Yet again we are confronted with a dilemma: when is culture an instrument of soft power? We talk about cultural diplomacy, cultural exchanges and even cultural influence. What is less discussed is how cultural paraphernalia connect to, integrate with, and ultimately enhance a nation’s soft power capital.

The U.S. State Department has been using the term 21st Century Statecraft to describe policies and activities promoting a networked society.

For a field that is predicated on communication, we public diplomats don’t always do as good a job as we could in communicating what is public diplomacy to the public that we serve.  As such, it remains an ongoing challenge for the field to create awareness of what public diplomacy is and what it entails.

Water, Women, Entrepreneurs, Emerging Markets - Four Key Global Corporate Diplomacy Trends for 2011-2012

What do American comedy shows, such as South Park, an animated cartoon sitcom, and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, a parody of news broadcasts, have to do with public diplomacy? Well, more than you think.

APDS Blogger: Kimberly DeGroff Madsen

Australian diplomats and policy-makers were no doubt watching as Australian cyclist, Cadel Evans edged past Luxembourg rival Andy Schlek to win the prestigious Tour de France earlier this week. They may well hope for a repeat performance when Australia faces Finland and Luxembourg next October in the contest for one of the two available seats on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

Since 2008, under the leadership of the Obama Administration and direction of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the United States has actively advocated for a more networked society. The U.S. Department of State has coined this initiative, 21st Century Statecraft.