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Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 542– 548

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Public Relations Review

ublic diplomacy meets social media: A study of the U.S.mbassy’s blogs and micro-blogs�

in Zhonga,b, Jiayi Lua,∗

School of Journalism and Communication, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, ChinaPublic Communication Research Institute, Journalism and Social Development Research Center, Renmin University of China, Beijing00872, China

a r t i c l e i n f o

rticle history:eceived 11 November 2011eceived in revised form 26 May 2013ccepted 3 July 2013

eywords:ublic diplomacyublic relationsocial media.S.–China relationshe U.S. Embassy in China

a b s t r a c t

With the evolution of communication technologies, traditional public diplomacy is trans-forming. This study examines the practice of the U.S. Embassy’s public diplomaticcommunication via social media, namely Chinese mainstream blogging and micro-blogging,sites using Tencent for a case study. This study analyzes the embassy’s blog and micro-blog entries and an interview with the embassy’s public diplomacy officer. Based on thecontent analysis and interview, this study discerns the key features of the U.S. Embassy’spublic diplomatic communication using social media and further suggests that the com-mon values and interests related to the global public as well as experience-sharing andrelationship-building might become the focus of new public diplomacy research.

© 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

. Introduction

As an extension of traditional diplomacy, public diplomacy endeavors to engage foreign populations to cultivate favor-ble international relations and manage the international environment. The evolution of communication technologyncompasses the transformation from old public diplomacy to new public diplomacy, which is characterized by two-wayelationship-building communication. In China, with the increase in social media represented by blogging and micro-logging, traditional public diplomatic communication has been changing, especially for the foreign embassies in China.ccording to the most recent report issued by Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China, by the end of June 2012, 165

oreign governmental organizations had launched authenticated micro-blogging accounts on four major Chinese micro-logging platforms: Sina, Tencent, Netease and Sohu. The micro-blogging site managed by the U.S. Embassy in China was theost influential (People’s Daily online, 2012). This study analyzes the public diplomatic communication of the U.S. Embassy

n China via social media and identifies the embassy’s new strategies.

� This is a paper of “China’s Public Diplomacy in the Age of Global Communication” (No. 11JJD860008), a social science key research project supportedy the Research Funds of the Education Ministry of China for the Journalism and Social Development Research Center of Renmin University of China.∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +86 13522747636.

E-mail addresses: zhongxinruc@vip.sina.com (X. Zhong), lujiayijenny@163.com, lujiayijenny@gmail.com (J. Lu).

363-8111/$ – see front matter © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.ttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2013.07.002

X. Zhong, J. Lu / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 542– 548 543

2. Literature review

2.1. Public diplomacy as a form of international public relations

Public diplomacy generally refers to “a government’s process of communicating with foreign publics in an attempt tobring about understanding for its nation’s ideas and ideals, its institutions and culture, as well as its national goals andcurrent policies” (Tuch, 1990, p. 3). Traditionally, public diplomacy has been understood in terms of the relation betweenone nation-state and its foreign publics, that nation’s main objective being to cultivate a favorable image of itself on theworld stage. However, a young and multidisciplinary area, public diplomacy is often criticized for a paucity of theoreticalgrounding and the tools necessary to attract and persuade foreign publics.

Signitzer and Coombs (1992) identify conceptual conversion between public diplomacy and public relations becausepublic diplomacy and public relations have similar aims of affecting public opinion to benefit their client or organization.Public relations is often studied and practiced as relationship management (Broom, Casey, & Ritchey, 1997; Ferguson, 1984;Ledingham & Bruning, 1998, 2000). Public diplomacy, described as “the actual communication activity by a political entity”(Zaharna, 2010, p. 79), may be perceived as a form of international public relations insofar as it also involves relationshipmanagement and public relations tactics intended to effect change in foreign publics.

2.2. Public diplomacy meets social media

New information technologies have accentuated, accelerated and expanded the global inter-relations among countries,corporations, organizations and individual citizens (Wang, 2006). In such an interdependent world, national governmentshave come to realize the importance of the Internet and other new media tools in promoting their public diplomacy efforts.

