The allure of striking it rich is universally appealing, but rarely gets associated with a visit to a state park in rural Arkansas.
Thanks to the discovery of a 6-carat diamond – and the accompanying frenzy of media coverage – tourists and speculators are flooding Murfreesboro this week.
Crater of Diamonds State Park visitor David Anderson is benefiting handsomely from the facility’s finders-keepers policy. So is the Missouri-based charity Speed the Light, to which Anderson has pledged the jellybean-sized jewel.
But the biggest beneficiary may very well be Arkansas State Parks, which saw its earned media coverage spike since the April 15 discovery. Nearly 350 airings of the story on U.S. television and radio stations have reached an estimated audience of 6.7 million, according to Critical Mention.
We’re betting the media coverage associated with Crater of Diamonds State Park will yield higher visitor counts and revenues – the fee to dig for diamonds is $8 per amateur speculator, ages 13 and up — for months to come.
Broadcast media monitoring analysis provided by Critical Mention
