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 Obama-Castro Handshake
During the memorial service for former South African president Nelson Mandela, as tens of thousands gathered in the FNB stadium in Johannesburg and millions more watched on television, an entirely different story emerged: the ten-second interaction between U.S. President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro.
Cubans Fall Head Over Heels For South Korean Soaps
For the past three decades, Brazilian “telenovelas” have helped Cubans forget their litany of woes for an hour a day. But today, dozens of South Korean soap operas are earning wide audiences. Following in the footsteps of South Korean films and K-pop, “doramas” — South Korean soaps dubbed into Spanish — first appeared on Cuban televisions earlier this year.
Intercommunal Violence Continues In The Central African Republic
The Central African Republic, already one of the poorest nations in the world, is descending into chaos. In the capital city of Bangui alone, hundreds have died and nearly 200,000 people have been driven from their homes as a result of continual clashes between government forces, civilian militias, African peacekeepers, and the French military.
Viet Nam And Japan Pledge To Strengthen Strategic Partnership
The Prime Ministers of Viet Nam and Japan reaffirmed yesterday their commitment to comprehensive development of the strategic partnership between both countries. In talks held between Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe, the commitment found concrete expression in the latter's announcement of an official development assistance package of around US$1 billion (JPY1 trillion) for the second half of the 2013 fiscal year.
Are Chinese People The World’s Most Materialistic?
A recent survey conducted by global research firm IPSOS across 20 countries, found that a whopping 71 percent of Chinese say they gauge their success by the things they own. That’s significantly higher than it was for every other country included in the survey.
#NotYourAsianSidekick Lashes Out At Stereotypes
A Twitter conversation on Asian American feminism using the hashtag #NotYourAsianSidekick quickly became a global discussion aimed at breaking silence around issues faced by Asian communities. Writer Suey Park launched the hashtag, which was used nearly 50,000 times in less than a day.
After the UN Internet Resolution: A Long Way To Rebuilding Trust
Surveillance and spying on world leaders and the general public across the globe have crushed people’s trust in the Internet and other high-tech equipment. More importantly, these actions have infringed on human rights. There was skepticism last week when the UN General Assembly’s Human Rights Committee issued a resolution to protect the people’s right to privacy against massive and unlawful surveillance.
Lawmakers Fault BBC Leaders Over Severance Pay
An oversight committee of the British Parliament sharply criticized top BBC executives and trustees, including the corporation’s former director general, Mark Thompson, now the president and chief executive of The New York Times Company, judging that their award of severance payments to departing managers appeared to be part of a culture of cronyism.
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