SPECIAL FEATURE | %1&%77%(367 (-6)'836=
TWIPLOMACY’S HONEST FUN AND LIKABLE VOICES From selfies to puppy pictures, friendly sports wagers to today’s “must-read,� ambassadors bring personal flair to digital diplomacy BY DA R A K L AT T
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n “obsessionâ€? is what France’s ambassador to the U.S. GĂŠrard Araud (@GerardAraud) calls Twitter. Tweeting over 11,000 times, he has used the social medium to discuss and eagerly debate topics on refugees in Europe, ISIS’ use of the Internet, climate change, the Greek crisis, the Iran Deal, NSA spying, Israeli policy in occupied territories, and what he sees as misleading coverage of events in the U.S. media. He also uses it to decree that a Rolling Stone cover with Kim Kardashian is “the death of rock’n’roll;â€? voice his frustration with public transportation delays; enlighten a foreign policy reporter about Bastille Day (noting: “you owe me a bottle of Champagneâ€?); and retweet Calvin and Hobbes cartoons. As “a good Frenchman,â€? Araud also tweets when he’s anticipating a vacation, when he is on vacation (but still tweeting, of course) ‌ and three weeks later, when he is begrudgingly back from vacation. Call him a master strategist or a colorful diplomat that rages against clichĂŠs, his enthusiastic use of Twitter — and brush of assumed political protocol with sharp wit — has gained him 17,000 followers. It’s also earned him plenty of admirers, especially
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from fellow ambassadors to the U.S. who are following his lead. With varying degrees of panache, some of the most active ambassadors to the U.S. on Twitter, according to a recent Exploring Digital Diplomacy study sample, include those from Italy, France, the European Union, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Turkey, Sweden, Qatar and the U.K. As far as attracting an audience, Israel’s Ambassador Ron Dermer (@ AmbDermer) leads the charge with more than 40,000 followers, trailed by Araud at 17,100, Italy’s Claudio Bisogniero (@CBisogniero) at 7,200 and the U.K.’s Sir Peter Westmacott (@ PeterWestmacott) at 6,200. While most ambassadors focus on behindthe-scenes diplomacy or presenting their own stance of an issue, some diplomatic Twitteratis have steadily gained followers by letting their personalities peer through. Move over staid digital diplomacy. It’s time for selfies and puppy pictures. German ambassador to the U.S. Peter Wittig (@AmbWittig), Westmacott, Iraq’s Lukman Al Faily (@FailyLukman) and Qatar’s Mohammed Al Kuwari (@Amb_AlKuwari) have all posted selfies. Wittig’s photo of his adopted puppy Mikosch got 41 likes and 14 retweets. Westmacott and the EU’s David
O’Sullivan (@EUAmbUS) couldn’t help posting pictures with celebrities like Dame Judith Dench and Shaq. There’s #WineWedesday for Switzerland’s Martin Dahinden (@Martin_Dahinden) on a California tour, Westmacott bike riding at Google headquarters, and O’Sullivan at the Grand Ole Opry. They might sport red socks for New York Fashion Week, penguin ties for World Penguin Day, four-leaf-clover cuffs on St. Patrick’s Day and wear ’60s costumes to a Beatles cover band concert. You’ll find via tweets that one of Araud’s preferred writers is Jane Austen, Wittig’s favorite composer is Bach, Al Kuwari’s favorite song is “We are the World,� Westmacott waited 50 years for his first Rolling Stones concert, and Switzerland’s Dahinden’s online quiz result was “Switzerland Expert.� But sports bring out the pride and humility. Israel’s Ron Dermer was forced to tweet his “Pacers Pride� after losing a bet with the governor of Indiana. And during the FIFA World Cup, the German and Norwegian ambassadors took part in a friendly twitter wager with the loser owing a case of national beer. Hey, diplomacy is complicated.Twiplomacy is just favorited.
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