Empowerment or disempowerment: Exploring stakeholder engagement in nation branding through a mixed method approach to social network analysis

Influenced or to be influenced: Engaging social media influencers in nation branding through the lens of authenticity

“…As noted by Li and Feng (2021a), social media content echoing users' experiences, emotions and values often provokes online interaction. Considering this sense, the citizens could be interested in exploring the social meanings of Chinese soccer.…”

“…These soccer mega-events are regarded as the milestones on China's path to becoming a world soccer superpower by 2050 (National Development and Reform Commission, 2016). Owing to social network analysis being useful to identify the important nodes and the relationship between the nodes in a social network (Li & Feng, 2021a), we employed this method to address RQ1. We then utilized the content analysis method to investigate networked narratives in response to RQ2 and RQ3.…”

“…Sina Weibo establishes a digital venue allowing for public discussions about political affairs in the country, and users can interact with others without becoming friends of them (Li & Feng, 2021a). Accounting for the aim of this study which is to explore the role of influencers in creating a truthful national brand, especially from the aspect of shaping national identity, we decided to examine posts published in Mandarin targeting domestic Chinese audiences.…”

“…This conceptualization draws attention to engagement with followers as a critical component of determining how much influence is wielded by influencers on how their followers interpret the world (Enke & Borchers, 2019). Engagement at an individual-level underpins the significance of eliciting citizen participation in nation branding projects, which enables the establishment of 'an inclusive sense of national identity among the people' (Li & Feng, 2021a). Individual-level engagement can be converted into social-level engagement, marked by a diverse range of stakeholders offering public support for nation branding initiatives, and taking collective actions to grow resources that facilitate social development in the exercise of pursuing nation branding goals (Li & Feng, 2021a).…”

“…The Chinese state mobilizes the use of digital technologies to gain public consensus on soccer development schemes (General Office of the State Council, 2015). However, the outcome of citizen participation in co-creating a nation's brand representative of the people depends on whether the practices are operating within an communication mechanism that is ethical, inclusive and collaborative (Li & Feng, 2021a). Considering China's heavy investment in internet censorship (Pöyry, Pelkonen, Naumanen, & Laaksonen, 2019), the role of influencers in making a contribution to a truthful national brand may be confined.…”