International city branding as intercultural discourse: workplace, development, and globalization

Abstract

Although the communicative dimension of urban development has caught the imagination of urban studies scholars, the cultural, and intercultural, nature of this discourse has received less attention than it deserves. As a case study and illustration of urban development workplace discourse from out of a Chinese/Asian/developing-world context, the present article examines the properties, problems, and potentials of the global branding practice of Hangzhou, a renowned tourist and ancient capital city on the east coastal region of China. First, after critiquing tendencies in relevant communication approaches, the paper outlines a holistic, cultural concept of urban branding of the developing world – as a culturally saturated, development-oriented, workplace discourse. Then, based on ethnographic data collected from a plethora of sites and sources (the municipality, trade association, the Internet, interviews, newspapers, street posters, museums, and historical records), the paper studies, qualitatively and quantitatively, a variety of interlocking international branding practices (municipal management, expos, festivals, exhibitions, international tours, websites, foreign language use, award-winning, etc.). In conclusion, the paper draws implications for future research and practice on urban development and branding in the developing world.