City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works Student Theses Baruch College Fall 12-11-2019 Travel to Cuba: A Case Study of Media Branding in a Politicized Context Yaneisis Infante How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/bb_etds/93 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] “TRAVEL TO CUBA: A CASE STUDY OF MEDIA BRANDING IN A POLITICIZED CONTEXT” A Thesis [Department of Communication Studies] Presented to the Faculty of the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences Baruch College, The City University of New York In partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS In CORPORATE COMMUNICATION By Yaneisis Infante Quintas December 4, 2019 Under the guidance and approval of the committee, and approved by all its members, this thesis [capstone project] has been accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Corporate Communication. A Colloquium for the above name Graduate Student will be held at NVC 8210 Location of Colloquium On December 11, 2019 Approved: Professor Caryn E. Medved Date Professor Michael Goodman and Ted Henken Date Professor Caryn E. Medved Date Cuba-U.S. Tourism and Nation Branding 2 dsafdfds “TRAVEL TO CUBA: A CASE STUDY OF MEDIA BRANDING IN A POLITICIZED CONTEXT” A Thesis Department of Communication Studies Presented to the Faculty of the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences Baruch College, The City University of New York In partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS In CORPORATE COMMUNICATION By Yaneisis Infante Quintas December 4, 2019 Cuba-U.S. Tourism and Nation Branding 3 “TRAVEL TO CUBA: A CASE STUDY OF MEDIA BRANDING IN A POLITICIZED CONTEXT” Copyright By Yaneisis Infante Quintas December 4, 2019 Cuba-U.S. Tourism and Nation Branding 4 Abstract The purpose of this research is to detail a case study of U.S. tourism to Cuba in a politicized context; specifically, to compare and contrast the Obama and Trump administrations. This study seeks to examine how the Cuban “brand” and the island’s overall tourism strategy is formulated, circulated, shaped and reshaped by various actors and the public in the changing context of the newly antagonistic bilateral U.S.-Cuba political relationship. The research questions explore issues of how diplomatic relations impact Cuban tourism and advertising messaging. This paper also discusses the changes in the U.S. news media coverage of Cuba as a destination after the announcements of 17 December 2014, between 2015-2016 (the last two years of the Obama administration) and 2017-2018 (the first two years of the Trump administration). Results from a multi-method case study are provided along with a discussion of key findings, limitations and future directions for research. Cuba-U.S. Tourism and Nation Branding 5 Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 4 Travel to Cuba: A Case Study of Media Branding in a Politicized Context ...................... 7 Literature Review ............................................................................................................... 9 Nation Branding .............................................................................................................. 9 Brand Familiarity .......................................................................................................... 12 The Role of Cultural Diplomacy in Nation Branding ................................................... 13 Country Reputation ....................................................................................................... 15 Tourism, Nation Branding and Combating National Stereotypes ................................ 16 Crisis communication and Tourism .............................................................................. 17 Methods ............................................................................................................................ 21 The Coding Frames. ...................................................................................................... 22 Content Analysis ........................................................................................................... 22 Secondary Data Analysis .............................................................................................. 24 Findings: A Case Study of Cuba-U.S. Relations and Tourism ............................................. 25 Detailed Relevant .............................................................................................................. 25 Historical Background ...................................................................................................... 25 The impact of diplomatic relations on Cuban tourism industry and tourism advertising messaging .......................................................................................................................... 34 Brand Analysis. ................................................................................................................. 51 Media Analysis ............................................................................................................. 55 Qualitative media analysis. ................................................................................................... 56 Media Coverage after December 2014 Announcement. ................................................... 56 Media Narrative 2015-2016: Obama Administration. ...................................................... 58 Media Narrative: 2017 – 2018: Trump Administration. ................................................... 63 Quantitative Content Analysis .............................................................................................. 71 Thematic Analysis (Subject Matter Expert Interviews) ................................................ 81 Recent changes in U.S.-Cuban relations and impact on tourism. ......................................... 82 Media Biases, the image of Cuba as portrayed by U.S. media. ............................................ 83 The impact of Tourism on U.S.-Cuba relations. ................................................................... 85 Promoting tourism, attracting diverse tourists. ..................................................................... 86 Cuba-U.S. Tourism and Nation Branding 6 Restoring the U.S.-Cuban relationship through Normalization. ........................................... 87 Discussion ......................................................................................................................... 88 Tourism Distorted by the Politics of International Relations ....................................... 89 Media Representations .......................................................................................................... 94 Country Brand as a Strategy ................................................................................................. 97 Future Directions .................................................................................................................. 99 References ....................................................................................................................... 101 Appendix A ..................................................................................................................... 120 Appendix B ..................................................................................................................... 121 Appendix C ..................................................................................................................... 124 Appendix D ..................................................................................................................... 127 Appendix E ..................................................................................................................... 129 Cuba-U.S. Tourism and Nation Branding 7 Travel to Cuba: A Case Study of Media Branding in a Politicized Context The history of media and communication across the Cuban-U.S. border is closely linked to the political reality of the times. After nearly sixty years, the Cuban Revolution continues to provoke strong reactions, constant debate and different interpretations in U.S. global media coverage. The ever-changing developments of diplomatic relations between Cuba and the U.S. are equally controversial. Tourism has been central to these developments and is an indispensable economic resource for Cuba. The purpose of this project is to explore the Cuban tourism strategy and its national branding as it relates to the U.S.-Cuban political relations. While an in-depth look at these issues will be provided upfront in the case study findings of this thesis, it is important to provide a brief introduction to these historic relations in the context of tourism. U.S. media coverage has directed attention to Cuba as both a tourist destination and a business opportunity. This focus has been at the top of the agenda of different media organizations to inform, comment on, and promote the improved relationship between Cuba and the U.S., particularly in travel sections where stories about Cuban society are featured alongside those economic opportunities. The interest to visit the island as a tourist destination soared after