Italy: Nation branding campaign angers digital publics

This chapter presents a case of a nation branding initiative conducted by the Italian National Tourism Agency (ENIT), a public sector organization, and commissioned by the Italian Ministry of Tourism, a branch of the Italian government, which resulted in a crisis for the Ministry and, in particular, for the Minister. This chapter focuses on the “Italy. Open to Meraviglia” campaign, which, despite its ongoing status, encountered a communication crisis during its implementation in the spring and summer of 2023. This case presents a compelling crisis related to nation branding, public sector organizations, and the commodification of Italian image through the use of artificial intelligence (AI), which resulted in high media and public scrutiny, loss of political credibility for the Ministry and for the Minister, and generalized distrust in public sector organizations’ activities.