade writing for some of the
world's top publications,including National Geographic,
travel and Leisure, condé Nast,traveler, afar, the Guardian,
food and Wine and CNN.
He's the co-author of 20 LonelyPlanet guidebooks and has
(00:53):
contributed to numerous coffeetable books for the brand.
Mark's stories often takereaders to remote corners of the
world, spotlighting culture,design and sustainability along
the way.
His first book, mars on Earth,was released in 2024 and follows
a 1,200-mile journey throughChile's desert, one of the
driest and most extreme placeson the planet.
(01:15):
Hello, mark, thank you forjoining us today.
Mark Johanson (01:19):
Yeah, thanks for having me.
Angela Tuell (01:20):
How are things in Chile?
Mark Johanson (01:23):
Yeah, things are good.
It's winter here, so I've justbeen up in the Andes right above
Santiago where I live.
It's nice.
Angela Tuell (01:30):
Okay, that is quite the difference.
It's been very hot here in theUS, I'm sure you've heard.
I must ask what first broughtyou to South America and how has
living there shaped your career?
Ooh, it's a long story, butI'll try and give you the answer
?
Mark Johanson (01:47):
The short answer is my husband is Chilean, so we
met 15 years ago in New Zealand,traveled around the world for a
bit and just ended up movingback to his country.
How it's shaped my career?
Oh, I think, in a milliondifferent ways, most of them
good, some of them morechallenging.
But I think the good thingabout being based in a sort of
(02:08):
random part of the world is thatyou end up getting a lot of
work that just comes organicallyto you, which is nice.
As a freelancer, yeah, you'realways pitching, pitching,
pitching, but here a lot ofthings just naturally come based
on where I'm located in theworld, which is nice.
Angela Tuell (02:25):
Right, A lot of publications you know, as you
know, don't pay or don't wantjournalists to take hosted trips
or pay to travel.
So if you live there, it's theperfect situation that you can
write stories.
Did you always want to be ajournalist?
Could you walk?
Mark Johanson (02:42):
us through your career.
You know, briefly, sure, yeah,I mean, in a way I did.
I went to school for this sortof catch-all degree called Media
Arts and Design and I initiallywanted to do broadcast
journalism but then swayed intocinema studies.
So my first career was in filmand television in New York, okay
, and I did that for a littleunder two years and was just
(03:03):
sort of overwhelmed by the egosof people.
Had to get out, had a bit of aquarter life crisis, started a
travel blog and then eventuallyparlayed that travel.
What drew you into those topicsand how do you, you know, write
about all of them?
Niches, yeah, career out of it.
(03:48):
They're all things that Ipersonally enjoy and I also
think that they're things thatcombine well together.
Oftentimes, when I'm writing atravel story, for example, it's
going to have a strongenvironmental bent, or a story
might have an environmental bentas well.
The design stuff is somethinglike we were just talking about.
That kind of came to meorganically, based on where I
live.
You know, magazines come to measking me to write stories about
(04:09):
architecture.
You know, can you go toBariloche, argentina, to write
about this cabin in the woodsthere?
And I would say, yeah, sure.
So yeah, some of it just cameorganically and some of it is
just following my passions inwhatever directions they take me
, and, yeah, the thing that tiesthem together is really just
(04:30):
they're things that I like.
And especially when I'm writingabout Latin America or South
America, I think there's just somuch negative news that comes
out of this part of the worldthat it's always nice to be able
to shine a spotlight on thebeauty and the joy and the art
and the design, the food, theculture from this part of it.
Angela Tuell (04:45):
It is definitely beautiful.
We work with, as you know, thecountry of Peru, which is right
down there as well.
So much beauty, so much.
So many wonderful people too.
Yes, we mentioned in the introthat you write, for you know the
world's top travel publicationsNational Geographic, travel and
Leisure, guardian, afar, condéNess.
Could go on and on.
(05:06):
How do you decide?
You talked about this a littlebit, but which stories you
pursue and where to pitch themor do a lot of them, you know
most of them come to you.
Mark Johanson (05:17):
No, there's definitely a lot of pitching
involved still and, yeah, Ithink it just has to do with
reading the publications a lot.
You know spending a lot of timereading the publications,
thinking about their audience,thinking about the kind of
stories that they want and wouldpursue.
(05:54):
I still think that there's oftena way of taking that same story
and tweaking it a little bitfor a publication like Travel
and Leisure, you know, just byperhaps basing it more around a
new hotel opening or somethingthat's more targeted at that
kind of publication.
Pitch something to in mind.
I do always try and think aboutways that I might be able to
adapt the same story for adifferent audience, just
depending on you know what Ithink that they're going to want
.
Angela Tuell (06:12):
Right, yeah, that's great.
How do you discover those youknow off the beaten path,
destinations that you oftenfeature?
Mark Johanson (06:21):
Some of it is just getting out there, going to
networking events, going toconferences, speaking with
people.
That's all I mean.
Speaking with people is alwaysthe best way you know to learn
about.
Yeah in the travel industry.
Another part of it, specificallyto to latin america, would be
just reading the news in thelocal language.
So I do read a lot in spanish ortry to read in portuguese,
(06:43):
which I'm not as good at, butjust to see what people are
writing about in Brazil, orwriting about in Argentina or
Peru.
What are the local journalistswriting about that they think is
interesting, that's happeningin their own countries, and
(07:03):
that's a great place to see whatis happening in each country
and then decide what of thosedifferent ideas or what of those
stories or what that they'retalking about might have a
broader global appeal, becausenot all of it does.
