DİJİTAL SAĞLIK DİPLOMASİSİ: ÇİN ANKARA BÜYÜKELÇİLİĞİ’NİN COVİD-19 SÜRECİNDEKİ TWITTER PLATFORMU STRATEJİLERİ

Yıl 2025, Cilt: 34 Sayı: 2, 1365 - 1389, 24.10.2025

Ali Çömez , Nargis Özgen

https://doi.org/10.35379/cusosbil.1586229

Öz

Bu çalışma, Covid-19 pandemisi sürecinde Çin Halk Cumhuriyeti’nin Ankara Büyükelçiliği tarafından yürütülen dijital sağlık diplomasisini incelemektedir. Dijital sağlık diplomasisi, küresel sağlık krizlerinde bilgi paylaşımını hızlandırma, iş birliklerini güçlendirme ve toplumu bilinçlendirme amacıyla dijital teknolojilerin kullanılmasını kapsar. Literatürde, dijital diplomasi, özellikle acil durumlarda uluslararası iş birliği ve halk bilgilendirmesi açısından önemli görülmektedir ve büyükelçiliklerin dijital platformları kullanımı stratejik bir alan olarak öne çıkar. Bu çalışma, 31.12.2019-31.12.2020 tarihleri arasında Çin Ankara Büyükelçiliği’nin Twitter üzerinden gerçekleştirdiği faaliyetleri içerik analizi yöntemiyle incelemektedir. Bulgular, büyükelçiliğin stratejisinin bilgilendirme, sağlık iş birliği ve imaj oluşturma odaklı olduğunu göstermektedir. Paylaşımlar genellikle Çin medyası ve Dünya Sağlık Örgütü içeriklerine atıfta bulunmuştur. Türkiye’deki sağlık, dışişleri ve içişleri bakanlıklarıyla sınırlı iletişim kurulurken, mention kullanımı düşük kalmış; paylaşımlar Türkçe yapılmış ancak yönlendirmeler Çin medyasına olmuştur. Bu stratejik eksiklik, hedef kitle ile etkili iletişimi sınırlamaktadır. Dijital sağlık diplomasisi, Çin’in Türkiye ile olan sağlık diplomasisi bağlamında kriz dönemlerinde etkili bir araç olarak uluslararası iş birliğini güçlendirmiştir. Çalışma, dijital sağlık diplomasisinin modern diplomasi pratiğinde nasıl merkezi bir rol oynadığını ve küresel sağlık sorunlarına karşı nasıl önemli bir strateji oluşturduğunu vurgulamaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Çin Ankara Büyükelçiliği , Covid-19 pandemisi , Dijital sağlık diplomasisi , Twitter

DIGITAL HEALTH DIPLOMACY: TWITTER PLATFORM STRATEGIES OF THE CHINESE EMBASSY IN ANKARA DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Öz

This study examines the digital health diplomacy undertaken by the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Ankara during the Covid-19 pandemic. Digital health diplomacy refers to the development of digital technologies to accelerate information sharing, strengthen cooperation, and raise public awareness during global health crises. In the literature, digital diplomacy is seen as important for international cooperation and public information, especially in emergencies, and the use of digital platforms by embassies stands out as a strategic domain. It examines the Chinese Embassy’s Twitter activity between 31.12.2019-31.12.2020 using content analysis. The findings show that the embassy's strategy is focused on information, health cooperation and image building. Posts often referenced Chinese media and the World Health Organization content. While there was limited communication with the Turkish ministries of health, foreign affairs and interior, the use of mentions was low; and although tweets were in Turkish, they directed audiences toward Chinese media sources. This strategic deficiency limited effective communication with the target audience. In the context of China's health diplomacy with Turkey, digital health diplomacy has strengthened international cooperation as an effective tool during crisis periods. The study shows how digital health diplomacy plays a central role in modern diplomacy practice and how it is an important strategy to address global health challenges.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Chinese Embassy in Ankara , Covid-19 pandemic , Digital health diplomacy , Twitter

