Meet Naathapit "Otto" Lamsam, CPD's Programming and Operations Assistant

This feature was included in CPD's 2023–2024 Annual Report. 

Naathapit "Otto" Lamsam is CPD's Programming and Operations Assistant and a USC Master of Public Diplomacy Candidate

I became interested in public diplomacy during my time serving as a conscript in the Royal Thai Army. I wasn't aware of the meaning of the term at the time, but my experience managing social media communications for my brigade has made me interested in how government entities brand themselves to the general public. Not long after I finished my service, the term "soft power" became a trending topic in Thailand. Every Thai news outlet then was talking about how Thailand should bolster its various cultural assets to the rest of the world. This kickstarted my research into what public diplomacy is, which quickly led me to discover USC Annenberg's Master of Public Diplomacy program and the Center on Public Diplomacy. I had always been interested in international relations, but I wanted to find a program that focuses on the communication aspect of it. 

During my past year as a Master of Public Diplomacy student and an intern at CPD, I was able to explore the different ways public diplomacy can be put into action. A highlight of this was being part of the team that brought the live performance of Defining Courage to USC as part of CPD's Stroum and Arts Diplomacy series. The performance was an example of how there are still lesser known American stories that can be told to the international audience.

Another highlight was being able to help organize the CPD Summer Institute. I was fortunate enough to sit-in on the sessions and learn new skills, such as prompt-engineering generative AI to tailor it to public diplomacy-related tasks. I thank my colleagues at CPD for taking me under their wing and showing me how multi-faceted and ever-changing the field of public diplomacy is.