Public diplomacy in Afghanistan, 2002–2018: Impact of the USA on social networks, political system and universities

Abstract

The study applies both qualitative methods of analysis to evaluate U.S. government documents and quantitative methods to analyse a considerable amount of data relative to social networks and reveals three areas of U.S. public diplomacy in Afghanistan, notably informational projects and the establishment of local social media, the development of civic society and the americanization of universities. Several findings resulted from the study. Firstly, the United States tries to make an impact on Afghan users in social networks and disseminates its positive image; however, as soon as the government terminates its activity on social media or does not produce some attractive news, the supporters of the Taliban disseminate a strong anti-American stance among the users. Moreover, the majority of Afghan population does not use the Internet, which reduces the ability for Washington to exert influence in remote provinces. The second finding is that the democratization of Afghanistan’s political system and the support of political parties, observers and the civil society are more successful. However, the security problems and the sabotage on the part of the traditional Afghan society limit the opportunities to build a new political landscape in terms of Washington’s view. Finally, the transformation of universities and the americanization of curricula, structures, models of teaching, etc., are also restrained by the resistance on the part of the academic community of Afghanistan.