But sometimes that's where youfind those little nuggets of
what's happening and what'sexciting in different parts of
the world.
So I think it's a little bit ofthat of reading at the local
news in different places, ofgetting out into networking
(07:24):
events, speaking with people andjust.
I always keep a big list of Ihave a whole document that's
like where to go, and then eachyear I have ideas that I compile
at the end of the year, thebeginning of the year, about
what places I think might betrending or interesting or have
something going for them in thecoming year that I want to get
my pitches towards.
Angela Tuell (07:45):
That's great insight.
I won't ask you your favoriteplaces, but what are some of
your most memorable places?
You've been.
Mark Johanson (07:54):
Well, speaking of Peru, I did a story there I
think it was maybe two years agohiking along a portion of the
Capacnan, which is the greaterInca roads.
It's not just the Inca trailthat.
Everyone knows that goes toMachu Picchu, but the Capacnan
goes all the way from Cuenca inEcuador down into Chile and
Argentina and it was this hugeAndean road network made of
(08:16):
stones and there's still theselittle portions of it in very
rural parts of Peru that areperfectly preserved.
So you have this old stone road.
That's just wild, it's out of afantasy film and I was able to
go with a guy, an Americanactually, who's lived in Peru
for 20 years, to explore aportion of that over five days,
(08:40):
just some of the wildest partsof the center of the Andes in
Peru.
It's just amazing, I thinkArmenia for me, was another
beautiful trip recently and justgoing off into a really country
that I knew very little about.
But before I went on that trip Ijust did a ton of research and
(09:00):
found out that it's the cradleof wine culture.
It has the oldest winery in theworld there and now, since
they've discovered that, they'recreating this whole new wine
industry there, wow, they'vebuilt this trans-Caucasian trail
that's connecting Armenia with,you know, its contentious
neighbors, azerbaijan and lesscontentious neighbor Georgia,
(09:21):
and Armenia is the first countrythat's completed.
It's through the full countryportion of that hike.
Yeah, I don't know, justlooking for stories like that in
some of the more underreportedparts of our world are what
fascinate me.
Angela Tuell (09:35):
Yes, and they're always fascinating to read.
So you do a great job.
I know you've written orcontributed to dozens of Lonely
Planet guides too, and coffeetable books.
What's that process like andhow does it differ from some of
your other work?
Mark Johanson (09:50):
Yeah, it is fair.
It's a very different processfor sure.
Equally rewarding, I think, ina lot of ways, because even
though certain magazines andnewspapers will let me go to
some pretty far off corners ofthe world, I think nowhere lets
me go to further off corners ofthe world.
(10:10):
Guidebooks I did for them wasWest Papua, in New Guinea, so
that's somewhere that you know,no magazine was going to send me
there, so I think it's just away of well, personally, it lets
me travel in a way that I didwhen I was a teenager and in my
20s, backpacking around theworld Just that sense of
(10:30):
discovery and exploration thatyou get from being a Lonely
Planet writer, because you arekind of charged with going out
into the world and creatingthose new paths that will become
beaten one day but aren't yet.
So it lets me go off into somereally, really fascinating parts
of the world and I don't haveto only think about what's
(10:51):
newsworthy or what's the newhotel or what's the new this.
I can really just focus on whatmakes that destination really
interesting.
So, even while perhaps thewriting isn't always as creative
though I think it can be andthere is a lot of data
collecting in terms of openinghours and things like that, and
(11:12):
there's a lot of really longdays because you need to
optimize your time it is just areally fascinating way of
traveling that I think a lot ofpeople don't get to do anymore.
Angela Tuell (11:23):
Yeah, yeah, there's not a lot of guidebooks.
You know where that kind ofinformation that way.
Mark Johanson (11:31):
Yeah, yeah.
No, it is nice that LonelyPlanet at least.
It's gone through a lot ofowners and a lot of changes and
there's a whole new look to thebooks actually in recent years,
but they are still at least oneof the few as far as I know,
that actually still sendswriters out, pays for writers to
go out on the road, to makethose trips to investigate and
to update those books in the waythat we have been doing for,
(11:54):
you know, decades.
Angela Tuell (11:56):
Yes, I love that You've even hosted and produced
video content for Lonely PlanetWas that a difficult transition.
Or you mentioned you know TVfilm in the beginning, so maybe
it wasn't.
Mark Johanson (12:07):
It was fun.
I haven't done that in a verylong time but under a different
ownership of Lonely Planet wewere actually filming a TV show
that there was a bunch ofepisodes made for this TV show
and it's, just, as far as I know, been sitting in a vault in
Franklin, tennessee, whereLonely Planet was based at the
time, has never seen it in a day.
I don't know what happened tothe TV show, but oh, we need to
(12:32):
find them.
It's all got to be very datedat this point.
But we also did lots of funcampaigns for companies like
GoPro and things like that, soit was fun to get in front of
the camera.
It's a different style, as I'msure you know.
I know you've worked inbroadcast journalism.
Angela Tuell (12:47):
I was going to say we had to learn print
journalism at first, even whenwe were going into broadcast.
So I think those skills are sovaluable for any type of
journalism.
Mark Johanson (12:58):
Absolutely yeah.
Angela Tuell (13:00):
We must talk about your book.
You released your first book,mars on Earth in 2024, towards
the end, right, following ajourney through a desert in
Chile.
What was the inspiration behindthe book?
Or tell us a little bit more.
And Chile, what was theinspiration behind the book?
Mark Johanson (13:15):
Or tell us a little bit more.
