Security and digital nationalism: speaking the brand of Australia on social media

Abstract

This article investigates the ways a nation brand is constructed by elite and non-elite actors on social media using the case of Australia in China through the lens of security. The mixed-method analysis unveils the collaborative process in the security realm driven by digital technologies does not enable vernacular discussions to produce an alternative understanding of the national brand of the Other crafted by the pro-state actors. The narratives centering around societal security to citizens strategically served to prompt the population's interactions and nationalistic support for the state's agendas. Uncovering the contribution of digital nationalism to the mean-making of securitization in the participatory media space, this article advances the engagement between security and nation branding from a critical vantage point. It enriches the strategies of harnessing the dynamics between people, digital media, and identity politics to create a unified response from the community to a security threat.