Kaynakça

• AidData. (2023). Mapping China’s COVID-19 aid footprint. William & Mary Global Research Institute. https://www.aiddata.org/publications/mapping-chinas-covid-19-aid-footprint
• Ak, S. (2023). Türkiye’de kamu sağlık politikasında COVID-19 süreci ve sağlık diplomasisi rolü. Selçuk Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, 49(1), 130–147.
• Ayres, D. (2022). Digital research ethics in public health: Managing data volatility. Journal of Digital Health Research, 8(3), 145–159.
• Binark, M. (2018). Yeni medya çalışmalarında araştırma yöntem ve teknikleri. Ayrıntı Yayınları.
• Bjola, C., & Holmes, M. (Eds.). (2015). Digital diplomacy: Theory and practice. Routledge.
• Bourne, P. G. (1978). A partnership for international health care. Public Health Reports, 93(2), 114–123.
• Bryman, A. (2012). Social research methods (4th ed.). Oxford University Press.
• Chan, L. H., Chen, L., & Xu, J. (2010). China’s engagement with global health diplomacy: Was SARS a watershed? PLOS Medicine, 7(4), e1000266. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1000266
• Ciolek, M. (2010). Understanding social media’s contribution to public diplomacy. USC Center on Public Diplomacy at the Annenberg School. https://www.uscpublicdiplomacy.org/research/understanding-social-medias-contribution-public-diplomacy
• Defining health diplomacy: Changing demands in the era of globalization. (2011). The Milbank Quarterly, 89(3), 503–523. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0009.2011.00656.x
• Falk, D. (2021). Digital diplomacy in pandemic times: Reputational strategy and soft power. Journal of International Communication, 27(2), 187–203. https://doi.org/10.1080/13216597.2021.1903052
• Feldbaum, H., & Michaud, J. (2010). Health diplomacy and the enduring relevance of foreign policy interests. PLOS Medicine, 7(4), e1000273. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1000273
• Fidler, D. P. (2001). The globalization of public health: The first 100 years of international health diplomacy. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 79(9), 842–849. https://www.who.int/bulletin/archives/79(9)842.pdf
• Garcia, B. L., & Islam, S. (2022). Vaccine diplomacy or geopolitics? China’s COVID-19 vaccine donations and global influence. Global Affairs, 8(3), 245–263. https://doi.org/10.1080/23340460.2022.2045397
• Godinho, M. A., Martins, H., Al-Shorbaji, N., Quintana, Y., & Liaw, S. T. (2022). “Digital health diplomacy” in global digital health? A call for critique and discourse. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 29(5), 1019–1024. https://doi.org/10.1093/jamia/ocab282
• Grant, R. (2004). The democratisation of diplomacy: Negotiating with the internet (Research Report No. 5). Oxford Internet Institute.
• Hayran, O. (2016). Küresel sağlık sorunları ve sağlık diplomasisi. İstanbul Medipol Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi, 1–4.
• Hocking, B., & Melissen, J. (2015). Diplomacy in the digital age. Clingendael Netherlands Institute of International Relations.
• Huang, Y. (2020). China’s mask diplomacy. Council on Foreign Relations. https://www.cfr.org/blog/chinas-mask-diplomacy
• Huang, Y. (2021). The politics of vaccine diplomacy in the pandemic era. Survival, 63(3), 141–156. https://doi.org/10.1080/00396338.2021.1915984
• Nye, J. S., Jr. (2019). Yumuşak güç: Dünya siyasetinde başarının anahtarı (R. İ. Aydın, Çev.). BB101 Yayıncılık.
• Katz, R., Kornblet, S., Arnold, G., Lief, E., & Fischer, J. E. (2011). Defining health diplomacy: Changing demands in the era of globalization. The Milbank Quarterly, 89(3), 503–523. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0009.2011.00656.x
• Kickbusch, I., Silberschmidt, G., & Buss, P. (2007). Global health diplomacy: The need for new perspectives, strategic approaches, and skills in global health. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 85(3), 230–232.
• Kim, S., & Lee, H. (2021). Ephemerality of online data and implications for digital content analysis. New Media & Society, 23(6), 1189–1204. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444820912541
• Lakomy, M. (2014). Tweets on top: Responsive policy. Studia Medioznawcze / Media Studies, 2(57). https://doi.org/10.5117/2014.057.lako
• Mutlu, H. (2023). Dijital sağlık diplomasisi: Sistematik derleme, küresel sağlık diplomasisi ve Türkiye. Akademik Hassasiyetler, 10(2), 142–164.
• Kim, S., & Lee, H. (2021). Ephemerality of online data and implications for digital content analysis. New Media & Society, 23(6), 1189–1204. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444820912541
• Silverman, D. (2011). Interpreting qualitative data (4th ed.). SAGE.
• Song, W., & Zhou, L. (2023). Public trust and vaccine nationalism: China's vaccine diplomacy in the Global South. Asian Journal of Comparative Politics. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/20578911231145725
• Tomiczek, M. (2012). About communication in social media: An analysis of the Polish Presidency Facebook profile from a perspective of social communication theory. Journal of Education Culture and Society, 3(1), 47–60. https://doi.org/10.15503/jecs20121-47-60
• Twiplomacy Study. (2018). Twiplomacy. https://twiplomacy.com/blog/twiplomacy-study-2018/
• Westcott, N. (2008). Digital diplomacy: The impact of the internet on international relations (Research Report No. 16). Oxford Internet Institute. https://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/archive/downloads/publications/Westcott2008.pdf
• World Health Organization (WHO). (2020). The WHO’s available statistics show that over 45% of WHO member states have fewer than 1,000 physicians per 1,000 population. Global Health Observatory (GHO) data. https://www.who.int/gho/health_workforce/physicians_density/en/
• Yücel, G. (2016). Dijital diplomasi. TRT Akademi, 1(2), 748–760.