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.
Tehran-Tokyo Ties to be Promoted
Tehran and Tokyo emphasize they are resolute to expand bilateral ties in economy and among parliamentarians. Chief of Cultural Commission in Iran’s Parliament Gholam Ali Haddad Adel meeting with Japanese Ambassador to Tehran Akio Shirota on Monday asserted considering historic and cultural relations of Iran and Japan they must promote ties in politic, culture and economy between the two governments and parliaments...Akio Shirota on his part said Japan’s government is resolute to lift cooperation with Tehran and that bilateral relations must also spread to cultural and social sections.
Turkish Thinkers’ Armenia Apology
An internet petition has been launched in Turkey, apologising for the "great catastrophe of 1915" when hundreds of thousands of Ottoman Armenians died...The petition - the first of its kind - was initiated by prominent Turkish academics and newspaper columnists. They say they want to challenge the official denial and provoke discussion in Turkish society about what happened.
Saudi Kingdom Continues to Export Radical Wahhabism
The intelligence agencies, the Department of Defense, the State Department, and the US Agency for International Development are implementing various efforts to identify, monitor, and counter the support and funding of the global propagation of Islamic extremism. The intelligence agencies and DOD are carrying out identification and monitoring efforts, primarily in counterintelligence and force protection.
US Gives Digital Diplomacy a Chance, on YouTube
Some may say it is slow to change, but the US Department of State has plunged into the digital world with a virtual briefing on YouTube -- so far with what might diplomatically be called mixed reviews. Launched in October by spokesman Sean McCormack, "Briefing 2.0" allows "citizen journalists," students, researchers and other bloggers to get face time with the US government on foreign policy questions while bypassing traditional media.
How Political Commentators Can Destroy Our E-Democracy Dreams
Colleen Graffy is a State Department executive in the public diplomacy branch. Basically, public diplomacy is the "hearts and minds" sector of diplomacy, the kind that deals more with everyday citizens than with heads of state. So her job naturally includes a lot of outreach. Graffy has been on Twitter as @Colleen_Graffy since November 17...Last week, Al Kamen, an op-ed columnist at the Washington Post, poked fun at Graffy's use of Twitter...Kamen sees Graffy's behavior as unbecoming of a government representative.
Kyrgyz Audiences Demand End To Radio Silence
It's now two months since the Kyrgyz National Television and Radio Corporation (UTRK) stopped broadcasting the radio and television programming of Radio Azattyk, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz-language service...The crisis in relations between UTRK and Radio Azattyk began on October 1, when the UTRK management "suddenly" lost the prerecorded videotape of that evening's "Inconvenient Questions."
Iran will invest in Persian-speaking countries
Managing director of Scientific and Cultural Publishing House Ali Zarei Najafdari made the remarks at the threshold of Seminar on Afghan Reconstruction. He compared economic development to the cultural development. Underlining religious, cultural and lingual commonalities with Afghanistan, he said, “We will promote our cultural relations with Afghan cultural centers based on an accurate planning.”
Japan Cracking US Pop Culture Hegemony
Just two decades ago, Japan's image in the world was of an economic juggernaut, challenging America and other industrialized nations with its push for dominance in everything from microchips to supercomputers. Discussion of Japanese culture typically referenced the traditional and offbeat worlds of, say, Kabuki or sumo...Japan is quietly emerging as a global trendsetter in pop culture, as well as in green technology and environmental practices.
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