The United States discreetly supported the creation of a website and SMS service that was, basically, a Cuban version of Twitter, the Associated Press reported Thursday. ZunZuneo, as it was called, permitted Cubans to broadcast short text messages to each other. At its peak, ZunZuneo had 40,000 users.

Tags: cuba, united states, twitter, social media, usaid, sms, zunzuneo, cia, covert operations, propaganda, digital diplomacy, diplomacy, cuban twitter, revolution, internet, raul castro, embargo, internet freedom

They are known as Afghanistan's "Generation America" — young people who've grown up with American forces in their midst — or at least in their country. And now they represent a vital force for their nation's future, as Afghanistan chooses a successor to President Hamid Karzai.

Tags: afghanistan, generation america, hamid karzai, south asia, terrorism, al qaeda, taliban, youth, united states, asia 21 young leaders network, elections, democracy

The world loves pandas. The enigmatic, retiring and adorable creatures have become a global symbol of international friendship since China first began sending them as gifts to foreign countries in the 1950s. This adorable animal returned to the spotlight during Chinese President Xi Jinping's recent visit to Europe.

Tags: panda diplomacy, china, belgium, xi jinping, pandas, europe, peng liyuan, pairi daiza

Canada is widely hailed as a multicultural success state. As the first country to adopt multiculturalism as official policy, and with high rates of integration among immigrant populations, it is often looked at as a model to be followed. Recently, though, the French province of Quebec has dented this global reputation with the introduction of Bill 60, popularly known as the Quebec Charter of Values.

Tags: canada, quebec, francophone, charter of values, niqab, hijab, islam, values, multiculturalism, north america, Cultural Diplomacy, discrimination, stereotypes

For years, American outreach to Cuba came in many forms: mafiosos, poison-drenched wetsuits, toxic cigars. But today we learned of a new tactic in the campaign to undercut the Castro regime: a stealth effort by the U.S. government's humanitarian aid agency to create a Cuban version of Twitter.

Tags: cuba, united states, usaid, fidel castro, communism, embargo, twitter, history, zunzuneo, dissidents, propaganda, government pd, cia, bay of pigs, miami, south florida, raul castro, cuban-americans, diaspora

"I am willing to show #Asian community I care by introducing the Ching-Chong Ding-Dong Foundation for Sensitivity to Orientals or Whatever," read a tweet from “The Colbert Report”last Thursday — in what New Yorker magazine commentator Jay Caspian Kang called a “comedic sin of delivering a punch line without its setup.”

Tags: social media, twitter, activism, stephen colbert, malcolm gladwell, networks, media, celebrity diplomacy, kony2012, suey park, digital diplomacy

Having recently returned from the International Studies Association (ISA) conference in Toronto, I wanted to share some thoughts with the PD community, and particularly the scholars who for some reason or other couldn’t attend.

Tags: ISA, scholarship, public diplomacy, communication, soft power, relational pd, new public diplomacy, public diplomacy 2.0, social media, twitter, pd evaluation, international studies association

The Turkish government late Thursday ordered Internet service providers to restore access to Twitter, lifting a two-week ban on the microblogging site a day after the nation's highest court ruled it illegal and an infringement on free speech.

Tags: social media, twitter, censorship, turkey, europe, recep tayyip erdogan, corruption, turkish telecommunications directorate, constitutional court, youtube, google, internet, digital diplomacy