Latest Must-Reads in Public Diplomacy: May 2026

CPD Faculty Fellow Bruce Gregory has compiled a list of the latest must-reads in public diplomacy. Known affectionately at CPD as "Bruce's List," this list is a compilation of books, journal articles, papers and blog posts on a wide variety of PD topics. Highlights from the latest list include a new book on the growing importance of diplomacy’s public dimension, the evolution of public diplomacy in South Korea, public diplomacy in the Arab world after 9/11, and more. 

Kathy R. Fitzpatrick and Bruce Gregory, eds., Diplomacy’s Public Turn: Prospects for Theory and Practice, (Palgrave Macmillan, 2026).  Fitzpatrick (University of South Florida) and Gregory (George Washington University) invited thought leaders and innovators to examine what next generation researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and citizens should understand about diplomacy’s deeper engagement in interconnected societies and the growing importance of diplomacy’s public dimension. In short, timely chapters, contributors explore diplomacy’s mid-21st century turn in state-society relations, a redefined and turbulent operational landscape, emerging technologies, new directions in academic study, and pathways to innovation in public diplomacy’s institutions, tools, and methods. A video of the Public Diplomacy Council of America’s panel discussion of the book, May 4, 2026, is available here.

Yun Kyung Kim, “A Thematic Framework for the Evolution of Public Diplomacy in South Korea: Analysis of Political Goals and Domestic Influences,” CPD Perspectives, USC Center on Public Diplomacy, March 2026. In this perceptive and well-organized study, Kim (Korea Foundation) examines the evolution of South Korea’s public diplomacy through the lens of historical eras and thematic categories. Following a brief overview of public diplomacy activities in the late 19th century, Kim divides South Korea’s modern public diplomacy into five phases: nation building and the quest for legitimacy (1948-1960), economic development and democratization (1961-1980s), growth of formal public diplomacy structures and activities (1990s-2010s), positioning Korea as a middle power and soft power player (2010s-2022), and a global pivotal state and values diplomacy (2022-2024). Within and across these historical eras, Kim weaves themes that connect Korea’s public diplomacy to internal political dynamics (e.g., structural changes and public sentiment) and to advancing political and diplomatic objectives (e.g., international legitimacy, economic development, securing alliances, and regional influence). The paper is a valuable contribution to the literature on South Korea’s public diplomacy.

Nathaniel Greenberg, American Public Diplomacy in Arabic After 9/11, (Columbia University Press, 2026).  Greenberg (George Mason University) writes about what he calls “the reboot of American public diplomacy” in the Arab and Muslim world after the attacks of 9/11. His narrative illuminates how diplomats, private individuals, governments, and civil society institutions, in the US and abroad, sought to shape public perceptions in the so-called “second front in the War on Terror.” Greenberg grounds his story in US public diplomacy’s patterns of practice developed during the Cold War. Based on interviews and research on Arabic and English language secondary sources and archival records, his book is both a history and an assessment of how ‘the relative paucity of US information strategy” in the post-9/11 era compares with “the ingenuity of America’s Cold War information warriors.” The book focuses on US-funded exchange programs, US government Arabic language media services, and two US-funded media content providers, Layalina productions and America Abroad Media. Many US practitioners will find much that is familiar from their lived experiences. For Greenberg, post-9/11 public diplomacy “raises fundamental questions about the ideological prerogatives of State Department officials, the relationship between public and private actors in the sphere of foreign communications, and the extent to which foreign propaganda, in any form, can be an effective tool for influencing public opinion.” A more promising model for American public diplomacy’s future, he concludes, lies in education and exchange programs, and in the prioritization and maintenance of their alumni networks. (Suggested by Nick Cull)

Paul Kruchoski, “Leading from the Edge: How Diplomats are Actually Using AI,”  May-June, The Foreign Service Journal. Kruchoski (Guidehouse, former director, State Department Office of Policy, Planning, and Resources for Public Diplomacy), writes that US diplomacy benefits from AI tools practitioners have, not from costly, custom-built applications. Citing practical examples, he examines two patterns of innovative practice available in foreign ministries now: replication, deploying standardized AI processes across organizations, and adaptation, innovation through remixing ideas and tools for local contexts. Leaders should create conditions where practitioners can safely innovate and build, test, and share their own AI tools “within appropriate guardrails.” Practitioners learned AI from each other, Kruchoski argues, not from AI training courses. Cultural barriers remain in foreign ministries, but AI is changing diplomacy. A key issue going forward is whether the time AI gives back is used for “the relationship building, the strategic thinking, [and] the judgment calls that no algorithm can replicate” or for productivity gains that get “captured by the institution, not the practitioner.”

Vivian Walker and Bruce Gregory, “Turmoil in U.S. Public Diplomacy: Scholars Share Deep Concerns,”  April 2026, Public Diplomacy Council of America.

Matthew Asada, “The Power of the Expo and Pavilion Design at World’s Fairs,”  CPD Blog, USC Center on Public Diplomacy.

Jian Wang (University of Southern California), “Rethinking the Public in Public Diplomacy.”

Nicholas J. Cull (University of Southern California), “Reputational Security on the Edge: Diplomacy’s Public Turn.”

Vivian Walker, “Strategic Impatience and the Undoing of American Soft Power,”  April 8, 2026, CPD Blog, USC Center on Public Diplomacy.

Rhonda Zaharna, “Boundary Spanners of Hope in Public Diplomacy,”  March 11, 2026, CPD Blog, USC Center on Public Diplomacy

Andrew Dubbins, “Meet the Authors: Jan Melissen, HwaJung Kim, & Githma Chandrasekara on Home Engagement in Diplomacy,”  March 18, 2026, USC Center on Public Diplomacy.

The full edition of Bruce's List can be found here.