Abstract
How do the countries of Southeast Asia capitalize on digitalization of public diplomacy in terms of nation branding? This chapter elaborates on the theoretical concept of public diplomacy and applies it to the context of member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which is a swath of 10 very heterogeneous and yet under-researched countries. The objective of this chapter is to characterize sundry approaches to public diplomacy through the concept of nation branding as the main tool in connection to the use of social media. The results of this chapter exemplify the most distinctive differences so that the countries could be classified and further divided into two main groups, one symbolized by a high degree of development and use of digitalization versus a group of latecomers. Vietnam and the Philippines represent boundary examples due to its slowdown or improvement, respectively of public diplomacy and digitalization. None of the examined Southeast Asian countries, however, has fully expanded on the concept of nation branding on social media.
TopIntroduction
Public diplomacy has gradually arisen as an indispensable element for modern diplomacy of every state, even though as an approach, it may be dated long before the ancient period (Melissen, 2005). The terminology linked to diplomacy, however, has recently become more accurate when acknowledging public diplomacy as part of soft power, as coined by Nye, and then further elaborated into the concept of smart power. The aim of both soft and smart power is to extend the reach and influence of the state (Seib, 2009). Most importantly, public diplomacy and its tools must be “perpetual and holistic” in order to remain successful (Armstrong, 2009, p. 68). As one of the latest components of public diplomacy originating in Europe and partly in Asia and Americas amid the Great War and its aftermath (Gienow-Hecht, 2019, p. 765), nation branding comprises not only tourists as the target group, but also business opportunities and indeed, politics. Traditionally and thanks to its ability to make use of the nation brand, and thus impact on potential visitors, tourism has been recognized as a key governmental strategy (Anholt, 2007, p. 88). Accordingly, countries may be perceived as “brands” of which position shall be enhanced and promoted (Rana, 2011). In addition to that, states endeavor to gain either political control over a certain topic or more power, be it region-wise or worldwide. And thus, the aims of public diplomacy and nation branding intersect the overall image of the states and their reputation (c.f., Ross, 2003; Golan, Yang, & Kinsey, 2015).
The fact is that a vast majority of existing literature focuses on public diplomacy of the USA and other Western countries (e.g., Schindler, 2018), whilst the number of papers and studies on Asian, and especially Southeast Asian, countries have been limited. Furthermore, neither the concept, nor the use of soft power has fully developed in East Asia (Lee & Melissen, 2011). And if East Asia is being considered as a “challenging case” (Melissen & Sohn, 2015, p. 2), Southeast Asia per se shall be embraced as a very convoluted one due to the heterogeneous character of governances as well as the extraordinary dissimilarities among the peoples and cultures. In addition to that, the region is also well-known for its balancing approach on the edge between an inclination to the USA versus China and/or Russia.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Digital Diplomacy: An approach based on social media and other platforms to navigate diplomatic interests.
Nation Branding: A concept of which objective is to create and maintain a certain image of a country across the world.
Digitalization: A process of utilizing digital technologies to navigate, for instance, sundry types of relations, economy, trade, and politics.
Southeast ASIA: A neologism used when referring to the 10 ASEAN countries (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam), while recently adding East Timor.
Faith Diplomacy: Also known as religious diplomacy, it symbolizes the element of faith or religious leaders embodied in diplomatic practice.
Social media: Networking-based websites or applications of which content may be used for various purposes.
Smart Power: A theoretical framework delivered by Joseph S. Nye of which objective is to efficiently combine soft and hard power in international relations and diplomacy.