Sure, yeah, the inspiration forthe book, I guess, would be
well, I wrote the book duringthe pandemic, but it really
starts a few months before thepandemic.
When, here in Chile, we hadthis big social uprising in
October of 2019, people were outon the streets marching and
(13:36):
right when this whole thing kindof exploded and started, I was
sitting on the rooftop of thisluxury hotel drinking champagne
and suddenly tear gas was comingin my face and I was like what
a juxtaposition that I'm sittinghere drinking champagne on a
luxury hotel and people are outon the streets protesting like
what do I not understand aboutthis country that I really
should, should know more?
(13:57):
and so that sort of singularevent and and the protests and
the marches and things like thatthat I got swept up in
afterwards sort of set me off onthis journey to try and
understand the country that Ilive in better and to understand
this part of the world better,to understand my relationship to
my partner better through thistrip through the Atacama Desert,
which is the driest non-polardesert in the world.
(14:20):
And why I chose to go throughthe desert, which is sort of the
northern half of Chile, isbecause it's the part of Chile
that generates all the money andthe wealth and the economy
through all the mineralresources that are found in the
North.
It's also kind of like theflyover country, the place that
people look down on, which arealways the kind of parts of the
(14:40):
world that really fascinate me.
So I said journey, which I guess, if you put it in US terms,
would basically be from SanDiego to Seattle, traveling
through this really dry butreally fascinating desert,
looking at all the differentfacets of it on one level, but
also having this sort ofpersonal journey on another
(15:01):
level.
Angela Tuell (15:02):
Oh, I love that, and we can get the book anywhere
.
Mark Johanson (15:04):
You buy books Anywhere you find your books
yeah, amazon Barnes Noble.
Angela Tuell (15:09):
You can order it through your local bookstore
yeah, Great Well, we'll includea link in our show notes as well
, through your local bookstore.
Yeah, Great Well we'll includea link in our show notes as well
.
I would love to talk aboutresponsible tourism.
You've, you know, readextensively about that.
Climate impacts culturalpreservation.
Mark Johanson (15:26):
What have you learned through your work in
that space?
Hmm, so, I think, one of theinteresting things.
I also do some project-basedwork with NGOs like World
Wildlife Fund and I thinkthrough them they really taught
me a lot of important skills interms of how to, for example,
work with communities.
You know how do you enter acommunity, what research do you
(15:47):
need to do before you go in?
Tell stories about indigenouscommunities around the world
without just extracting theirstory, but making them a part of
the conversation and justgiving them a platform to share
what they want to share.
I think that, as a journalist,we carry a lot of responsibility
if we're going to tell thesekinds of stories, to tell them
(16:08):
right and to not just parachutein and assume that we know
everything, but to really absorband try and just I don't know
be conscious in the way that wetell those stories.
In terms of more environmentalstuff, I think.
Just you know, I think,especially working in the parts
(16:29):
of the world that I work in theglobal south we don't
necessarily have the sameover-tourism problems that you
might find with people who domore work in Europe or other
parts of the world.
So for me, it's more about justtrying to tell stories that
invite people to come to theseother parts of the world, in the
global South, and show themwhere their money can be useful
(16:52):
and what that money can helpsupport.
And you know, sometimes I thinkabout these travel publications
, particularly in Europe, thatthese days stop writing about
places outside of Europe becauseyou can't get there on a train,
and to me that's kind ofcounterintuitive, because if
tourism dollars aren'tsupporting projects in Africa
and Latin America and Asia andother parts of the world that
(17:14):
you know are supportingconservation, supporting local
communities, you know, isn'tthat part of the whole
environmental conversation aswell?
Angela Tuell (17:23):
Yes.
Yeah absolutely, absolutely.
I love that.
How often are you travelingthese days and how do you
balance that with time at home?
Mark Johanson (17:33):
It's a good question.
This year I've actually beentraveling less and it's been a
very conscious decision to tryand spend more time at home.
The past two years I was awayprobably about seven months of
the year, which is just anabsurd amount of time.
The Lonely Planet stuff usuallytakes me away for a month, each
time on a different stint, themagazine stuff or newspaper
(17:56):
stuff, you know.
Maybe two weeks here and there,but I'm trying to get more out
of each trip.
That's been my goal now is toreally think about how I can
develop different stories withdifferent angles, for different
publications or differentmarkets, even Because I don't
just write for the US market.
I try and, you know, thinkabout if I'm selling this in the
US, maybe I can sell it also inAustralia, because it's not
(18:19):
going to have that.
I'm not competing with thepublication in the US, you know,
with a different, slightlydifferent angle of course, but
just trying to make more out ofeach trip so that I don't have
to travel as much, because it isimportant to be home.
It is important to especiallywhen you live abroad.
You know I don't have my familyhere.
It's important for me to builda network and feel like I
(18:41):
actually live in this place,instead of just like coming in
to repack my bag and get outagain.
Angela Tuell (18:47):
Right Like it's just a destination that you go
to yeah.
Mark Johanson (18:51):
So it's hard to find that balance, but I'm
working on it.
Angela Tuell (18:56):
And I think it'll get better every year, right?
You know a large part of ouraudience are PR professionals,
so I'd like to ask a fewquestions along those lines.
What makes a pitch stand out toyou, and are there certain
angles or details that make youmore likely to follow up?
Mark Johanson (19:16):
Hmm, I mean, I know it's probably what a lot of
people say, but I love it whena pitch is sort of specifically
tailored to the person knows whoI am, where I'm based in the
world and it's slightly.
We have a slightly morepersonal relationship.
I know that's really hard for aPR professional to do that.
