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.
North Korea-Run Restaurants Spread Propaganda and Kimchi Across Asia
North Korean government-run restaurants have existed for years in China, in regions adjacent to the DPRK's northern border, but in the past decade the business has truly gone global. As North Korea's economic situation becomes increasingly dire, the number of branches has increased.
Has economic power replaced military might?
Economic resources can produce soft-power behavior as well as hard military power. A successful economic model not only finances the military resources needed for the exercise of hard power, but it can also attract others to emulate its example.
The world’s languages: factfile
There are an estimated 6000 languages in active use across the world. However, half of them have fewer than about 3,000 speakers. Experts predict that half of all languages spoken today will go extinct within the next 50 to 150 years. Approximately 60 to 80 per cent of all languages are endangered.
A nation is the sum of its heritage
To find a nation’s identity, look no further than its historical relics and cultural heritage. For 50 years, Korea’s Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA) has preserved and maintained the country’s cultural remains. And at the core of the foundation was Jung Jae-hoon, a pioneering director who witnessed some of Korea’s most important cultural discoveries.
China’s Rise: A Quest To ‘Hug The World’?
Aware of its need to project its soft power, the Chinese government has put out advertisements and expanded a whole department of the Chinese Ministry of Education to recruit teachers and send them out to foreign countries around the world, promoting the teaching of Mandarin.
Britain will love being an ‘aid superpower’
Andrew Mitchell said the Coalition’s controversial decision to increase aid spending while cutting other budgets will make Britain an “aid superpower”, something that should be a source of “pride and satisfaction” for taxpayers.
Facebook and the French Resistance
France and the United States have long been engaged in a friendly war for global prestige and pre-eminence -- especially in the technological and cultural spheres. It is not entirely irrelevant to situate this latest French obstacle to American technological and cultural influence within the longstanding animosity between France and the U.S. in these spheres.
African View Point – African Solutions for African Problems
I would introduce another working definition that culture is observable worship or work. It is the sum total of the core beliefs expressed through action of one’s perception of reality... Using the above as a platform, the nearly missed opportunity of cultural exchange of the African reality this year is plausibly understandable.
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