Tourism Minister Renee Webb has stated that the use by American Airlines of a Bermuda beach in an advertisement which made no reference to Bermuda demonstrates that the use of stock photos in advertising is common practice.

She also claimed last week that the use of the photo would have been good publicity for the Island because "our beaches sell themselves".

That may be so - as long as the person looking at the ad knows that it is a Bermuda beach, and not a beach in the Bahamas, Jamaica, or even Hawaii.

The problem with the ad, which was in the New York Times travel section last week, is that no one would have known. And Bermuda cannot make much hay out of the situation because the Department of Tourism did exactly the same thing with stock pictures from Hawaii and elsewhere in its own ads.

It would be nice for Bermuda to be able to say that American had to use pictures of Bermuda beaches because they are the best in the world and that beaches in the Caribbean and Mexico cannot measure up.

But that is now impossible. Why? Because it would be an implicit admission that the Hawaii beach, and the water sports pictures from the Seychelles and Florida, that Bermuda used in its ads are better than anything Bermuda can produce.

That is not so - Bermuda has beautiful beaches and splendid diving - but having said there is nothing wrong with Bermuda using stock photos in its ads, the Department of Tourism can't complain much - or even claim to be flattered - when other countries "steal" our images.