As noted in the introduction, international popular opinion of the United States is extremely poor, particularly in the Middle East. To combat this, U.S. Embassies throughout the region all administer various programs to generate support for the U.S. and its policies. For example, Embassies may facilitate international exchanges, sponsor international visitors, engage in local media relations, or administer Embassy websites. This case study examines the websites of the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Saudi Arabia.
Every U.S. Embassy has a website. The websites exists for two purposes: to provide American citizens traveling or living abroad the information they need and to provide foreign audiences information about the U.S., its people, and its policies. Embassy websites for foreign audiences generally feature information on planning a trip to the U.S., recent Embassy events, U.S. news, and other features as appropriate. Although there is no standard format for these websites, most follow the style of the main State Department website and many use an Embassy website template created by the Department’s International Information Programs (IIP) bureau. Embassy websites are continually being changed and updated.
The U.S. has three websites for Saudi Arabia: a site for the Embassy in Riyadh, a site for the Consulate in Jeddah, and a site for the Consulate in Dhahran. These websites all use a standard State Department web template. They feature the U.S. flag and State Department seal in their banner, with the Embassy name superimposed. Underneath are various navigation links. These vary somewhat from site to site, but all include Embassy/Consulate news, information for U.S. citizens, visa information, and a link on American culture and education. The main body has a highlights section followed by other headlines. On the right hand side of the page are links to U.S. news headlines provided by usinfo.state.gov, produced by the IIP bureau. This is followed by links to the other U.S. websites in Saudi Arabia, and other links Saudi audiences might find interesting.
The goals of these sites are the same as the objectives of other public diplomacy programming, “to understand, inform, and influence foreign publics in promotion of the national interest and to broaden the dialogue between Americans and U.S. institutions and their counterparts abroad.”1 By providing Saudi audiences with information about the United States and its people, the Embassy hopes to foster improved U.S./Saudi relations.
Websites are generally created by the Public Affairs Officer (PAO) at a particular Embassy. PAOs are in charge of all the public affairs activities of their Embassy, including media relations, press releases, responding to inquiries in addition to creating and maintaining a Website. These professionals, though often highly skilled, are not necessarily trained in communications or international communications. Some Embassies hire outside contractors to produce websites.
REFERENCES (see resources page for additional information)
(1) Ambassador Pamela Smith, "Public Diplomacy."
by Julianna Evett April 20, 2005
Created for International Public Relations, Professor R.S. Zaharna, American University