We're trying to reach a lot ofpeople, but if there is a story
(19:38):
that you really think I might bethe best person to tell and you
can tell me, what is the?
You know the big why me?
Why this story?
Why this time?
You know all those kind ofquestions that I know an editor
is going to ask me.
If you can help me answer thosein your pitch, that certainly
makes it a lot easier on my endto get that story out into the
(20:01):
world.
What else, I guess?
Yeah, just the newsworthinessof things is always a big thing.
It's hard for me to tell astory that doesn't have some
newsworthy element to it in someway, be it an anniversary or a
new hotel opening or a new wayof exploring a destination or
(20:23):
just anything that you think youcan see being, you know, part
of the news.
Angela Tuell (20:28):
Yes, that's great advice.
And any pet peeves when itcomes to pitches or even hosted
press trips.
Mark Johanson (20:36):
I would say I don't do a whole lot of hosted
press trips.
In terms of group press trips,I think I've always found it
more useful to develop an idea,perhaps based on a pitch from a
PR person, develop an idea, workwith them on that idea a little
bit, pitch it out to mypublications, land the story and
(20:59):
then work with them directly tosort of make that idea a
reality.
I know that that's so muchharder for PR people as well,
but I often think that when thatdoes happen and you can land a
story in a top tier publication,it's just the results are
better for everyone.
Angela Tuell (21:18):
Yes, individual trips are always.
I mean it's.
It's fantastic because it can,like you just said, tailor to
what you are working on withspecific, and we find that those
are, you know, more beneficial.
Clients definitely do prefergroup ones a lot of times
because you said it's easier andI understand it.
Yeah, but I completely agreewith you.
(21:41):
You mentioned trends a littlebit earlier.
What trends or topics in traveljournalism are you seeing
emerge right now?
Mark Johanson (21:50):
that are not as over-touristed.
Just you know we're seeing allof this blowback from
over-tourism in Europeespecially.
And so people are starting tolook for those dupe destinations
or places that they're notgoing to feel like one.
(22:13):
You know the next millionthperson to be in the same spot, I
think cooler destinations aswell.
I'm sure you've seen people areRight the Caucasians.
People are tired of being superhot and going to the
Mediterranean in the middle ofthe summer.
So, I think, coolerdestinations.
I just think people are, or I'dlike to think people are
(22:37):
looking beyond their comfortzone a little bit more and
opening their eyes to the worlda bit more.
I think, especially if we'retalking about travelers outside
of the US I do get the sense,because I work with a lot of UK
or Australian publications aswell that there's less interest
in the US and so people areturning their eyes to other
parts of the world at the momentand thinking, okay, we're not
(23:00):
going to spend this money to goto the U?
S this year.
Where else?
Angela Tuell (23:05):
Um, yeah those are some of the things we've seen
Um journalists, even in likeCanada, that that no outlets
will take, you know, coveragewritten about the U.
S it is extremely sad.
Mark Johanson (23:18):
Yes.
Angela Tuell (23:20):
So before we go, I have to ask what's next for you
.
Any exciting assignments ordestinations coming up?
Mark Johanson (23:27):
Sure, yeah, I'm headed to Guyana in a few weeks,
which is, even though it's partof South America, it's a part
that's so different, I think,from the rest of South America.
It's more culturally alignedwith the Caribbean, and I'm
going to go to the US to fly toit.
Angela Tuell (23:45):
Really.
Mark Johanson (23:46):
Yeah, yeah, I mean it's a good way to visit
family as well along the wayRight.
But, yeah, going to Guyana,which is it's a fascinating
story.
Guyana is the fastest growingeconomy in the world.
They've recently just hugeswath of oil just off the coast.
I mean, it's right next toVenezuela, so it makes sense.
But what they're doing withthat oil is what's fascinating.
(24:09):
They're using that oil to sortof develop tourism as well, and
that's the focus of the storythat I'll be there reporting.
I'm also going to the very tipof South America, to a place
called Cape Forward, which isthe location of what's going to
be one of the newest nationalparks in the world.
(24:31):
We're expecting an announcementin October of this year, but
basically it's a new, acompletely new national park
that will be opening at thesouthernmost point on the South
American continent.
Yeah, and so it's a four-dayhike out to the lighthouse at
the bottom there looking at theorganization behind it, which is
(24:52):
called Rewilding Chile, whichis part of the Tompkins
Conservation.
I don't know if you've heard ofChris Tompkins.
She's this famous figure inconservation in this part of the
world.
So that would be anotherfascinating story.
And, yeah, a couple otherthings I'm juggling in the air
and we'll see what lands.
Angela Tuell (25:09):
Oh, those sound fantastic, can't wait to read
them.
How can our audience connectwith you or follow your work
online?
The best.
Mark Johanson (25:18):
Yeah, so I'm on Instagram, Twitter, blue sky,
all at Mark on the map, and youcan look at my portfolio website
, which is just my namecom.
Angela Tuell (25:29):
Wonderful.
Thank you so much, Mark.
Mark Johanson (25:32):
No, thank you, Angela, I appreciate it.
Angela Tuell (25:34):
That's all for this episode of Media in Minutes
, a podcast by CommunicationsRedefined.
Take a moment to rate, reviewand subscribe to our show.
We'd love to hear what youthink you can find.
I'm your host, Angela Tuell.
Talk to you next time.
Welcome to Media in Minutes.
This is your Angela Tuell.
This podcast features in-depthinterviews with those who report
on the world around us.
They share everything fromtheir favorite stories to what
happened behind the lens andgive us a glimpse into their
world From our studio here atCommunications Redefined.
