A curated selection of public diplomacy-relevant news from a global cross-section of English-language media outlets, including independent, corporate-owned, and state-sponsored sources. The stories featured don't necessarily represent CPD's views nor have they been verified by CPD.
Did Twitter Save Brand America?
In my opinion, first step was electing Barack Obama… love or hate him and his policies, the 180 degree change to the Bush tenure was needed to start a process of global reconciliation on the right foot… moreover, I credit the Obama campaign for bringing twitter and social networking into the fray of politics (sorry Mr. Dean), a necessary final step in its full democratization for the masses.
Soft Power and the American Virus
To begin with, the exercise of soft power for the most part resides in statecraft. Elements of soft power include credibility and reputation, combined with the ability -- and willingness -- to advance the other party's interests in a cooperative relationship. Public perception plays a role inasmuch as it generates domestic political incentives for cooperation.
Global Faith Meet Will Promote Dialogue Among Religions: Kazakh President
Over the past two days, 184 delegates from across the globe - including 146 spiritual leaders representing eight major religions and 38 honorary guests - debated a variety of topics that included “The role of religious leaders in construction of the world based on tolerance, mutual respect and cooperation”, “Moral and cultural wealth, world ethics”, “Dialogue and cooperation” and “Solidarity, especially in crises”.
Public Pressure Blocks China’s ‘Green Dam’ Plan
Chinese bloggers and artists, and rights advocates around the globe, are celebrating Beijing's postponement of a wildly unpopular plan to mandate the inclusion of filtering software in all computers sold in China as of July 1. The decision to postpone the "Green Dam Youth Escort" program -- which Chinese officials described as a concerted effort to address pornography on the Internet -- followed weeks of massive domestic and international pressure over concerns the software would serve as a vehicle to increase state censorship.
Human Rights and South Korea’s Loss of Soft Power
The brand power President Lee speaks of is a similar concept. So, then, what is South Korea’s attractive quality? It is the fact that it is a nation that overcome grinding poverty and military dictatorship to attain democratization, economic growth and expanded human rights simultaneously, even amid tragedy dividing people into two countries of North Korea and South Korea.
Time for an Israeli Strike?
Bolton: [Obama] still wants "engagement" (a particularly evocative term now) with Iran's current regime. Last Thursday, the State Department confirmed that Secretary Hillary Clinton spoke to her Russian and Chinese counterparts about "getting Iran back to negotiating on some of these concerns that the international community has." In short, the stolen election and its tumultuous aftermath have dramatically highlighted the strategic and tactical flaws in Obama's game plan.
U.S. Appoints First-Ever Special Representative To Muslim Communities
[Pandith's] appointment by Sec. of State Clinton to be the State Department’s envoy to Muslim communities around the world is a first --- the position is newly created and reflects President Obama’s desire to improve not just the image of the United States within the Muslim world, but to actively listen and respond to Muslims in Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Radosław Sikorski on the Goals of Poland’s Foreign Policy
We have introduced to the Polish Foreign Service the notion of public diplomacy. The task of the public diplomacy consists not only in the widely understood promotion of Poland. It also consists in convincing the public opinion abroad of the merits of our evaluation and understanding of international issues.
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