Each week, I publish a list of interesting articles, essays and reports that may be of interest to the digital diplomacy community. This week- Questions To Ask When Implementing Technology (Forbes)Facial Recognition Technology Solves Crimes, but at What Cost? (VOA)New funding from UK Space Agency will kickstart space technology projects (UK Gov)From smart to good... Continue Reading →
Is it time for a terminology shift in digital diplomacy?
The digitalization of diplomacy has been closely associated with the practice of public diplomacy. Indeed, early adopters sought to leverage digital tools such as social media, blog sites and virtual worlds to foster ties with foreign populations. Public diplomacy underscored the digitalization of the US State Department that sought to engage with critical Muslim audiences... Continue Reading →
Monday’s Must Read List
Each week, I publish a list of interesting articles, essays and reports that may be of interest to the digital diplomacy community. This week- Post-Pandemic Technology Trends. It’s Time To Identify The Friends & the Enemies (Forbes)Google’s Internet Ad Dominance Draws Fresh E.U. Antitrust Inquiry (The New York Times)Can technology help solve the biodiversity crisis?... Continue Reading →
GCHQ on Twitter: Brand Management and Public Engagement
Several weeks ago I analyzed the Twitter account of the Chief of MI6, the United Kingdom’s foreign intelligence agency. I was curious to examine why the UK’s top spy has joined Twitter and how he uses Twitter to advance his organization. I found that the Chief uses Twitter to increase the perceived transparency of MI6... Continue Reading →
A Q &A with University Students- Assessing the Impact of Diplomacy’s Digitalization
This week I was invited to a Q&A session with university students in Chile. Many questions were asked, ranging from the role of Ambassadors in the digital age to the live-streaming of UN deliberations. Below are questions and answers that may prove valuable to scholars and practitioners of digital diplomacy. Q: Has digitalization led to... Continue Reading →
Covid’s Diplomatic Legacy
Last month, ‘The Economist’ magazine published an extensive article examining Covid’s impact on the practice of diplomacy. According to the article, the Coronavirus has led to the accelerated digitalization of diplomacy. Once the United Nations Headquarters shut its doors, and as diplomats all over the world found themselves quarantined at home, diplomacy migrated to digital... Continue Reading →
Monday’s Must Read List
Each week, I publish a list of interesting articles, essays and reports that may be of interest to the digital diplomacy community. This week- Chips and blocks—how TSMC mastered the geopolitics of chipmaking (The Economist)There Are Spying Eyes Everywhere—and Now They Share a Brain (Wired)India police visit Twitter offices after tweet row (The Financial Times)‘Rogue’... Continue Reading →
How Chinese Ambassadors Use Twitter
In my 2019 book, The Digitalization of Public Diplomacy, I dedicated a chapter to Ambassadors’ use of Twitter. My assertion was that Ambassadors may be viewed by digital publics as trusted sources of information. This is because Ambassadors have privileged access to information, they have access to the highest echelons of power, they are viewed... Continue Reading →
Monday’s Must Read List
Each week, I publish a list of interesting articles, essays and reports that may be of interest to the digital diplomacy community. This week- GCHQ to use AI to tackle child sex abuse, disinformation and trafficking (GCHQ)Daniel Kahneman: ‘Clearly AI is going to win. How people are going to adjust is a fascinating problem' (The... Continue Reading →
License to Tweet: When the Chief of MI6 Goes Online
License to Tweet: When the Chief of MI6 Goes Online In November of 2013, the Chief of MI6, the UK’s foreign intelligence service, joined Twitter. On the one hand, one could argue that the willingness of senior spies to join social networks is an important step forward in government transparency and accountability. Indeed, one could... Continue Reading →