Digital Public Diplomacy and the Illusion of the Online/Offline Divide

The rise of social media platforms in the early 2010’s marked a shift in public diplomacy practice resulting in the emergence of “digital public diplomacy.” This chapter explores the evolution of digital public diplomacy by emphasizing digital culture as a significant source of social and political change in a broader societization of diplomacy. Moving beyond a narrow focus on digitalization, it argues for a broader understanding of digital public diplomacy through the lens of a digital culture that ecompasses the norms, behaviors, and political expressions shaped by pervasive digital technologies. Drawing on research on the European Union’s public diplomacy, the chapter critiques the conceptualization of the online/offline divide and advances digital sociability as a more instructive lens for analyzing contemporary public diplomacy practices and their centrality in cross-border collaboration. It concludes by reflecting on the implications of digital culture for the future of public diplomacy research and suggesting new directions for inquiry in an era where digital engagement and persuasive power is both essential and increasingly contested.