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.
Morocco, Third Most Attractive Touristic Brand in Africa
With a slightly strong ‘A’ grade, the kingdom is ranked 31st globally in the ranking conducted by Bloom Consulting, a Spain-based consulting firm specializing in nation branding and destination branding with offices in Madrid, Lisbon and Sao Paulo.
In Defence of Soft Power: Why a “War” on Terror Will Never Win
The recent rise in global terrorism is alarming, but it also reaffirms the failure of our purely hard military approach to counter the phenomenon.
When Culture’s Soft Power Confronts Hard Limits
Music- and art-based outreach programs have been successful in combating extremism in cities like Minneapolis, but they're facing a roadblock. Stringent visa standards from the State Department are blocking many foreign artists from entering the country, and harming communities that need these programs the most.
Hillary Clinton Courts Silicon Valley
Tech execs paid $245 to hear Hillary Clinton keynote a women’s tech conference in Silicon Valley Tuesday, but Clinton has as much to learn from her audience as they have to gain from her. As the former secretary of state prepares for a second presidential run, she’s hoping Silicon Valley will rub off on her – and fill her campaign coffers.
Rebirth of the Cool: American Music Makes a Return to Iran
The concert last Friday was the first by an American musician in Iran since the 1979 revolution. Officials from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance sat in the front row, nodding their heads to renditions of tunes by Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock and Mr. Belden’s own compositions. The Iranians who filled the 1,200-seat theater clapped and cheered.
Diplomats on Twitter: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
In the 1840s, after receiving his first telegram, then British foreign minister Lord Palmerston reportedly exclaimed “My God, this is the end of diplomacy!” Fast forward 170 years.(...) Diplomacy is not dead, but new messaging tools like Twitter are threatening to upend a tradition of carefully worded statecraft and protocol.
Brand Japan, Brand Abe: A Clash of Narratives
In foreign policy today—especially the open-sourced, open-marketed version we now know as modern public diplomacy, small is beautiful, nimble is necessary, and bold can be risky. The Abe Doctrine combines two slogans (a) Beautiful Japan with (b) Bold Japan.
Data-Driven Diplomacy: A Practical Guide
Diplomats and scholars now have the opportunity to gather and analyze vast quantities of data. Data has allowed us to explore how social media users responded differently to a variety of international broadcasters in the wake of the use of chemical weapons in Syria and the actions of conservative cyber-activists in Iran.
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