Chinese Public Diplomacy: Winning Hearts and Minds Abroad or at Home?

The increased tempo of Beijing’s public diplomacy activities in recent years, from Confucius Institutes to the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, have received poor to mediocre reviews internationally. Expensive projects have been received positively by the Chinese public, but have done little to reverse China’s continued international image problems. Although a narrative of crisis pervades international scholarship on Chinese public diplomacy, there appears little evidence to suggest that Beijing is concerned. Read More

Does Technology Persuade (Part II): Looking to Media Practices for Insight

How does what we know about information and communication technology (ICTs) and persuasion help practitioners makes sense of how to integrate technology into the mission of public diplomacy? We know that ICTs can be: A) Persuasive by its ability to facilitate or enable other attempts at persuasion. B) Persuasive as a transmission vehicle (the medium endows some form of credibility or legitimacy). C) Persuasive as a kind of context for communication - an intermediary - that enables the influence potential of social ties. Read More

Malala Is A Rare Leader—But Pakistanis Aren’t Following

If you’re of Pakistani origin, as I am, and if you long to see that embattled country right itself, the saga of Malala Yousafzai can drive you to tears. Not just tears of joy for the way she was a favorite for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize. Not just tears for how she captured the imagination of Westerners who want to believe the best about Pakistan’s hopes and prospects. Read More

U.S. Public Diplomacy in Africa: Two Public Diplomacies

On Sunday, September 22, 2013, al-Shabab, a Somali-based al Qaeda cell unleashed gunfire on a Kenyan shopping mall, murdering 72 people and injuring over 200 others. The deadliest terrorist attack in Kenya since the 1998 bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, the Kenyan mall shooting temporarily brought Africa to the forefront of U.S. news organizations like CNN, MSNBC, and Fox, who typically ignore the continent. Read More

Does Technology Persuade? Questioning Core Assumptions in U.S. Public Diplomacy (PART I)

Should public diplomacy policy-makers turn to digital diplomacy tools for the future of practice? I ask this question to provoke some reflection among public diplomacy watchers beyond the quick criticism of tweeting ambassadors and social media campaigns. There seems to be some debate over whether or not digital media practices represent the future of US public diplomacy. Read More

Russia’s Regional Militarism and the Case for Public Diplomacy

TALLINN --- Estonia’s capital seems a peaceful place. Tallinn’s cobblestoned streets are lined by medieval walls and towers, and tourists stroll amid churches and coffee shops. But Estonians live in a rough neighborhood; their eastern neighbor is Russia, which has never fully accepted that Estonia prefers the company of EU and NATO countries. Read More

Hassan Rouhani: Refreshing Iran’s Image?

It is only in working democracies that an election would mean a real fresh start for the citizens of a country. This seems to be true about Iran. Since the election of the moderate Hassan Rouhani in June 2013, the voters inside the country and statesmen across the world have expected a relatively new Iran. Read More

Romania Wants To Become a Public Diplomacy Player

BUCHAREST --- When public diplomacy issues are discussed, focus tends to be on major powers that are particularly active in this field – the United States, China, Israel, the United Kingdom, Russia, and a few others. But Romania has now announced that it wants to join the big guys’ club, and it is taking purposeful steps toward doing so. Read More

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