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.
The Audacity of Obama’s Big Book Promo
As has been remarked, U.S. public diplomacy in the age of Obama often amounts to the same thing as publicity for the President himself, with American institutions serving as megaphones for his political message.
U.S. Department of State Announces Public Diplomacy Envoy Cal Ripken, Jr.
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and Ripken Baseball Inc. announced today that Baseball Hall-of-Famer and Public Diplomacy Envoy Cal Ripken, Jr. and Major League Baseball standout Brady Anderson, a former center fielder with the Baltimore Orioles, will travel to Japan November 8-16, 2011 as sports diplomats.
Qatar Outreach Widens With Ping Pong ‘Diplomacy’
And the Gulf state of Qatar — an obscure patch of sand in 1971 — is emerging as an international sports giant with a relentless appetite for headline-grabbing events, including hosting an updated edition of table tennis-as-political icebreaker.
Medvedev tries branding the way to an IFC
The concept of “nation branding” is well established, and it’s clear what Medvedev has in mind, but it’s equally clear that calling an expression of high culture such as the Bolshoi Theater a “brand” like some commercial product merely demeans it.
Al Jazeera at Fifteen Years
Public diplomacy received considerable attention, given that Al Jazeera’s creation was a public diplomacy effort by Qatar’s rulers to increase international recognition of the country’s aspirations in the Arab world and beyond.
Harper takes ‘soft power’ cred to G20
Canada will be able to "punch above its weight" at the G20 summit as a result of the country's reputation as a strong performer during the recession, say some observers.
China Says No Talking Tibet as Confucius Funds U.S. Universities
China is expanding its presence on U.S. campuses, seeking to promote its culture and history and meet a growing global demand to learn its language.
Recent Blogs of Note
An interesting blog post from the U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy discusses Creative Learning, an organization that encourages Americans to become “unofficial Ambassadors” to different Islamic nations. Another blog...demonstrates the impact social media can have on public diplomacy and how the use of the internet makes public diplomacy very effective in its distribution.
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