Digital diplomacy and foreign policy in Kenya, Australia, and the United States

Abstract

Digital diplomacy is a relatively new concept and practice that requires further academic analysis. To contribute to this emerging field, this thesis aims to answer the following question: How do countries with varying status in international affairs, namely developing countries, middle powers and great powers, use the affordances of social media to practise digital diplomacy to achieve their foreign policy goals? The lack of a universally accepted definition of digital diplomacy, however, means it is difficult to measure and determine its impact, given that many activities and functions are conceptualised as falling under the digital diplomacy umbrella. Different scholars are aligned to varying definitions of digital diplomacy, leading to fragmented approaches in measuring digital diplomacy goals, inputs and outcomes. This poses conceptual challenges in scholarly debates, which this thesis addresses by innovating a typology of digital diplomacy through conducting a literature review that tracks the emergence and evolution of digital diplomacy. This identifies prevalent themes in existing scholarship, which frame a state-centric typology of digital diplomacy in terms of communication styles (one-way communications vs two-way communication) and approaches to achieving foreign policy aims (tactical vs strategic). The literature review furthermore enables the identification of ideal types of digital diplomacy – broadcasting, branding, provision of e-services, and influence – which allows for the categorisation of social media posts to understand the priorities of foreign affairs ministries in using the affordances of social media to achieve foreign policy goals. The typology is furthermore state-centric, because, despite the recent emergence of non-state actors in diplomacy, the state remains the primary actor in international relations, formulating foreign policy and conducting diplomacy. Three methods for studying digital diplomacy: social media analytics, thematic analysis, and engagement, are used for analysis. Given the lack of commonly accepted theories of the use of digital diplomacy, this thesis brings in theories of soft power and social network analysis to understand how foreign affairs ministries attempt to collaborate and wield influence in furthering their foreign policy agendas. This thesis uses three case studies: Kenya, Australia and the US, which represent a developing country, a middle power and a great power, respectively, in the international system. Social media posts for all three case study countries were collected during the period of one month, April 2022, on Twitter (now X). Analytically, this was a significant period in international affairs, characterised by geopolitical turmoil, due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as continued global recovery from the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) health pandemic. Furthermore, because Kenya and Australia have undergone elections in late 2022 and early 2023, respectively, social media posts made by their Ministries of Foreign Affairs (MFAs) were also collected one year later, in April 2023, providing an opportunity to compare how their approach had changed under the new administrations. Data analysis was conducted, and findings were then categorised as per the state-centric typology of digital diplomacy. All posts made on Twitter (now X) by the respective MFAs were collected during these time periods, to ensure accuracy in data collection. All posts collected were posted publicly and were thus considered open-source information available to the general public from an ethics considerations perspective. This thesis concludes with two comparisons. Firstly, data from April 2022 and April 2023 were used to compare how Kenya and Australia conduct digital diplomacy as a developing country and a middle power, respectively. This enables the comparison of the two countries across two years, under different administrations. Secondly, this chapter compares how Kenya, Australia and the US, a developing country, a middle power and a great power, respectively, practise digital diplomacy in pursuit of their foreign policy goals. Based on the analysis and comparison, the study finds that a country’s status in the international system corresponds to how it conducts digital diplomacy. Nonetheless, Kenya manages to successfully use digital diplomacy to punch above its weight vis-à-vis its status as a developing country, by both posting frequently as well as reposting content from others. Australia, on the other hand, posts infrequently and rarely reposts content from others, therefore not fully utilising the affordances of social media to conduct digital diplomacy in accordance with its status as a middle power. The US, as a great power, is able to project its influence globally to drive its agenda and uses soft power to maintain and consolidate its status in the international system.