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.

When power is in the balance

Few people have influenced the contemporary debate over the contested notion of power in recent years as much as Joseph S. Nye. A long time Harvard Professor, Nye served in the US government, and combines the insights of a practitioner and scholar to examine the nature and uses of power in a changing world.

Tags: soft power, public opinion, foreign policy, joseph nye

Turkey’s neighborhood troubles

At Erdogan's initiative, Syria and Turkey in 2009 abolished visas for their citizens traveling between the countries, held joint cabinet meetings and conducted small-scale military exercises. Turkish exports to Syria are booming. This type of integration has been the cornerstone of Turkey's much-heralded "zero problems with neighbors" policy.

Tags: public opinion, turkey, crisis coverage, syria, arab world

Public Diplomacy with Chinese Characteristics

China’s quest for “soft power” in recent years is a direct consequence of its dramatic economic transformation over the last several decades. It is now an all-too-familiar story of how China is vigorously pursuing image-building efforts, from the global expansion of its media properties to the rapid growth of the Confucius Institutes.

Tags: china, soft power, Cultural Diplomacy, media, public opinion

PM: ‘All faces’ of UK to be on show

Britons have a "lot to look forward to" next year following the successful "dry run" of the royal wedding in London, David Cameron said. The Prime Minister said both the London Olympics and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in 2012 would be a "fantastic opportunity" to "show all faces of Britain, both modern and traditional".

Tags: Cultural Diplomacy, united kingdom, image building, olympics, branding, image

Concert in Gaza Leaves Echoes of Normalcy

Daniel Barenboim, the Israeli conductor, led an orchestra of two dozen elite musicians — volunteers from the Berlin Philharmonic, the Berlin Staatskapelle, the Orchestra of La Scala in Milan, the Vienna Philharmonic and the Orchestre de Paris — into Gaza on Tuesday.

Tags: Cultural Diplomacy, middle east, non-state actors, non-state pd, gaza

Anti-US feeling lingers with Bin Laden

Osama bin Laden was a powerful man, although he used it for vicious ends. He had hard power, the power of explosives and kamikaze strikes, but he also had soft power, the ability to turn young people into ruthless suicide bombers. The most fearful part of Bin Laden's strength is not his unpredictable way to launch terrorist attack, but the charisma that united anti-US forces from all over the world.

Tags: china, united states, soft power, middle east, public opinion, terrorism, osama bin laden

Amid Arab Uprisings, Bin Laden No Longer the Model

"It was the soft power of Ghoneim and his associates, not bin Laden's crude power, that led to regime change" in Egypt says Khalil el-Anani, referring to the former Google executive who became the face of the youth-driven protests in January.

Tags: egypt, crisis coverage, google, osama bin laden

DEMOCRACY STRIKES BACK: A FRENCH VIEW ON AMERICA AFTER BIN LADEN

Opinion: The killing of Osama bin Laden marks a unique melding of American hard and soft power, and a boost (with legs) for President Obama

Tags: europe, france, osama bin laden, al qaeda, arab revolutions

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