“…The bottom has fallen out of support for America in most of the Muslim world”1
Recent polls, research, and media reports have chronicled the dismal state of international public opinion of the United States. The Pew Research Center found in 2003 that in most countries, opinions of the U.S. are markedly lower than they were a year ago.”2 A 2004 Zogby International poll discovered a continuance of that trend, as did similar Gallup polls and research by the State Department’s Office of Research.3
The problem is particularly bad for the Arab and Muslim world. These same polls showed that negative opinions were highest in these areas. A 2004 report from the Brookings Institution noted that “there has been a precipitous decline in the favorability towards the United States within the Islamic world.”4 The Advisory Group on Public Diplomacy for the Arab and Muslim World noted in 2003 that, “at a critical time in our nation’s history, the apparatus of public diplomacy has proven inadequate, especially in the Arab and Muslim world.”5
One way the State Department is trying to address this problem is through Embassy Websites. This project examines the strategy and effectiveness of those websites, illustrated through a case study of the websites directed at the Saudi Arabian Public. Three U.S. websites will be examined here: the Embassy in Riyadh, and the Consulates of Dhahran and Jeddah.
The project is divided in five parts. Part one gives a broad overview of Saudi Arabia: its politics, economics, media, infrastructure, and social environment. Part two describes Saudi Arabian culture and in particular how it influences communications. Part three summarizes the campaign itself. Part four is a detailed analysis of the effectiveness of this and other websites. Part five outlines the resources used in this project.
REFERENCES (see resources page for additional information)
(1) The Pew Center for People and the Press, Views of a Changing World.
(2) Ibid.
(3) Defense Science Board Task Force on Strategic Communication, 2004 Report, p 15.
(4) The Brookings Institution, The Need to Communicate, p xi.
(5) Djerejian, Changing Minds Winning Peace, p 8.
by Julianna Evett April 20, 2005
Created for International Public Relations, Professor R.S. Zaharna, American University