Zaharna (2010) notes that “connectivity and interactivity have become the defining features of the new media, as well asthe defining communication activity of their users” (p. 87); according to Kitchen and Panopoulos (2010), social media has“enabled a shift from the Web as passive information highway to a dynamic platform for the exchange of real communica-tion and experience, since self-expression, participation, dialog and creation and maintenance of relationships within virtualcommunities is now possible” (Pfeil, Arjan, & Zaphiris, 2009, p. 222). In this new environment, public diplomacy activitiesbecome more personalized. Social networking, blogging, micro-blogging and other new media tools have given individualcitizens the opportunity to communicate with agents of public diplomacy (Graffy, 2009), who are perceived as being “some-one like me” (Cull, 2011) rather than impersonal nation-states. Furthermore, what used to be one-way communication hasgiven way to sharing information and experience through virtual connection and interaction.

2.3. U.S. public diplomacy efforts since 9/11

The 9/11 attacks caused the U.S. government to reconsider the importance of public diplomacy. Before that, America’sposition as the only superpower left after the end of the Cold War had led policymakers to believe that the enemy wasdefeated and that there was no need to waste money on public diplomacy. The United States Information Agency (USIA),the primary agent of public diplomacy during the Cold War, had been merged into the U.S. Department of State in 1999; andVoice of America (VOA), a public diplomacy instrument ostensibly helping the U.S. to win the hearts and minds of foreignpublics, became subordinate to the International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB). After 9/11, however, the question, “Why dothey hate us?” arose as a type of mantra, and related public diplomacy measures ensued.

These included, during the George W. Bush administration, a “Shared Values Campaign” in 2001 and “Middle East ListeningTour” in 2005, which targeted the Muslim world with the purpose of repairing the U.S. image in the Middle East. However,such one-way campaigns did not succeed in the context of social media. Among the media that have narrowed distances andhelped equalize communication opportunities, Al Jazeera is especially noteworthy; and its English channel, one of the threelargest 24-h English news channels in the world, can now directly reach American audiences on virtual platforms. Moreover,both state and non-state parties in the Middle East have launched websites for distributing pan-Arabic or pan-Islamicinformation (Seib, 2009).

New approaches emerging as the Obama administration took office are encapsulated in the term “Public Diplomacy 2.0,”coined at the end of 2008 by U.S. Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy James Glassman. This label signals U.S. effortsto incorporate social media technologies into its public diplomacy strategy or what Graffy (2009) describes as a move by “anew-look State Department where policy and public diplomacy are merged and the use of new technology second nature.”

2.4. U.S.–China relations and social media development in China

In response to 9/11, then-President Bush stated that all the world’s “great powers” would become “united by commondangers” and “also increasingly united by common values” and surmised that Russia and China in particular would help

“defend the peace by fighting terrorists and tyrants” (Bush, 2002). Once Obama took office in 2009, the U.S. governmentbegan “an ambitious program of working with China on global warming, on cleaning up the financial mess, and on a lot ofother issues;” and Obama was eager to “make the relationship even better” according to the Council on Foreign Relations(2011). U.S.–China bilateral trade has continued to grow in volume, and the U.S. remains a major export market for China

544 X. Zhong, J. Lu / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 542– 548

Table 1U.S. Embassy’s blogging sites in China.

Name Platform Launch date

U.S. Embassy in China Tencent Nov. 12, 2009, before the first official visit of President Obama to ChinaSina May 20, 2012, before the opening of the Second Round of U.S.–China

Strategic and Economic Dialogue in Beijing

U.S. Education Online Douban Sep. 28, 2010, when the U.S. universities’ application season startsSina Sep. 28, 2010, when the U.S. universities’ application season starts

U.S. Visa Sina May 8, 2009, before the peak season of visa application

Henan Outreach Team Tencent Mar. 3, 2009

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Shaanxi Outreach Team Tencent Jul. 23, 2009

Shandong Outreach Team Tencent Oct. 13, 2009

Prasad, 2010). Additionally, the world economic crisis prompted China to increase its purchases of U.S. treasuries, so thaty September 2008, China had surpassed Japan as the largest holder of U.S. debt, which as Wolverson and Alessi (2011) note,has fueled a relationship of dependency between the United States and China.” Clearly, the times have favored U.S.–Chinaelationship-building.

