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.

Transparency: The New Source of Power

Government should be transparent by default, secret by necessity. Of course, it is not. Too much of government is secret. Why? Because those who hold secrets hold power. Now WikiLeaks has punctured that power. Whether or not it ever reveals another document -- and we can be certain that it will -- Wikileaks has made us all aware that no secret is safe. If something is known by one person, it can be known by the world.

Tags: united states, government pd, public opinion, wikileaks

Africa’s leaks: Much ado about too little?

Julian Assange’s website has attracted both flak and praise for leaking US diplomatic thinking. But some argue that Uncle Sam’s assessments are a fair reflection of what really goes on in Africa, writes Lee Mwiti.

Tags: united states, africa, wikileaks

WikiLeaks cables are dispatches from a beleaguered America in imperial retreat

There's more to the WikiLeaks dispatches than leaks. Look behind them, at the writers, and you see the loyal rearguard of America: an imperial power in retreat.

Tags: united states, wikileaks

Canadians, road signs, censors and leash laws

The National Portrait Gallery's succumbing to pressure to remove a video from an art exhibit is highly disappointing. Worse than disappointing are the politicians and self-appointed censors who are pressing the gallery to dismantle the entire exhibit and are using the controversy to threaten the museum's public funding.

Tags: united states, wikileaks

WikiLeaks and the sham of “public diplomacy”

As the latest WikiLeaks revelations have shown, when diplomatic cables are made public they are often far from diplomatic. In fact, they aren't even good journalism.

Tags: united states, us department of state, wikileaks

What NATO looks like in the age of European austerity

Amid budget cutbacks and a 'diminishing appetite' for war, Europe has turned increasingly to the 'soft power' assignments like training and institution-building.

Tags: soft power, europe, nato

Mega Arts Festival in Delhi to Highlight India’s Soft Power

Beginning today the capital city plays host to a mega arts fest that brings together exponents from the performing arts, films, poetry, literature and cuisine, all aimed at making Delhi a tourism hub as well as to draw attention to India's soft power through the arts.

Tags: soft power, india, art diplomacy

WikiLeaks and laying bare diplomatic secrets

Soon, after the shock of the WikiLeaks leaks fades away in the media and international concern, and the astonishment wanes, the reality of the evidence and the public documentation of secret diplomacy will remain a meaningful event, at present and in the future.

Tags: wikileaks

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