%0 Journal Article
%T ¡®Welcome to the virtual state¡¯: Estonian e
%A Anu Masso
%A Piia Tammpuu
%J European Journal of Cultural Studies
%@ 1460-3551
%D 2018
%R 10.1177/1367549417751148
%X In this article, we examine the reconstruction and commodification of the national space through digital technologies by using the case of Estonian e-residency. E-residency or ¡®virtual residency¡¯ is an initiative of the Estonian government which gives foreigners global access to Estonian e-services via state-issued digital identity. We explore the ways in which the ideas of the ¡®virtual state¡¯ and ¡®virtual residency¡¯ have been employed for purposes of nation branding and national reputation management, and how the different logics of nation branding and nation building combined in the concept of e-residency have been negotiated in the national context. The study draws on a qualitative textual analysis of the official website of e-residency directed at foreign audiences and the national media coverage of the project addressing domestic publics. The analysis indicates that while the imagery constructed around the notions of the ¡®virtual state¡¯ and ¡®virtual residency¡¯ makes it possible to turn the national space into a commodity, presented outwards as a globally extensible and open transnational space, domestically it makes it possible to appeal to ¡®intact national space¡¯ and to legitimise e-residency as a ¡®socio-culturally safe¡¯, digitally mediated internationalisation of the society. This article forms part of the Theorizing Media in Nation Branding Special Issue
%K Digitalisation
%K e-residency
%K Estonia
%K information and communication technologies (ICTs)
%K nation branding
%K national identity
%K virtual spaces
%K virtual state
%U https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1367549417751148