USA as nation brand: number one with a bullet. So to speak.

"Brand America is now ranked #1 by global citizens, according to the GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media... . Results from the 2009 Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index (NBI), which measures the global image of 50 countries, show the United States taking the top spot as the country with the best overall brand, up from seventh last year. ... Turning to the rest of the NBI rankings, mostly the same countries are in the top ten as in 2008 - but also with some shifts in position. France again captured second place overall, while Germany and the United Kingdom fell to third and fourth, respectively. Japan (5th) and Italy (6th) did not shift rankings from 2008. However, Canada lost ground, slipping from fourth last year to seventh in 2009. Switzerland, Australia, Spain and Sweden round out the top 10." GfK Roper press release, 5 October 2009.
     We will not soon hear the end of this. (And wouldn't it be great to be Judith McHale right now?) Nevertheless, we should not get too worked up over something so superficial as a "nation brand." And we should keep in mind that this probably has much to do with Brand Bush versus Brand Obama. The number one nation brand did not bring the 2016 Summer Olympics to Chicago. And it happens in the same year that Pakistanis overwhelmingly believe the United States to be a greater threat than the Taliban (59% versus 11%, see previous post). Posted: 06 Oct 2009 Permalink Print