Research on the contribution of cats' international social media impact to Türki̇ye's national brand

This thesis aims to rethink Türkiye's nation branding and cultural diplomacy strategies through popular culture-based content circulating on social media. It is based on the assumption that videos themed around "Türkiye's cats," widely shared on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, create a positive and unique representation of the country's international image. These contents create a positive perception of Türkiye through themes such as love for animals, compassion, closeness to everyday life, and cultural warmth, offering an alternative narrative ground outside of orientalist representations. The study discusses the potential of the "cat" phenomenon to function as an element of soft power by examining new public diplomacy approaches through the lens of popular culture and digital platforms. The concept of "Cat-Diplomacy" developed within this framework, inspired by the K-Pop example, positions cats as micro-celebrities and highlights the symbolic relationship they establish with the Istanbul city brand in particular. Thus, a new intersection between influencer culture and nation and city branding processes is proposed. The research was conducted using an exploratory sequential mixed design. In the first stage, five cat-themed videos with high viewership rates were examined using semiotic analysis; in the second stage, English comments posted on these videos were analyzed using an eight-category content analysis. In the final stage, AI-supported visual production tools were used to develop cat-themed brand design proposals for Türkiye and Istanbul. The findings show that international viewers develop admiration, closeness, and a desire to visit Türkiye through cat representations; this perception is reinforced through cross-cultural comparisons. In this respect, the study reveals that cat-focused narratives are a unique cultural diplomacy tool that can contribute to Türkiye's nation and city brand.