This is Media in Minutes.
Today, we're talking withtravel, food and environmental
(00:32):
journalist Mark Johanson, anAmerican based in Santiago,
chile.
Mark has spent more than adecade writing for some of the
world's top publications,including National Geographic,
travel and Leisure, condé Nast,traveler, afar, the Guardian,
food and Wine and CNN.
He's the co-author of 20 LonelyPlanet guidebooks and has
(00:53):
contributed to numerous coffeetable books for the brand.
Mark's stories often takereaders to remote corners of the
world, spotlighting culture,design and sustainability along
the way.
His first book, mars on Earth,was released in 2024 and follows
a 1,200-mile journey throughChile's desert, one of the
driest and most extreme placeson the planet.
(01:15):
Hello, mark, thank you forjoining us today.
Mark Johanson (01:19):
Yeah, thanks for having me.
Angela Tuell (01:20):
How are things in Chile?
Mark Johanson (01:23):
Yeah, things are good.
It's winter here, so I've justbeen up in the Andes right above
Santiago where I live.
It's nice.
Angela Tuell (01:30):
Okay, that is quite the difference.
It's been very hot here in theUS, I'm sure you've heard.
I must ask what first broughtyou to South America and how has
living there shaped your career?
Ooh, it's a long story, butI'll try and give you the answer
?
Mark Johanson (01:47):
The short answer is my husband is Chilean, so we
met 15 years ago in New Zealand,traveled around the world for a
bit and just ended up movingback to his country.
How it's shaped my career?
Oh, I think, in a milliondifferent ways, most of them
good, some of them morechallenging.
But I think the good thingabout being based in a sort of
(02:08):
random part of the world is thatyou end up getting a lot of
work that just comes organicallyto you, which is nice.
As a freelancer, yeah, you'realways pitching, pitching,
pitching, but here a lot ofthings just naturally come based
on where I'm located in theworld, which is nice.
Angela Tuell (02:25):
Right, A lot of publications you know, as you
know, don't pay or don't wantjournalists to take hosted trips
or pay to travel.
So if you live there, it's theperfect situation that you can
write stories.
Did you always want to be ajournalist?
Could you walk?
Mark Johanson (02:42):
us through your career.
You know, briefly, sure, yeah,I mean, in a way I did.
I went to school for this sortof catch-all degree called Media
Arts and Design and I initiallywanted to do broadcast
journalism but then swayed intocinema studies.
So my first career was in filmand television in New York, okay
, and I did that for a littleunder two years and was just
(03:03):
sort of overwhelmed by the egosof people.
Had to get out, had a bit of aquarter life crisis, started a
travel blog and then eventuallyparlayed that travel.
What drew you into those topicsand how do you, you know, write
about all of them?
Niches, yeah, career out of it.
(03:48):
They're all things that Ipersonally enjoy and I also
think that they're things thatcombine well together.
Oftentimes, when I'm writing atravel story, for example, it's
going to have a strongenvironmental bent, or a story
might have an environmental bentas well.
The design stuff is somethinglike we were just talking about.
That kind of came to meorganically, based on where I
live.
You know, magazines come to measking me to write stories about
(04:09):
architecture.
You know, can you go toBariloche, argentina, to write
about this cabin in the woodsthere?
And I would say, yeah, sure.
So yeah, some of it just cameorganically and some of it is
just following my passions inwhatever directions they take me
, and, yeah, the thing that tiesthem together is really just
(04:30):
they're things that I like.
And especially when I'm writingabout Latin America or South
America, I think there's just somuch negative news that comes
out of this part of the worldthat it's always nice to be able
to shine a spotlight on thebeauty and the joy and the art
and the design, the food, theculture from this part of it.
Angela Tuell (04:45):
It is definitely beautiful.
We work with, as you know, thecountry of Peru, which is right
down there as well.
So much beauty, so much.
So many wonderful people too.
Yes, we mentioned in the introthat you write, for you know the
world's top travel publicationsNational Geographic, travel and
Leisure, guardian, afar, condéNess.
Could go on and on.
(05:06):
How do you decide?
You talked about this a littlebit, but which stories you
pursue and where to pitch themor do a lot of them, you know
most of them come to you.
Mark Johanson (05:17):
No, there's definitely a lot of pitching
involved still and, yeah, Ithink it just has to do with
reading the publications a lot.
You know spending a lot of timereading the publications,
thinking about their audience,thinking about the kind of
stories that they want and wouldpursue.
(05:54):
I still think that there's oftena way of taking that same story
and tweaking it a little bitfor a publication like Travel
and Leisure, you know, just byperhaps basing it more around a
new hotel opening or somethingthat's more targeted at that
kind of publication.
Pitch something to in mind.
I do always try and think aboutways that I might be able to
adapt the same story for adifferent audience, just
depending on you know what Ithink that they're going to want
.
Angela Tuell (06:12):
Right, yeah, that's great.
How do you discover those youknow off the beaten path,
destinations that you oftenfeature?
Mark Johanson (06:21):
Some of it is just getting out there, going to
networking events, going toconferences, speaking with
people.
That's all I mean.
Speaking with people is alwaysthe best way you know to learn
about.
Yeah in the travel industry.
Another part of it, specificallyto to latin america, would be
just reading the news in thelocal language.
So I do read a lot in spanish ortry to read in portuguese,
(06:43):
which I'm not as good at, butjust to see what people are
writing about in Brazil, orwriting about in Argentina or
Peru.
