The last two weeks have seen a violent wave of Palestinian terror in Israel. Nearly every day terrorist acts are committed against Israeli citizens in cities and towns throughout the country. This Wednesday alone saw four such attacks in one day. On Thursday evening, Prime Minister Netanyahu addressed Israeli citizens stating that as was the... Continue Reading →
On Israeli Networked Diplomacy
When exploring digital diplomacy I am always surprised to learn that social media has augmented the practice of diplomacy, rather than revolutionize it. Indeed, many of the characteristics of digital diplomacy have been part of the diplomatic DNA for centuries. As Oxford University's Corneliu Bjola writes, the formation and maintenance of relationships with foreign governments... Continue Reading →
Is Digital Diplomacy Really Cost Effective?
On Tuesday, the White House launched a new twitter channel (@TheIranDeal) in an attempt to bolster domestic and international support for the agreement reached between the P5+1 and Iran regarding the latter's nuclear weapons program. According to Politico, this is the first time the Obama administration has launched an issue specific twitter handle. US officials... Continue Reading →
The Framing of #IranDeal on Digital Diplomacy Channels
One of the greatest difficulties facing foreign ministries in the digital age is the need to react to events in real time. The need for speed, as it were, is in direct contradiction to diplomacy's need for time to respond to events by pooling resources, gathering intelligence and formulating policy recommendations. However, this week saw... Continue Reading →
The US’s LGBT Digital Diplomacy Blitz
The US and LGBT rights On the 26th of June 2015, the US Supreme Court ruled that the country's constitution guarantees the right to same-sex marriage thereby legalizing gay marriage across the United States. The ruling, seen as a major achievement for LGBT activist around the world, had both domestic and global implications. In recent... Continue Reading →
The ISIS Social Media Myth
What causes an 18 year old boy from France to board a plane to Turkey, cross the border into Syria and join a fanatical terror organization named the Islamic State of whose practices include rape, murder, beheading and the destruction of historical relics that have withstood the decline and fall of numerous empires? According to... Continue Reading →
How Should We Define Digital Diplomacy?
I recently came across an old blog post by the wonderful blogger Marco Recorder who asked his readers to offer definitions of the term digital diplomacy. While I have been researching digital diplomacy for more than two years, I too often find myself confronted by the dilemma of how to best define this novel form... Continue Reading →
Why Digital Diplomacy Should be Follower Centric
It's fair to say that the marketing and sales worlds are customer centric. Companies that produce products to be sold to the general public are well attuned to their customers' needs. The process of launching a new product is also customer centric as companies aim to evaluate whether such products will meet the expectations, needs... Continue Reading →
In Digital Diplomacy, A Narrowing Digital Divide-Part 1
By and large; the digital divide refers to inequality in access to, or ability to use, information and communication technologies. Such a divide may exist between populations and geographic areas in a given country or between countries. The global digital divide often refers to the fact that the internet has not spread evenly throughout the... Continue Reading →
How Kenya’s MFA Leads By Example
2014 Summaries Over the past few weeks, many bloggers, journalists and research institutes investigating digital diplomacy have published their summaries of 2014. One such summary that attracted much attention dealt with India's digital diplomacy achievements over the past year. While some have focused on the social media activity of India's new Prime Minister and twitter celebrity Narendra... Continue Reading →