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US President Barack Obama may have launched his official presidential Twitter handle @POTUS just two weeks ago, but he and other global leaders have been using the microblogging platform for years. Twitter has helped foster digital diplomacy, giving world leaders and foreign ministries an opportunity to interact directly with the public and with peers.
Twiplomacy, a study led by global public relations and communications firm Burson-Marsteller, looked at the 669 Twitter accounts of different heads of state and foreign ministers and institutions to see how digital diplomacy is taking shape on the social network. The study’s data was collected March 24, 2015.
US President Barack Obama was the first to make an entrance into the “Twittersphere”, back in March 2007 when he was still a Senator with his campaign handle @BarackObama. After Obama’s entrance, more and more world leaders started to establish handles with a peak 143 leaders signing up in 2011.
Currently, a total of 172 heads of state and 4100 embassies and ambassadors have Twitter accounts, according to Twiplomacy. The report also noted that 32 countries – primarily in Africa, Asia, and the Central Pacific – have yet to establish a Twitter presence.
Some leaders that have embraced the platform have garnered massive followings on the site. @BarackObama has nearly 60 million followers, to which the account can broadcast. The new @POTUS account has garnered approximately 2.57 million followers since its debut in mid-May 2015.
Together, world leaders are tweeting in a total of 54 different languages. Pope Francis @Pontifex maintains accounts in nine different languages allowing him to communicate with his global audience. The Pope is also the most influential world leader on Twitter, accumulating approximately 9929 retweets per tweet on his Spanish account alone. Meanwhile @BarackObama only receives about 1210 retweets per tweet on average.
Some leaders use Twitter simply as a way of disseminating information. Several are only active on their accounts during campaign times as a way to increase voter awareness and support. Yet there are some leaders who use the digital tool as a means of conversation.
Paul Kagame, the President of Rwanda, is the most conversational world leader on the platform with 86 percent of his tweets being replies.
While world leaders are not typically the ones pressing send on tweets, there are a few who maintain personal control of their accounts like Estonian President Toomas Henrik Ilves and Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg.
Other leaders like to engage directly with Twitter less often. Many opt for a preplanned question and answer session the platform. For example May 28, 2015, President Obama held a Q&A session on Twitter about climate change through his @POTUS account. People from across the world were able to raise questions to the President by using the hashtag #AskPOTUS and the President could select a few to respond to.
Leaders can also bring attention to specific issues by using hashtags, like #BringBackOurGirls which was used by several global institutions, like @UNHCR, on Twitter to call for the release of 270 Nigerian women kidnapped by Boko Haram.
Leaders and foreign ministries are also using Twitter for more than engaging with constituents. They also connect with peers to form a virtual diplomatic network.
It is becoming an expectation that diplomats to be able to use digital tools like Twitter. Forming mutual connections with peers on Twitter opens the door for direct messaging, allowing leaders and diplomats to have private conversations on the social network.
A progressive group of leaders and institutions are experimenting with Twitter’s latest innovations like Vine and Periscope. Vine, a platform which allows users to create and share 6-second video clips, has been used by the palace of France, @Elysee, to promote events like state visits. The Elysée Palace has also tested out Periscope, a live streaming application.
Twiplomacy shows that, for the most part, global leaders and foreign ministries are not just signing up for Twitter then forgetting about it. Twitter really has become a place for leaders and diplomats to engage with the public and one another.
The views presented in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent the views of any other organization.
a global affairs media network
Twiplomacy 2015: The Future of Diplomacy Is Now
June 11, 2015
US President Barack Obama may have launched his official presidential Twitter handle @POTUS just two weeks ago, but he and other global leaders have been using the microblogging platform for years. Twitter has helped foster digital diplomacy, giving world leaders and foreign ministries an opportunity to interact directly with the public and with peers.
Twiplomacy, a study led by global public relations and communications firm Burson-Marsteller, looked at the 669 Twitter accounts of different heads of state and foreign ministers and institutions to see how digital diplomacy is taking shape on the social network. The study’s data was collected March 24, 2015.
US President Barack Obama was the first to make an entrance into the “Twittersphere”, back in March 2007 when he was still a Senator with his campaign handle @BarackObama. After Obama’s entrance, more and more world leaders started to establish handles with a peak 143 leaders signing up in 2011.
Currently, a total of 172 heads of state and 4100 embassies and ambassadors have Twitter accounts, according to Twiplomacy. The report also noted that 32 countries – primarily in Africa, Asia, and the Central Pacific – have yet to establish a Twitter presence.
Some leaders that have embraced the platform have garnered massive followings on the site. @BarackObama has nearly 60 million followers, to which the account can broadcast. The new @POTUS account has garnered approximately 2.57 million followers since its debut in mid-May 2015.
Together, world leaders are tweeting in a total of 54 different languages. Pope Francis @Pontifex maintains accounts in nine different languages allowing him to communicate with his global audience. The Pope is also the most influential world leader on Twitter, accumulating approximately 9929 retweets per tweet on his Spanish account alone. Meanwhile @BarackObama only receives about 1210 retweets per tweet on average.
Some leaders use Twitter simply as a way of disseminating information. Several are only active on their accounts during campaign times as a way to increase voter awareness and support. Yet there are some leaders who use the digital tool as a means of conversation.
Paul Kagame, the President of Rwanda, is the most conversational world leader on the platform with 86 percent of his tweets being replies.
While world leaders are not typically the ones pressing send on tweets, there are a few who maintain personal control of their accounts like Estonian President Toomas Henrik Ilves and Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg.
Other leaders like to engage directly with Twitter less often. Many opt for a preplanned question and answer session the platform. For example May 28, 2015, President Obama held a Q&A session on Twitter about climate change through his @POTUS account. People from across the world were able to raise questions to the President by using the hashtag #AskPOTUS and the President could select a few to respond to.
Leaders can also bring attention to specific issues by using hashtags, like #BringBackOurGirls which was used by several global institutions, like @UNHCR, on Twitter to call for the release of 270 Nigerian women kidnapped by Boko Haram.
Leaders and foreign ministries are also using Twitter for more than engaging with constituents. They also connect with peers to form a virtual diplomatic network.
It is becoming an expectation that diplomats to be able to use digital tools like Twitter. Forming mutual connections with peers on Twitter opens the door for direct messaging, allowing leaders and diplomats to have private conversations on the social network.
A progressive group of leaders and institutions are experimenting with Twitter’s latest innovations like Vine and Periscope. Vine, a platform which allows users to create and share 6-second video clips, has been used by the palace of France, @Elysee, to promote events like state visits. The Elysée Palace has also tested out Periscope, a live streaming application.
Twiplomacy shows that, for the most part, global leaders and foreign ministries are not just signing up for Twitter then forgetting about it. Twitter really has become a place for leaders and diplomats to engage with the public and one another.
The views presented in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent the views of any other organization.
