Navigating #ObamainCuba: how Twitter mediates frames and history in public diplomacy

Abstract

Conversations in public diplomacy are increasingly influenced by social media networks, including the microblogging platform of Twitter. This study draws from US President Barack Obama???s historic visit to Cuba in 2016 to understand how publics prioritize binational issues using social media. Utilizing the theories of framing and mediated public diplomacy as means to influencing perceptions of nations within public diplomacy, this study assesses the growing role of public audiences and their participation in so-called ???Twiplomacy???. A social media content analysis is used to analyze Twitter activity containing the hashtag #ObamainCuba, which was promoted by the US government. It establishes Twitter diplomacy as a site for discourse not only from or between political elites, but as a burgeoning arena for international and previously under-represented publics, themselves engaging with governments and media in this process. The hashtag #ObamainCuba served as a bridge that joined US and Cuba narratives in framing Obama???s visit as a compelling political story, but also facilitated the contestation of historic geopolitical wounds between the USA and Cuba. This study builds on the role of mediation in public diplomacy by demonstrating the interplay between citizens, governments, and the media in the context of digital communication about a specific case of public diplomacy.