What are the local journalistswriting about that they think is
interesting, that's happeningin their own countries, and
(07:03):
that's a great place to see whatis happening in each country
and then decide what of thosedifferent ideas or what of those
stories or what that they'retalking about might have a
broader global appeal, becausenot all of it does.
But sometimes that's where youfind those little nuggets of
what's happening and what'sexciting in different parts of
the world.
So I think it's a little bit ofthat of reading at the local
news in different places, ofgetting out into networking
(07:24):
events, speaking with people andjust.
I always keep a big list of Ihave a whole document that's
like where to go, and then eachyear I have ideas that I compile
at the end of the year, thebeginning of the year, about
what places I think might betrending or interesting or have
something going for them in thecoming year that I want to get
my pitches towards.
Angela Tuell (07:45):
That's great insight.
I won't ask you your favoriteplaces, but what are some of
your most memorable places?
You've been.
Mark Johanson (07:54):
Well, speaking of Peru, I did a story there I
think it was maybe two years agohiking along a portion of the
Capacnan, which is the greaterInca roads.
It's not just the Inca trailthat.
Everyone knows that goes toMachu Picchu, but the Capacnan
goes all the way from Cuenca inEcuador down into Chile and
Argentina and it was this hugeAndean road network made of
(08:16):
stones and there's still theselittle portions of it in very
rural parts of Peru that areperfectly preserved.
So you have this old stone road.
That's just wild, it's out of afantasy film and I was able to
go with a guy, an Americanactually, who's lived in Peru
for 20 years, to explore aportion of that over five days,
(08:40):
just some of the wildest partsof the center of the Andes in
Peru.
It's just amazing, I thinkArmenia for me, was another
beautiful trip recently and justgoing off into a really country
that I knew very little about.
But before I went on that trip Ijust did a ton of research and
(09:00):
found out that it's the cradleof wine culture.
It has the oldest winery in theworld there and now, since
they've discovered that, they'recreating this whole new wine
industry there, wow, they'vebuilt this trans-Caucasian trail
that's connecting Armenia with,you know, its contentious
neighbors, azerbaijan and lesscontentious neighbor Georgia,
(09:21):
and Armenia is the first countrythat's completed.
It's through the full countryportion of that hike.
Yeah, I don't know, justlooking for stories like that in
some of the more underreportedparts of our world are what
fascinate me.
Angela Tuell (09:35):
Yes, and they're always fascinating to read.
So you do a great job.
I know you've written orcontributed to dozens of Lonely
Planet guides too, and coffeetable books.
What's that process like andhow does it differ from some of
your other work?
Mark Johanson (09:50):
Yeah, it is fair.
It's a very different processfor sure.
Equally rewarding, I think, ina lot of ways, because even
though certain magazines andnewspapers will let me go to
some pretty far off corners ofthe world, I think nowhere lets
me go to further off corners ofthe world.
(10:10):
Guidebooks I did for them wasWest Papua, in New Guinea, so
that's somewhere that you know,no magazine was going to send me
there, so I think it's just away of well, personally, it lets
me travel in a way that I didwhen I was a teenager and in my
20s, backpacking around theworld Just that sense of
(10:30):
discovery and exploration thatyou get from being a Lonely
Planet writer, because you arekind of charged with going out
into the world and creatingthose new paths that will become
beaten one day but aren't yet.
So it lets me go off into somereally, really fascinating parts
of the world and I don't haveto only think about what's
(10:51):
newsworthy or what's the newhotel or what's the new this.
I can really just focus on whatmakes that destination really
interesting.
So, even while perhaps thewriting isn't always as creative
though I think it can be andthere is a lot of data
collecting in terms of openinghours and things like that, and
(11:12):
there's a lot of really longdays because you need to
optimize your time it is just areally fascinating way of
traveling that I think a lot ofpeople don't get to do anymore.
Angela Tuell (11:23):
Yeah, yeah, there's not a lot of guidebooks.
You know where that kind ofinformation that way.
Mark Johanson (11:31):
Yeah, yeah.
No, it is nice that LonelyPlanet at least.
It's gone through a lot ofowners and a lot of changes and
there's a whole new look to thebooks actually in recent years,
but they are still at least oneof the few as far as I know,
that actually still sendswriters out, pays for writers to
go out on the road, to makethose trips to investigate and
to update those books in the waythat we have been doing for,
(11:54):
you know, decades.
Angela Tuell (11:56):
Yes, I love that You've even hosted and produced
video content for Lonely PlanetWas that a difficult transition.
Or you mentioned you know TVfilm in the beginning, so maybe
it wasn't.
Mark Johanson (12:07):
It was fun.
I haven't done that in a verylong time but under a different
ownership of Lonely Planet wewere actually filming a TV show
that there was a bunch ofepisodes made for this TV show
and it's, just, as far as I know, been sitting in a vault in
Franklin, tennessee, whereLonely Planet was based at the
time, has never seen it in a day.
I don't know what happened tothe TV show, but oh, we need to
(12:32):
find them.
It's all got to be very datedat this point.
But we also did lots of funcampaigns for companies like
GoPro and things like that, soit was fun to get in front of
the camera.
It's a different style, as I'msure you know.
I know you've worked inbroadcast journalism.
Angela Tuell (12:47):
I was going to say we had to learn print
journalism at first, even whenwe were going into broadcast.
So I think those skills are sovaluable for any type of
journalism.
Mark Johanson (12:58):
Absolutely yeah.
Angela Tuell (13:00):
We must talk about your book.
You released your first book,mars on Earth in 2024, towards
the end, right, following ajourney through a desert in
Chile.
