Journal of Public Diplomacy

The Korean Association for Public Diplomacy (한국공공외교학회)
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Virus Diplomacy: Leadership and Reputational Security in the Era of COVID 19

  • Nicholas J. Cull (University of Southern California) ;
  • Juan Luis Manfredi Sanchez (Georgetown University)
  • Received : 2021.05.05
  • Accepted : 2022.04.19
  • Published : 2022.12.30
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Abstract

It is the nature of pandemics that international relations, reputation, and health become intertwined. Speculation and paranoid conspiracy narratives spread daily through tweets, state-sponsored media and public statements. The hyper-networked world of social media has created a plethora of platforms on which this struggle has played out. The interplay of national images has become a third realm for governments to consider; a realm of reputation to set beside the primary physical and secondary economic concerns. This realm of reputation includes perceptions of public policies, citizen security and the industrial capacity to supply medical devices and other elements of life. This preliminary study will set out the parameters of the reputational battle as it seems in the midst of the virus; establish a framework for thinking about virus diplomacy and consider its emerging impact on the present and future of public diplomacy.

Keywords

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