CPD Director delivers Keynote address at Journalism Conference in Melbourne

CPD Director Philip Seib delivered the opening keynote entitled "Transnational Journalism, Public Diplomacy, and Virtual States" at a July 2009 conference sponsored by the International Communication Association and the University of Melbourne. The theme of the conference which was held on July 16-17 was "Journalism in the 21st Century: Between Globalization and National Identity."

In his keynote, Seib examines the spectrum of media diplomacy with particular emphasis on the Al Jazeera channels as exemplars of the marriage between journalism and public diplomacy.

"The media are no longer just the media," said Seib. "At least in some cases, they are not only the tools of public diplomacy but also political forces in their own right with their own points of view that they present to international publics. Scholars, government officials, and others might contemplate this broadened media role when defining the evolving craft of public diplomacy and when devising public diplomacy strategies."

To read the full transcript of Seib's keynote speech, click here.

To download audio of the address in MP3 format, click here.