What was the inspiration behindthe book?
Or tell us a little bit more.
And Chile, what was theinspiration behind the book?
Mark Johanson (13:15):
Or tell us a little bit more.
Sure, yeah, the inspiration forthe book, I guess, would be
well, I wrote the book duringthe pandemic, but it really
starts a few months before thepandemic.
When, here in Chile, we hadthis big social uprising in
October of 2019, people were outon the streets marching and
(13:36):
right when this whole thing kindof exploded and started, I was
sitting on the rooftop of thisluxury hotel drinking champagne
and suddenly tear gas was comingin my face and I was like what
a juxtaposition that I'm sittinghere drinking champagne on a
luxury hotel and people are outon the streets protesting like
what do I not understand aboutthis country that I really
should, should know more?
(13:57):
and so that sort of singularevent and and the protests and
the marches and things like thatthat I got swept up in
afterwards sort of set me off onthis journey to try and
understand the country that Ilive in better and to understand
this part of the world better,to understand my relationship to
my partner better through thistrip through the Atacama Desert,
which is the driest non-polardesert in the world.
(14:20):
And why I chose to go throughthe desert, which is sort of the
northern half of Chile, isbecause it's the part of Chile
that generates all the money andthe wealth and the economy
through all the mineralresources that are found in the
North.
It's also kind of like theflyover country, the place that
people look down on, which arealways the kind of parts of the
(14:40):
world that really fascinate me.
So I said journey, which I guess, if you put it in US terms,
would basically be from SanDiego to Seattle, traveling
through this really dry butreally fascinating desert,
looking at all the differentfacets of it on one level, but
also having this sort ofpersonal journey on another
(15:01):
level.
Angela Tuell (15:02):
Oh, I love that, and we can get the book anywhere
.
Mark Johanson (15:04):
You buy books Anywhere you find your books
yeah, amazon Barnes Noble.
Angela Tuell (15:09):
You can order it through your local bookstore
yeah, Great Well, we'll includea link in our show notes as well
, through your local bookstore.
Yeah, Great Well we'll includea link in our show notes as well
.
I would love to talk aboutresponsible tourism.
You've, you know, readextensively about that.
Climate impacts culturalpreservation.
Mark Johanson (15:26):
What have you learned through your work in
that space?
Hmm, so, I think, one of theinteresting things.
I also do some project-basedwork with NGOs like World
Wildlife Fund and I thinkthrough them they really taught
me a lot of important skills interms of how to, for example,
work with communities.
You know how do you enter acommunity, what research do you
(15:47):
need to do before you go in?
Tell stories about indigenouscommunities around the world
without just extracting theirstory, but making them a part of
the conversation and justgiving them a platform to share
what they want to share.
I think that, as a journalist,we carry a lot of responsibility
if we're going to tell thesekinds of stories, to tell them
(16:08):
right and to not just parachutein and assume that we know
everything, but to really absorband try and just I don't know
be conscious in the way that wetell those stories.
In terms of more environmentalstuff, I think.
Just you know, I think,especially working in the parts
(16:29):
of the world that I work in theglobal south we don't
necessarily have the sameover-tourism problems that you
might find with people who domore work in Europe or other
parts of the world.
So for me, it's more about justtrying to tell stories that
invite people to come to theseother parts of the world, in the
global South, and show themwhere their money can be useful
(16:52):
and what that money can helpsupport.
And you know, sometimes I thinkabout these travel publications
, particularly in Europe, thatthese days stop writing about
places outside of Europe becauseyou can't get there on a train,
and to me that's kind ofcounterintuitive, because if
tourism dollars aren'tsupporting projects in Africa
and Latin America and Asia andother parts of the world that
(17:14):
you know are supportingconservation, supporting local
communities, you know, isn'tthat part of the whole
environmental conversation aswell?
Angela Tuell (17:23):
Yes.
Yeah absolutely, absolutely.
I love that.
How often are you travelingthese days and how do you
balance that with time at home?
Mark Johanson (17:33):
It's a good question.
This year I've actually beentraveling less and it's been a
very conscious decision to tryand spend more time at home.
The past two years I was awayprobably about seven months of
the year, which is just anabsurd amount of time.
The Lonely Planet stuff usuallytakes me away for a month, each
time on a different stint, themagazine stuff or newspaper
(17:56):
stuff, you know.
Maybe two weeks here and there,but I'm trying to get more out
of each trip.
That's been my goal now is toreally think about how I can
develop different stories withdifferent angles, for different
publications or differentmarkets, even Because I don't
just write for the US market.
I try and, you know, thinkabout if I'm selling this in the
US, maybe I can sell it also inAustralia, because it's not
(18:19):
going to have that.
I'm not competing with thepublication in the US, you know,
with a different, slightlydifferent angle of course, but
just trying to make more out ofeach trip so that I don't have
to travel as much, because it isimportant to be home.
It is important to especiallywhen you live abroad.
You know I don't have my familyhere.
It's important for me to builda network and feel like I
(18:41):
actually live in this place,instead of just like coming in
to repack my bag and get outagain.
Angela Tuell (18:47):
Right Like it's just a destination that you go
to yeah.
Mark Johanson (18:51):
So it's hard to find that balance, but I'm
working on it.
Angela Tuell (18:56):
And I think it'll get better every year, right?
You know a large part of ouraudience are PR professionals,
so I'd like to ask a fewquestions along those lines.
What makes a pitch stand out toyou, and are there certain
angles or details that make youmore likely to follow up?
