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.

ABC’s ‘Soft Diplomacy’ in China Looks Like Kowtow

The ABC has been embarrassed by self-censorship in Chinese language news items selected and posted on its AustraliaPlus.cn website. The broadcaster’s ABC International division recently admitted to Media Watch that the AustraliaPlus.cn website, with online penetration of China’s internet firewall to a potential audience of 700 million people, is actually meant to exclude news and current affairs, with the possible exception of business news.

Tags: abc, china, international broadcasting, chinese language, censorship, media, internet freedom

The Role of Artists in Re-Branding Nigeria

Art is the centre of human life and it plays multiple functions in any given society (religious, economic, social etcetera). This means that its role in this period of rebranding is significant. Therefore, in all the sectors of the nation which are to receive serious attention from the rebranding project, culture is one of them. 

Tags: nigeria, africa, arts, culture, nation branding, Cultural Diplomacy, economic development, international image, youth, history

A Gift of Culture to Battered Palmyra

In an extraordinary act of culture and courage, a Russian orchestra performed in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra recently liberated from the Islamic State, but Western media mocked the event, notes Gilbert Doctorow.[...] The orchestrated performed a concert of Bach, Shchedrin and Prokofiev in the Roman Amphitheater to celebrate the return of culture to a UNESCO site desecrated by its Islamic State occupiers.

Tags: russia, syria, Cultural Diplomacy, history & theory, palmyra, unesco, music, culture, isis, smart & soft power, middle east

UK 'Losing Share of International Student Market'

UK immigration strategy is is costing the country its share in the valuable international student market, a new all-party parliamentary group has said. [...] The inaugural meeting heard Canada had overtaken the UK last year as a destination for international undergraduates, while Australia was projected to do so in little over a decade.

Tags: united kingdom, australia, canada, india, international exchange, smart & soft power, education, culture, immigration law

A Key Initiative for Africa's Digital Transformation

Efforts to extend the reach of the internet to the 4 billion people worldwide that are not yet connected will only succeed if a digital ecosystem approach is adopted where access, affordability, skills and content are given equal attention, according to a new World Economic Forum-led initiative, Internet For All, whose key learning and best practices are published today.

Tags: africa, digital diplomacy & new tech, internet, education, internet for all, non state pd, east africa, economic development

Ethiopia: Sudanese Public Diplomacy Team Visit Elevates All-Encompassing Ties

A week-long visit by Sudanese Public Diplomacy Team to Ethiopia would cement the cultural, historical, people-to-people, political as well as economic relations between the two countries, House of People's Representatives Speaker and Ethiopian Public Diplomacy Team Head Abadula Gemeda said.

Tags: international advocacy, Cultural Diplomacy, nation branding, ethiopia, sudan, africa

Senegal's handicrafts: Made in China?

Ibrahima Syla arrives early to open the doors of the Fama Boutique, his shop at the Soumbédioune Craft Village in Dakar's Medina neighborhood. […] He has noticed a rise in Chinese vendors selling imitation products in markets across the city over the past two decades. "I feel concerned about it [affecting my business]," he says. "An original product is something like a dream and you don't want someone to take it."

Tags: international advocacy, nation branding, Cultural Diplomacy, senegal, africa, china

Brazil Icon Rivaldo Tells Tourists to Stay Away from Rio Olympics

Brazil icon Rivaldo has warned tourists to stay away from the summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, expressing fears about crime, a struggling health service and the political turmoil surrounding the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff.

Tags: sports diplomacy, olympics, international advocacy, nation branding, brazil, south america

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