By Megan Sayles
AFRO Staff Writer
msayles@afro.com
After serving as interim CEO and president since July 2025, Kireem Swinton is now the permanent head of Visit Baltimore, the city’s designated destination marketing and sales organization. Swinton, who previously served as vice president of sales and customer experience for the quasi-governmental agency, started the position on April 1.
Swinton’s selection follows recent strides for Baltimore’s tourism industry. In 2024, 28.5 million people visited the city, spending $4.3 billion. In his role, redefining Baltimore’s national and global image will be a central focus.
“For me, my biggest thing is to make sure that we commit to telling the real, authentic story of Baltimore and not let anyone else paint the narrative for us,” said Swinton. “That’s super important to me because the underlying tone when you talk to everyone in the community is: ‘We don’t like how everyone tells our story. We want to tell our story on our own.’”
Historically, Baltimore, like many urban areas, has been associated with violence, drug activity and poverty. These portrayals have permeated mainstream media and, at times, overshadowed the lived experiences of Baltimoreans.
This year, under Swinton’s leadership, Visit Baltimore launched its B-side campaign, giving residents a platform for sharing positive, overlooked stories about their city. Swinton said the campaign is particularly important given that half of Baltimore’s visitors reach out to a relative or friend to ask about the city’s offerings before visiting.
Another priority for Swinton is increasing the number of meetings and conferences the city attracts. He emphasized that large-scale gatherings, like the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament, not only bring visitors who spend their dollars with local businesses, they generate jobs for residents.
Recently, the city hosted the National Society of Black Engineers Annual Convention for the first time, which brought more than 16,000 people to the city in March. However, in order to draw more major convenings, Swinton said the Baltimore Convention Center must be redeveloped—an additional objective for Swinton in his permanent role.
Overall, the message that Swinton wants to convey is that Baltimore “is a vibe.” He said when people ask him what that means, he emphasizes the all-encompassing nature of the city.
“We have something that would excite anyone depending on any space you’re in,” said Swinton. “Whether it’s arts, culture, history, sports, culinary or wanting to be on the water, we have everything here for you.”
Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott told the AFRO he’s excited to deepen his relationship with Swinton as the “two top storytellers and recruiters” for the city.
He noted that current anti-diversity, inclusion and equity sentiments across the social and political climate present an opportunity to attract travelers who are looking for welcoming destinations.
“It’s about working together, as we have done and continue to do, in rebranding the message we’re sending out to the world, especially to folks who look like us,” said Scott. “It’s about letting everyone know that you don’t have to give folks who don’t support your organization’s mission or your people your money; you can come to Baltimore where they do.”