Meanwhile, China’s Internet infrastructure and usage have grown to make it the nation with the largest number ofetizens in the world. Netizens in China exceeded 500 million by the end of 2011, young people aged 20–29 accounting

or the largest group (29.8%) of users according to the Chinese Internet Network Information Center (CINNIC). And Chinesenternet users relying on mobile devices reached 356 million at the end of 2010, with 235 million of them said to be usingocial media (CINNIC, 2012). In that context, foreign embassies in China began to pursue virtual interactions with Chineseublics by launching two-way blogging and micro-blogging sites with the U.S. Embassy in China acting as a pioneer. Theseervices include sites for general embassy and consular communication, educational affairs, visa matters and outreach. Then-mbassador Jon Huntsman, a Bush appointee, launched his own account at Sina Weibo in the spring of 2010 (Tables 1 and 2).

The majority of the above blogging and micro-blogging sites were launched in 2009 and 2010 when many foreignmbassies in China began to establish accounts on Chinese mainstream blogging and micro-blogging platforms. All of theseites are run in Chinese.

Based on the above discussion, this study seeks to answer the following questions:

Q1: What are the core messages, and who are the major content contributors and target audiences of the U.S. Embassy’sblogging and micro-blogging sites in China?Q2: What are the key features of the U.S. Embassy’s social media strategies?

. Methodology

To answer these two research questions, this study analyzed the contents of the U.S. Embassy’s blog and micro-blogntries. Based on the preliminary findings, we conducted an email interview with Athena Kwey, then the public diplomacyfficer responsible for maintaining the U.S. Embassy’s blogging and micro-blogging sites in China (Zhong & Lu, 2011). Kweyeported that the embassy provided identical content on the Tencent and Sina platforms (Zhong & Lu, 2011). Thus, foronvenience, this study uses the embassy’s blogging and micro-blogging sites at Tencent as research subjects from theiraunch date to March 31, 2011, as research samples, namely, 371 blog entries and 785 micro-blog entries.

For the purpose of operation, this study analyzes the samples from two dimensions: core message and content contributor.he core message is divided into the categories of American politics/society, cultural exchanges, bilateral relations, English

tudy, education/visa, environment/energy/technology, economy/trade and others. The content contributor is categorizednto the U.S. Embassy in China, Chinese-Americans, U.S. diplomats in China, the International Information Bureau, Ameri-an citizens, the American media, American students in China, the Chinese commercial media, Chinese official media andthers.

able 2.S. Embassy’s micro-blogging sites in China.

Name Platform Launch date

Jon Huntsman’s micro-blogging site Tencent Apr. 7, 2010; 531, 093 followers

U.S. Embassy in China Sina May 21, 2010, before the opening of the Second Round of U.S.–ChinaStrategic and Economic Dialogue in Beijing; 209,769 followers

U.S. Embassy Visa Section Sina Jun. 11, 2010, before the peak season of visa applications; 92,574followers

tatistics collected by 7:00 PM, August 9, 2011.

X. Zhong, J. Lu / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 542– 548 545

Table 3

Blogs’ core messages Number of entries

American politics/society 155Cultural exchanges 84Bilateral relations 60English study 35Education/visa 10Environment/energy/technology 8Economy/trade 4Others 15

Total 371

Table 4

Blogs’ contributors Number of entries

U.S. Embassy in China 133Chinese-Americans 95U.S. diplomats in China 52International Information Bureau (IIB) 37American citizens 28Others 11American students in China 5Chinese commercial media 3

Chinese official media 3

Total 371

4. Findings

4.1. Blogs’ and micro-blogs’ core messages

Among the 371 blog entries, those addressing “American politics and society,” “cultural exchanges” and “bilateral rela-tions” account for 80.6%. In contrast, entries on “economy and trade,” normally viewed as one of the most important enginesof U.S.–China relations, are rare, as are “education and visa” entries. In addition, 148 of the 155 entries categorized as “Amer-ican politics and society” concerned history, society and culture rather than politics. Evidently, the blog contents can betterdisplay a picture of ordinary Americans’ lives and narrow the psychological gap between two peoples (Table 3).

