The Effect of Digital Diplomacy in Creating Public Diplomacy: Twitter Use of the Embassies in Turkey

Year 2020, Volume: 7 Issue: 2, 1345 - 1366, 24.07.2020

Özden Özlü , Gülseli Aygül Ernek Alan

https://doi.org/10.17680/erciyesiletisim.686259

Cited By: 5

Abstract

Today, people’s use of social media prompts governments to get digitized. Embassies engage in propaganda about their countries, establishing an agenda, and improving the country brand by reaching the people of the host countries through digital platforms. In this study, public diplomacy exercised by the American and Russian Embassies in Turkey was analyzed by monitoring their Twitter interactions. To analyze the data more accurately, applying the web content analysis, most mentioned tweets, retweets, retweeted tweets, and favorite tweets were examined into five categories, including Migration and Refugees; Environment, Climate Change, and Energy; Human Rights, Women, and Children; Middle East; Culture and Art. The reflections of the most retweeted tweet contents in the aforementioned categories were looked into in terms of whether they generated coverage on Birgün, Hürriyet, Sabah, Sözcü, Yeniçağ and Yeni Şafak’s digital platforms, chosen from the Turkish Media in terms of their circulation figures. According to the results, both embassies preferred one-way communication instead of interaction, and it has been ascertained that their tweets in those categories are not covered in the Turkish Media.

Keywords

Public Diplomacy, Digital Diplomacy, Twiplomacy, E-Diplomacy, Embassy Diplomacy

Kamu Diplomasisi Oluşturulmasında Dijital Diplomasinin Etkisi: Türkiye’de Bulunan Büyükelçiliklerin Twitter Kullanımı

Abstract

Günümüzde insanların sosyal medya kullanmaları devletleri dijitalleşme yönünde harekete geçirmiştir. Devlet kurumlarından büyükelçilikler de bulundukları ülkelerin halklarına dijital platformlar üzerinden ulaşarak ülkeleriyle ilgili propaganda yapmak, gündem yaratmak, ülke markasını geliştirmek gibi faaliyetlerde bulunmaktadırlar. Araştırmada, Türkiye’deki Amerika Birleşik Devletleri ve Rusya Federasyonu Büyükelçiliklerinin kamu diplomasisi oluşturmaları Twitter hesaplarındaki tweet etkileşimleri izlenerek analiz edilmiştir. Verileri daha doğru bir çerçevede inceleyebilmek için en fazla söz edilen alanlara bakılmış ve tweetler Göç ve Mülteci; Çevre, İklim Değişikliği ve Enerji; İnsan Hakları, Kadın ve Çocuk; Ortadoğu; Kültür ve Sanat olmak üzere beş kategoriye ayrılmıştır. Bu kategorilerde atılan tweetler, retweetler, takipçileri tarafından retweetlenen tweetler, beğenilen tweetler ve tweetlerin basın yansımaları web içerik analizi uygulanarak incelenmiştir. Bu beş kategoride en fazla paylaşılan tweet içeriklerinin, tiraj sayılarına göre belirlenen Türk yazılı medyasından Birgün, Hürriyet, Sabah, Sözcü, Yeniçağ ve Yeni Şafak’ın dijital platformlarındaki haber yansımalarına bakılmıştır. Sonuçlara göre iki büyükelçiliğin de takipçileriyle etkileşime girmediği, tek taraflı iletişimi tercih ettiği ve bu kategorilerle ilgili atmış oldukları tweetlerin Türk yazılı medyasında etkin bir yansıması olmadığı tespit edilmiştir.

Keywords

Kamu Diplomasisi, Dijital Diplomasi, Twiplomacy, E-Diplomasi, Büyükelçilik Diplomasisi

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