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.
KOICA to Establish Development Think Tank in Myanmar
Emerging donor South Korea has high hopes for Myanmar, and the latest step is to establish a new think tank to assist in policy, capacity building and research efforts in the country, as well as boost Seoul’s own development footprint in Southeast Asia.
Korean Drama Fever Hits US
Korean TV dramas have been popular across Asia for the past decade, with series like “Autumn in My Heart,” “Jewel in the Palace” and the most recent “My Love from the Star” all being major hits. Now, Korean dramas are paving the way across the US, triggered by new platforms such as on-demand Internet streaming media.
New Poll Indicates Palestinian Public Opinion on Unity and the War on Gaza
A poll conducted after Israel's latest military operation in Gaza has shown that nearly half of the respondents expected Palestinian reconciliation to fail, despite 87.6% assessing the degree of unity among Palestinian factions to be "good" during the offensive.
Islamic State's War Propaganda for Women Attracts Social Media Users
A user's recent social media posts read like a movie: A woman trained as a doctor travels to a war zone. She falls in love and gets pregnant. She suffers the inevitable reality of war in Syria. The social media user posts on Twitter and Facebook links to a Tumbler blog titled "Diary Of A Traveler".
Australia Raids Thwarted ISIS Beheading Plot
The raids involving 800 federal and state police officers — the largest in the country's history — came in response to intelligence that an Islamic State group leader in the Middle East was calling on Australian supporters to kill, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said. Abbott was asked about reports that the detainees were planning to behead a random person in Sydney.
Mistura Food Fest Gives Peruvian Cuisine a Chance to Shine
The gastronomic fair is part of the Peruvian "food boom" that's put Lima on the map for epicurean excellence,according to The Wall Street Journal and others. The festival has grown from just 30,000 attendees back in its first year, 2008, to an estimated 600,000 this year. Indeed, food may be the country's greatest passion.
Korean Port City Hopes Asian Games Will Put It on the Map
For the next two weeks, organizers of the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon are hoping the event will keep plenty of people in the port city, if not draw them from the capital. Incheon, about 25 kilometers west of Seoul and home to three million people, is ready to step out of the shadow of its giant neighbor and make a name for itself by hosting Asia’s biggest sporting event starting Friday.
The Big Stick Behind Google’s Soft Power Approach to Europe
In the US, where rules on the disclosure are stricter, technology groups report far higher spending on lobbying. Google, for example, spent $8.85m in the first half of 2014 alone in the US – nearly four times what it said it spent lobbying the EU for the whole of 2013. Google declined to comment on this article. But its efforts in Europe are part of its “soft power” approach towards influencing policy makers.
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