Quite different from blogs, micro-blogs incorporate more interaction that may be classified as “reposting and commen-tary,” “dialogue” or “reposting from other micro-blogs.” Of the 785 micro-blog entries, 698 are reposted or comments fromfollowers, 421 address followers directly, and 37 are reposted from other micro-blogs. Thus, 96% involve interaction; fewerthan 4% do not.

Similar to topics in blogging communication, the micro-blog entries regarding “American politics and society” often evokecomment and/or reposting. Items reflecting the views or concerns of ordinary people appear to be especially popular amongChinese netizens. For instance, a post introducing “senior Americans’ right to work” provoked 419 comments and/or reposts,and the picture of then-U.S. Ambassador Jon Huntsman “going to the grocery store on a Forever-brand bicycle” received 279comments and/or reposts. The hottest topic in the dialog category was “bilateral relations,” including events related to theU.S. Ambassador’s activities in China as well as high-level official visits.

4.2. Blogs’ and micro-blogs’ contributors

According to Table 4, the U.S. Embassy, Chinese-Americans and U.S. diplomats in China are the three major blog con-tributors, accounting for 75% of the total. It is perhaps curious that Chinese-Americans are the second largest source on theembassy’s blogging site.

5. Discussion

5.1. American stories are the core messages

According to the above analysis, “American politics and society” are the most discussed topics on the embassy’s blogsand micro-blogs. Among the 155 blog entries covering “American politics and society,” American values such as human

1 Among 42, 23 are both “repost/commentedby followers and “dialogwith followers.

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46 X. Zhong, J. Lu / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 542– 548

ights, freedom and peace are conveyed. Athena Kwey told us, “Our mission is to provide the Chinese public an exclusiveindow into American politics, culture, history and values as well as U.S.–China relations and current affairs” (Zhong & Lu,

011). This position aligns with what the Bush administration purposefully did after 9/11, which placed “American values,pecifically democracy, freedom, and human rights, as its central message” (Zaharna, 2010, p. 62). In traditional U.S. publiciplomacy practices, those core messages would be delivered unilaterally. In the new media context, information senders

nvite and encourage interaction and discussion on topics related to cultural exchange, bilateral relations, national values,tc.

.2. Chinese-Americans and U.S. diplomats in China are the major content contributors

Foreign embassies in China are authoritative sources of information and obviously are primary messengers in traditionalublic diplomatic communication. However, more personalized expression has gained importance in the new informationnvironment; now, Chinese-Americans and U.S. diplomats in China constitute the most prevalent sources of information onocial media platforms. Skilled in writing in Chinese and enthusiastic about personal-level communication, these writers canvoid misunderstandings caused by language differences, and their writings resonate with the target audience as reflecting

people-to-people perspective.Athena Kwey said that the new communication strategy emphasizes “sharing one’s culture, lifestyle and values,” explain-

ng, “It’s like the Forbidden City in Beijing or the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Americans and Chinese hear all abouthese two respective landmarks and everyone knows what they look like, but they have a very vague idea for the most partbout what it feels like. Until they hear firsthand from someone who has walked through the massive doors or traversed theridge themselves, they don’t fully grasp the experience and its history.” Blogging sites offer conduits for such sentiments,uch as the blog series, “My Hometown-Introduction to the U.S. Cities,” to which U.S. diplomats contribute. Presumably, diplo-ats’ personal views and feelings help reduce their psychological distance from Chinese readers and arouse interest and

mpathy.Kwey said that the many contributions by Chinese-Americans “reflect a unique perspective on the American expe-

