The Meaning of Soft Power between Joseph Nye’s and State Policy and News in the Websites

Abstract

        This article aims to study the meaning of soft power which invented by Joseph Nye’s in comparison with meaning in government policy and news on Thai websites due to questions regarding the meaning of government’s soft power policy that circulated in public. The study explores soft power’s meaning in Nye’s 4 academic literature and content from websites of news and state publications using specific keywords which were “soft power ซอฟต์พาวเวอร์ (soft power) ความหมาย (meaning) นิยาม (definition)” during April 17, 2022, to January 24, 2024, for a total of 132 pieces along with related literature review. It was found that the meaning of Nye’s soft power refers to the ability to obtain the desired results when others voluntarily respond to such wishes. It is indirect power through attraction, not coercion-based, in international relations. and has culture, political ideology, and government policy as resources. Culture, including the Korean Wave phenomenon, is not always Soft power if it is not applied to the end of the country’s results in world politics. The study found that most of the meanings of soft power from the government and its agencies, most of the media, and some academics in Thailand define it as a lift-up culture to creative economy, which does not align with Nye’s meaning. Though certain specific media and scholars concur with Nye’s interpretation, which holds that the creative economy is merely one of soft power’s tools, not soft power in and of itself. Using the term soft power which was invented by Nye’s but in the wrong definition, leads to public misunderstandings and could obscure operational goals. Therefore, it is recommended that the government provide on a strategic blueprint that would guide creative economy projects to enable Thailand’s soft power. In order to support Thailand’s soft power, it is advised that the government adopt a strategic plan that initiatives in the creative economy. It is the responsibility of the media to look into these tactics in order to report on their misuse and misinterpretation for the public interest correctly. The scholars must be careful when examining Nye’s soft power and putting it on display in the academic community or come up with a way to disseminate Nye’s definition of soft power, along with methodology that can offer additional definitions in case they are required.