As her position holds a seat on the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), Sonenshine will be able to influence the BBG’s strategic planning process. This process has in recent years threatened to gut the U.S. international broadcasting services by redirecting resources from broadcasting toward Internet-only platforms, which are unavailable in many developing countries.

The Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council (OCAO) will cooperate with foreign education authorities to position Chinese-language education as a mainstream education choice abroad, said Li Haifeng, the OCAO director, at a meeting attended by overseas Chinese social organizations from across the world.

China's booming film industry is attracting interest from Hollywood heavyweights, as they chase bigger box-office returns to offset tighter margins at home...Films with Asian and especially Chinese themes are becoming more prominent after Hollywood hit a 16-year low in movie ticket sales last year, while some of its biggest studios are setting up shop in the country.

Forty years ago this month, Maryland began its engagement with China by becoming the site of an iconic exchange in sports diplomacy, a groundbreaking ping-pong match between China and the U.S...The University of Maryland's role in the celebrated milestone of "ping pong diplomacy" signaled the state's early emergence as a pioneer in the promotion of burgeoning U.S.-China ties.

The international chattering class has a label for these changes: American decline. The dots look so connectable: The financial crisis, say the pundits, comprehensively demonstrated the failure of "Anglo-Saxon" capitalism...Throw in the assertive new powers and there you have it—the portrait of America in decline.

Kung fu, pandas or Peking Opera are what one would commonly associate with China - but they are also vital cogs in a massive "soft power" exercise that China hopes will give it more global voice and an image makeover. It is also proving to be a tough challenge for policymakers, as the growth of the country's "soft power" has not been in tandem with that of its "hard power".

Taiwan's soft power has also benefitted the tourism industry, the bureau said, adding that the popularity of Taiwanese movies such as "You Are the Apple of My Eye" and the annual lantern festivals might have contributed to the increasing travel interest in Taiwan.

China has been cultivating its image around the world as an attractive, rising power that is non-threatening and non-confrontational. China's endeavor to promote its soft power involves shifting the focus from purely economic cooperation to other more subtle areas such as culture.