ience for our Chinese audience” although Chinese netizens occasionally challenge the Chinese-Americans’ assertions.or instance, some Chinese accused blog posters of understating the cost of living in the U.S. One said, for instance,hat accounts regarding housing prices “intentionally” omitted related costs “such as land tax, real estate tax, man-gement fees, and what the owner should pay when they get the house;” another said, “What you introduced shoulde the houses in cheap areas. Are they new houses? Why do some people always want to show off what good

ives they have had in the U.S?” These controversial blog entries were posted in January 2011 when housing pricesncreased dramatically in China and became the hottest topic among ordinary Chinese people. In that sense, thembassy caught the attention of Chinese audiences by posting the blog regarding housing prices in the United States,nd it garnered a viewership of 17,912. However, attention does not equal a favorable impression. The critiques fromhinese audiences not only challenge the messenger, the U.S. Embassy in China but also reflect the active role ofudiences of social media. In the era of public diplomacy 2.0, the messenger is no longer the authoritative infor-ation sender, and the once passive audiences are more actively involved in the public diplomatic communication

rocess.

.3. Opinion leaders and public figures are the major target audiences, and the young generation in China are the most activearticipants

According to Athena Kwey, the embassy manages blogging and micro-blogging sites both at Tencent and Sina toeach a diversity of Chinese audiences because Tencent is mainly targeted at young people and Sina is targeted at aore elite group. The embassy also established outreach blogging sites to reach the audiences from second- and third-

ier cities in China. Specifically, the embassy assumes the opinion leaders and public figures in the blogosphere toe the major target audiences. According to Athena Kwey, “We try to develop and maintain close relationships withany who lead the Internet conversation to exchange best practices and ideas that will benefit all netizens and our

ollowers.”In addition, according to a survey by Southern Weekend, an influential Chinese newspaper published in the southern

ity of Guangzhou, students are the most active participants in the U.S. Embassy’s micro-blogging communication in China,ccounting for more than 20% of its followers. Other major participants are businessmen, media professionals, people fromcience and technology circles, overseas Chinese, scholars and public servants (Southern Weekend, 2011). It is quite normalhat the Chinese younger generation is actively engaged in virtual communication with the U.S. Embassy on social medialatforms because they compose the largest netizen group in China, as the above CINNIC statistics demonstrate. Moreover, the

nited States is always the first choice for young students who wish to study abroad. According to the Institute of Internationalducation (IIE), in the academic year of 2010–2011, Chinese students composed the largest group of international studentstudying at American universities, accounting for 25.4% of foreign students in the U.S. (Institute of International Education,012).

X. Zhong, J. Lu / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 542– 548 547

5.4. Key features of the U.S. Embassy’s social media strategy

5.4.1. Timing is an important factor in the embassy’s social media strategyAccording to the above analysis, the U.S. Embassy’s blogging and micro-blogging sites are generally launched right before

an important diplomatic event. For example, the embassy’s first blogging site at Tencent was launched in November 2009,just before President Obama paid his first official visit to China. The embassy’s visa blogging site at Sina was launched beforethe peak season of visa applications. According to Kwey, the embassy was purposely making use of these special occasions:“A VIP visit or large-scale event is the perfect opportunity for the embassy to reach out to the Chinese public since thereis already many attention and interest from the media. With that opportunity, the embassy can reach more people withmessages and let them know the existence of the embassy’s blogging and micro-blogging sites so they can continue to watchthem in the future” (Zhong & Lu, 2011). With the expansion of information channels, the public’s attention has graduallybeen fragmented among various platforms, and knowing how to reach specific audiences at an appropriate time is vital topublic diplomatic communication. The U.S. Embassy utilizes the opportunities of important diplomatic events or consularaffairs that are closely related to Chinese audiences, such as visa matters, to attract the audiences’ attention.

