Paper short abstract:

Based on ethnographic research on a major nation-branding project undertaken in Macedonia, this paper examines how the state sponsorship of nation branding intersects with emergent forms of governance and social regulation.

Paper long abstract:

This paper examines how the state sponsorship of nation branding intersects with emergent forms of governance and social regulation. Nation branding—the effort to formulate national identity as a commodity that adds value to local goods and services—has increased exponentially in recent years, reflecting a growing dependence of national economies on global markets. Proponents of nation branding celebrate it as a strategy to lure investment and tourism and to stimulate growth. Drawing on ethnographic research on a major nation-branding project that was undertaken in Macedonia, this paper, by contrast, investigates the politics of nation branding and the heightened regulation of public communication and public space that accompany state-sponsored nation-branding campaigns.