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.

Information Mercenaries: The New Soldiers Of Fortune

Say that you work for a private security company (PSC) and most people think one of two things: Either you are a mall cop. Or you work for Blackwater, the infamous private security firm, and you go around shooting people.

Tags: blackwater, hard power, intelligence, iraq, mercenaries, military diplomacy, private security company, public diplomacy, security

Turkish President Rejects Facebook, YouTube Ban Over Wiretaps

Turkey's president on Friday ruled out any ban on Facebook and YouTube after Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said the sites could be shut to stop his foes anonymously posting audio recordings purportedly exposing corruption in his inner circle.

Tags: authoritarianism, digital diplomacy, facebook, intelligence, social media, surveillance, tayyip recep erdogan, turkey, united states, youtube

U.N. Voices Concern Over Reports Of Excessive Force In Venezuela

A group of United Nations human rights experts voiced concern on Thursday over reports of excessive use of force against protesters and journalists during the recent wave of antigovernment demonstrations that has spread across the country.

Tags: conflict, human rights, nicolas maduro, protest, south america, united nations, united nations high commissioner for human rights, venezuela

Francis Has Changed American Catholics' Attitudes, But Not Their Behavior, A Poll Finds

One year into the era of Pope Francis, a new poll has found that a broad majority of American Catholics say he represents a major change in direction for the church, and a change for the better. But his popularity has not inspired more Americans to attend Mass, go to confession or identify as Catholic — a finding that suggests that so far, the much-vaunted “Francis effect” is influencing attitudes, but not behavior.

Tags: catholicism, faith diplomacy, pew research center, pope francis, public opinion, united states

Venezuela's 'Color Revolution?' The Complexity Of Wearing Red

The color red sets off alarm bells these days in this western Venezuelan city, where anti-government protests sparked nationwide demonstrations that have endured since early February. Save for the red stripe on the Venezuelan flag, which also has yellow and blue, here anything of that color looks suspiciously allusive to the late president Hugo Chávez, who popularized red among his supporters as the official color of his self-styled “Bolivarian” revolution.

Tags: bolivarian revolution, chavista, hugo chavez, nicolas maduro, politics, protest, venezuela

Ambassador Kennedy Urges Japan, South Korea To Mend Ties

U.S. Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy on Thursday called on Japan and South Korea to mend their soured relations over a territorial dispute and different perceptions of history. “I think that the two countries really should and will take a lead in this process, and the United States, being a close ally of both of them, is happy to help in any way that we can,” Kennedy said in an interview aired by NHK.

Tags: asia pacific, caroline kennedy, foreign policy, japan, shinzo abe, south korea, united states, yasukuni shrine

The Folly Of Striking One Country To Send Signals To Another

In a thoughtful post on Ukraine and Vladimir Putin's decision to invade it, Ross Douthat suggests that the incursion was plausibly connected to White House fumbling in Syria. He begins with a nod to those who disagree. "Many writers I read and respect are dismissive of the idea that concepts like 'toughness' and 'credibility' and 'resolve' meaningfully shape the behavior of foreign actors," he writes.

Tags: barack obama, crimea, hard power, history, russia, soft power, syria, ukraine, united states, vladimir putin

How Qatar Lost The Middle East

"The good times are over," a Doha-based diplomat told me glumly last week, as if foretelling the political earthquake about to hit Qatar. On March 5, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Bahrain announced in a joint statement that they were withdrawing their ambassadors from Doha -- a move that escalates their long-running feud with the tiny, gas-rich emirate to its most fraught point in recent memory.

Tags: al jazeera, gulf cooperation council, middle east, muslim brotherhood, qatar, saudi arabia, united arab emirates

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