5.4.2. Network communication centered on Ambassador’s credibilityIn the new media terrain, with the rise of a network society, message exchange and sharing have come to be highly

valued. With new communication tools, traditional public diplomacy is transforming to “new” public diplomacy, which isno longer confined to delivering information, initiating campaigns or organizing direct governmental contacts with foreignpublics serving foreign policy purposes; diplomacy is also about relationship-building and facilitating networks with variousparties (Melissen, 2005). Public diplomatic communication becomes a type of network communication, and it “operates ona one-to-one as well as many-to-many communication dynamic” (Zaharna, 2010, p. 89). Inter-personal trust and personalcredibility are thus predominant. As Bourdieu (1986) argues, the willingness to exchange resources on one network isdependent on how interconnected participants are and to what degree participants trust one another. That is, the personwho attains trustworthiness may become the hub of network communication, interacting with all other participants.

Since 9/11, numerous reports and recommendations for how to improve U.S. public diplomacy practices overseas havebeen released, yet “few reports spoke of the enormous effect that the president or other senior administration had inshaping foreign perceptions of America” (Zaharna, 2010, p. 60). As an integral part of diplomacy, the ambassador is theofficial representative of a nation in the resident country. Relying on their credibility as political entity representatives,ambassadors can easily become the cynosures of blog and micro-blog spheres. For instance, the U.S. Embassy’s first micro-blogging site at Tencent was initially managed under the brand of “American Ambassador Jon Huntsman.” The micro-blogentries became quite popular upon their release; one relating to his family was “U.S. Ambassador and his wife accompanytheir Chinese daughter to her birth place-Yangzhou,” and his visits in China inspired “the first U.S. Ambassador arrived inLhasa.” The picture labeled “U.S. Ambassador went to the grocery store on a Forever-brand bicycle” was reposted and/orcommented on 279 times by followers.

5.4.3. Real-time communication and resources integrationMicro-blogging, although limited to 140-character writing, can distribute short messages via both wireless and wire-

based channels and enable the blogger to shuttle swiftly among different social networks. With that advantage, publicdiplomacy achieves real-time communication. For instance, the U.S. Embassy’s micro-blogging site “live-broadcast” thevisiting U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke’s speech at Tsinghua University in May 2010. It posted the first text at 08:36,continuously summarized speech points, described the feedback of those present and even invited people who were notpresent to participate in the final Q and A session by raising questions through wired or wireless terminals.

“The impact of micro-blogging communication lies in collaborative content production and its users’ social networks.The essence of micro-blogging communication is the integration of information resources” (Yu, Ou, Zhang, & Wang, 2010).Using micro-blogging communication, the U.S. Embassy combines various virtual resources ranging from its official website,blogging sites, and State Department’s on-line services to other relative websites by means of “micro-blog text (introduc-tion) + link (to other virtual resources).” The embassy also integrates on-line and off-line resources. For instance, when VIPvisits are underway off-line, the U.S. Embassy’s micro-blogging site “live-broadcasts” the visits on-line; and upon releas-ing information of off-line cultural events, the site invites its followers to win entrance tickets by participating in on-linecontests.

6. Conclusion

With the advent of social media, public diplomatic communication has been transformed. The audience has graduallybecome the active participant rather than the passive message receiver. Connectivity and interactivity, which are the essenceof the new public diplomatic communication, require diplomats to move from one-way information-driven communication

to two-way experience-sharing and relationship-building. U.S. public diplomacy achieved great success in exporting valuesduring the Cold War; however, new public diplomacy is no longer purely about advancing national interests. Against thebackdrop of globalization, common values and interests related to the global public truly matter. Moreover, new commu-nication technologies have created virtual communities. Cyberspace has become the “matrix of minds,” and spiritual bonds

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48 X. Zhong, J. Lu / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 542– 548

round the world have been strengthened (Ronfeldt & Arquilla, 2009). In that sense, how diplomats share values or ideasith the active global public and the means they use to deliver messages of relationship-building in the virtual “market of

deas” deserve further consideration.

cknowledgements

In writing this paper, we received a great deal of help from fellow scholars in the fields of public relations, public diplomacynd communication. We would particularly like to thank Professor Jian Wang for giving revision suggestions, Professor Judyolumbaum for helping revise the paper, and Professor Nicholas J. Cull and Professor Philip Seib for proofreading.

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