Mass Media Diplomacy

Mass Media and Public Diplomacy Case Studies

The first example of the role of mass media in public diplomacy is the CNN Effect, because of this effect is when the news about the people in Somalia in 1992 spread by CNN itself. With the news, the United States sent humanitarian aid to Somalia in 1992. CNN Effect is one of the theories in international relations and states that the media (news channel 24 hours) greatly influences the foreign policy taken by a country during the Cold War And in its development now, the effect of CNN is still big influence. The emergence of this theory proves that the international media have the power to emerge phenomenon and have such great influence for the related actors. This CNN effect has several dimensions

If the first diplomacy process is usually only done by an official actor such as diplomats, now with the presence of technology, especially the presence of mass media facilitate the role of diplomats themselves, because everything can be seen from mass media like online news, television and etc. in the real time. Without having to wait for a report from a diplomat. Mass media becomes a tool that is highly relied upon by the public to obtain national or international political information. Because the mass media is the easiest tool to enter a country to get information about the interests of a country. As a tool of public diplomacy, the mass media can become an investigator on an issue. Because the mass media will dig deeper an issue from various parties starting from the government, the authorities, as well as the community and the results of the investigation will become a source of information for the public. Media can also influence public policy. In its role as a tool of public diplomacy, mass media has the ability to build public opinion in view of a country. With all of that can make the mass media become more powerful so that the role of the mass media should not be ignored. Because with the opinion of the public, can drop the existence of a country and also can drop the image of actor diplomacy. So, after becoming an important actor in a public diplomacy, mass media has advantages and also the disadvantages that very influential on the state and also other diplomatic actors such as diplomats. Because with the mass media, can help shape the image of a country to be good or bad. And it will threaten the existence of a country in the international eyes. Because the mass media will disseminate such information without prior screening and sometimes people just accept what is informed without knowing what really happened. And that will cause undue interpretation and would