CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2015
| Author | Todorovska, Ana |
|---|---|
| Title | Digital Diplomacy for Sub-State Actors - A Case study of Catalonia |
| Summary | This research analyzes two questions: 1) what is the role of digital media platforms in reshaping public diplomacy practice on sub-state level? And 2) how does the growing utilization of digital platforms by sub-state actors help in expanding the outreach of public diplomacy objectives? In order to answer these two questions the research investigates the case of the autonomous region of Catalonia and the work of the Public Diplomacy Council of Catalonia, responsible to conduct the public diplomacy strategy for the Catalan government. For this purpose semi-structured interviews are conducted with the members of the Public Diplomacy Council of Catalonia, and the Catalan government. Furthermore, desktop research analysis and social media account analytics are used to answer the above raised questions. Taking into consideration the theoretical framework articulated in this paper, as well as the case study of Catalonia, final analyses show that: 1) Digital media platforms are an important tool in communicating public diplomacy objectives to relevant audiences; 2) Utilization of digital platforms helps sub-national actors generate popular international and domestic support and provides credibility to the self-determination aspirations; and 3) The digital component of public diplomacy practice remains relevant but for qualified assessment of the results it has to be further developed by creating a complex monitoring and evaluation assessment model which can produce justifiable results. Finally, the recommendation that stems from this research denotes a careful assessment of the soft power approach. Further research should provide stronger evidence of how to convert soft power to real power. |
| Supervisor | Philip Edward Howard |
| Department | Public Policy MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2015/todorovska_ana.pdf |
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