Diversity or Division: Language Choices on International Organizations’ Official Websites

Abstract

Research problem: With the extensive use of the internet, cyber language management has become a critical issue for international organizations (IOs). IOs' language choices on their official websites represent the very interests of member nations and form a key factor in organizational image construction. However, research on IOs' cyber language management is rather limited. Literature review: Previous studies examined the use of different languages on websites of large corporations, state institutions, and organizations that aim to reach linguistically diverse populations, but discussions of language management of international organizations generally focus on traditional offline language policies. This article attempts to examine the choices of languages on IOs' official websites. Research questions: 1. What languages are used on international organizations' official websites? 2. How do intergovernmental organizations differ from nongovernmental organizations in such language choices and cyber language management? Methodology: Data from the official websites of 50 intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) and 20 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) were collected, and both qualitative and quantitative approaches were adopted to analyze the data. Results: The findings show that English is the dominant language on IOs' official websites, and is especially preferred by NGOs; inconsistency of IOs' cyber language policy is found among the languages used on specific pages, e-documents, and the general available languages; and IGOs' language choices are more diversified, unified, and standardized than NGOs'. Conclusion: Accordingly, the effect of technology on IOs' language policy is further analyzed, and suggestions for IOs' language management are presented concerning the linguistic ecology at supra-national levels.