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.

Dismantling the Foreign Service

The Foreign Service, our country’s irreplaceable asset for understanding and interacting with a complex and dangerous world, is facing perhaps its greatest crisis. President Trump’s draconian budget cuts for the State Department and his dismissive attitude toward our diplomats and diplomacy itself threaten to dismantle a great foreign service just when we need it most.

Tags: government pd, foreign service, state department, u.s. department of state, american diplomats, diplomats, united states

Frustrated Foreign Leaders Bypass Washington in Search of Blue State Allies

Nearly a year into the Trump presidency, countries around the world are scrambling to adapt as the White House has struggled to fill key government positions, scaled back the State Department and upended old alliances. Now some nations are finding that even if they are frustrated by President Trump's Washington, they can still prosper from robust relations with the California Republic and a constellation of like-minded U.S. cities, some of which are bigger than European countries.

Tags: city diplomacy, subnational diplomacy, Jerry Brown, eric garcetti, united states, california

What Hillary Knew About Putin's Propaganda Machine

Russian disinformation around Ukraine set the stage for the Kremlin’s election meddling here. Clinton saw it coming, but couldn't stop it.

Tags: propaganda, disinformation, russian propaganda, Russian Disinformation, ukraine, russia, hillary clinton, united states, vladimir putin

Russian Legislators Pass Law Targeting International Media as ‘Foreign Agents’

Russian lawmakers voted unanimously Wednesday to pass legislation allowing authorities to force any foreign media organization to register as a "foreign agent" under penalty of fines or a possible ban on operations in Russia. The legislation, passed 414 to 0 in retaliation for the registration of English-language Russian news network RT under a similar statute in the United States, was drafted hastily and is likely to be signed into law by Russian President Vladi­mir Putin by the end of the month.

Tags: international broadcasting, RT, russia, united states

Report Finds Fewer New International Students on US College Campuses

The flow of new international students entering U.S. colleges and universities shrank last year and has continued to decline this fall on many campuses, breaking a recent trend of growth, a nonprofit group said Monday. The data from the Institute of International Education are likely to fuel questions about how the divisive 2016 presidential campaign and U.S. policy shifts since President Trump took office have influenced the global academic market.

Tags: education exchange, academic exchange, international students, college, american universities, united states, institute of international education

RT Agrees To Register as an Agent of the Russian Government

RT, a Moscow-headquartered website and television channel that the U.S. government says is a propaganda outlet for the Kremlin, will register with U.S. authorities as a foreign agent, its editor said Thursday. The registration follows a months-long back-and-forth between RT and the Justice Department over whether it was required by U.S. law to register as an agent of the Russian government.

Tags: international broadcasting, RT, russia, propaganda, united states

Top U.S. Diplomat Blasts Trump Administration for ‘Decapitation’ of State Department Leadership

Two former ambassadors have rebuked the White House in an increasingly vocal backlash against its efforts to sideline the State Department. “Our leadership ranks are being depleted at a dizzying speed,” Barbara Stephenson, a former U.S. ambassador to Panama and current president of the American Foreign Service Association, the union for foreign service officers, wrote in a letter for the December 2017 issue of the Foreign Service Journal.

Tags: government pd, state department, u.s. department of state, Donald Trump, united states

Can This DC TV Show Win the Messaging War Against Russia?

 It’s 1 pm, and Current Time America is on the air. The program is one of two stateside productions of Current Time, a 24-7 Russian-language TV channel headquartered in Prague. But this isn’t some Euro import or a start-up aimed at Russian expats—it’s run by the U.S. government. Launched in February, the project is a collaboration between two venerable broadcasters, Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. After Russia annexed Crimea, says Daisy Sindelar, the network’s director, “we realized that we were losing a messaging war.”

Tags: international broadcasting, current time, voice of america, radio free europe/radio liberty, messaging, strategic messaging, information warfare

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