Mark Johanson (19:16):
Hmm, I mean, I know it's probably what a lot of
people say, but I love it whena pitch is sort of specifically
tailored to the person knows whoI am, where I'm based in the
world and it's slightly.
We have a slightly morepersonal relationship.
I know that's really hard for aPR professional to do that.
We're trying to reach a lot ofpeople, but if there is a story
(19:38):
that you really think I might bethe best person to tell and you
can tell me, what is the?
You know the big why me?
Why this story?
Why this time?
You know all those kind ofquestions that I know an editor
is going to ask me.
If you can help me answer thosein your pitch, that certainly
makes it a lot easier on my endto get that story out into the
(20:01):
world.
What else, I guess?
Yeah, just the newsworthinessof things is always a big thing.
It's hard for me to tell astory that doesn't have some
newsworthy element to it in someway, be it an anniversary or a
new hotel opening or a new wayof exploring a destination or
(20:23):
just anything that you think youcan see being, you know, part
of the news.
Angela Tuell (20:28):
Yes, that's great advice.
And any pet peeves when itcomes to pitches or even hosted
press trips.
Mark Johanson (20:36):
I would say I don't do a whole lot of hosted
press trips.
In terms of group press trips,I think I've always found it
more useful to develop an idea,perhaps based on a pitch from a
PR person, develop an idea, workwith them on that idea a little
bit, pitch it out to mypublications, land the story and
(20:59):
then work with them directly tosort of make that idea a
reality.
I know that that's so muchharder for PR people as well,
but I often think that when thatdoes happen and you can land a
story in a top tier publication,it's just the results are
better for everyone.
Angela Tuell (21:18):
Yes, individual trips are always.
I mean it's.
It's fantastic because it can,like you just said, tailor to
what you are working on withspecific, and we find that those
are, you know, more beneficial.
Clients definitely do prefergroup ones a lot of times
because you said it's easier andI understand it.
Yeah, but I completely agreewith you.
(21:41):
You mentioned trends a littlebit earlier.
What trends or topics in traveljournalism are you seeing
emerge right now?
Mark Johanson (21:50):
that are not as over-touristed.
Just you know we're seeing allof this blowback from
over-tourism in Europeespecially.
And so people are starting tolook for those dupe destinations
or places that they're notgoing to feel like one.
(22:13):
You know the next millionthperson to be in the same spot, I
think cooler destinations aswell.
I'm sure you've seen people areRight the Caucasians.
People are tired of being superhot and going to the
Mediterranean in the middle ofthe summer.
So, I think, coolerdestinations.
I just think people are, or I'dlike to think people are
(22:37):
looking beyond their comfortzone a little bit more and
opening their eyes to the worlda bit more.
I think, especially if we'retalking about travelers outside
of the US I do get the sense,because I work with a lot of UK
or Australian publications aswell that there's less interest
in the US and so people areturning their eyes to other
parts of the world at the momentand thinking, okay, we're not
(23:00):
going to spend this money to goto the U?
S this year.
Where else?
Angela Tuell (23:05):
Um, yeah those are some of the things we've seen
Um journalists, even in likeCanada, that that no outlets
will take, you know, coveragewritten about the U.
S it is extremely sad.
Mark Johanson (23:18):
Yes.
Angela Tuell (23:20):
So before we go, I have to ask what's next for you
.
Any exciting assignments ordestinations coming up?
Mark Johanson (23:27):
Sure, yeah, I'm headed to Guyana in a few weeks,
which is, even though it's partof South America, it's a part
that's so different, I think,from the rest of South America.
It's more culturally alignedwith the Caribbean, and I'm
going to go to the US to fly toit.
Angela Tuell (23:45):
Really.
Mark Johanson (23:46):
Yeah, yeah, I mean it's a good way to visit
family as well along the wayRight.
But, yeah, going to Guyana,which is it's a fascinating
story.
Guyana is the fastest growingeconomy in the world.
They've recently just hugeswath of oil just off the coast.
I mean, it's right next toVenezuela, so it makes sense.
But what they're doing withthat oil is what's fascinating.
(24:09):
They're using that oil to sortof develop tourism as well, and
that's the focus of the storythat I'll be there reporting.
I'm also going to the very tipof South America, to a place
called Cape Forward, which isthe location of what's going to
be one of the newest nationalparks in the world.
(24:31):
We're expecting an announcementin October of this year, but
basically it's a new, acompletely new national park
that will be opening at thesouthernmost point on the South
American continent.
Yeah, and so it's a four-dayhike out to the lighthouse at
the bottom there looking at theorganization behind it, which is
(24:52):
called Rewilding Chile, whichis part of the Tompkins
Conservation.
I don't know if you've heard ofChris Tompkins.
She's this famous figure inconservation in this part of the
world.
So that would be anotherfascinating story.
And, yeah, a couple otherthings I'm juggling in the air
and we'll see what lands.
Angela Tuell (25:09):
Oh, those sound fantastic, can't wait to read
them.
How can our audience connectwith you or follow your work
online?
The best.
Mark Johanson (25:18):
Yeah, so I'm on Instagram, Twitter, blue sky,
all at Mark on the map, and youcan look at my portfolio website
, which is just my namecom.
Angela Tuell (25:29):
Wonderful.
Thank you so much, Mark.
Mark Johanson (25:32):
No, thank you, Angela, I appreciate it.
Angela Tuell (25:34):
That's all for this episode of Media in Minutes
, a podcast by CommunicationsRedefined.
Take a moment to rate, reviewand subscribe to our show.
We'd love to hear what youthink you can find.
I'm your host, Angela Tuell.
Talk to you next time.
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