Narrating Turkey’s Story: Communicating Its Nation Brand Through Public Diplomacy

Abstract

Nations strategically communicate their brand and their messages to external audiences in order to purvey positive outcomes. Public diplomacy is a core component of strategic communication in communicating nation brands to foreign audiences. This chapter examines Turkey’s public diplomacy and nation brand, with a focus on foreign aid. Turkey’s state-run agencies are key actors in narrating Turkey’s story of wanting to be heard by both its citizens and people abroad. The chapter provides an analysis of two of the most prominent actors that partake in the act of delivering aid and the ways in which aid is instrumental in crafting Turkey’s nation brand as a benevolent country. This study demonstrates how Turkey utilizes different modes of development communication to share its nation brand with domestic and foreign audiences.