So what does that mean about the influence of Korean culture, the image of Korea and the popularity of Korean artists worldwide? Are the viral videos of PSY a testament to Korean soft power? Or reflective of the changing landscape of new media in which hundreds of millions of netizens decided to share this humorous music video by a ‘funny Asian guy’ with their friends?

Over the past several years, the idea of soft power has gained currency with political theorists. It is a way to describe a nation’s ability to persuade others to do what it wants without the hard power of force, threats or bribery. It includes culture, trade, diplomacy and engagement.

As an indication of how online media are becoming ever more dominant in our world, consider two newspaper front pages (the ink-on-paper versions) on Wednesday, April 24.

Arab governance systems are yet not as transformed as many had hoped. However a new process of shaping Arab public opinion has emerged, facilitated by popular dynamism combined with the Internet and other technological innovations. And this revolution in discourse and communications provides an unprecedented opportunity to confront issues that have bedeviled our relations with the Arab world for decades.

As the U.S. observes the tenth anniversary of the Iraq invasion, a key question remains: Why was there almost no accountability for journalists and pundits who went along with George W. Bush’s deceptions. The answer can be found in the cover-ups of the Reagan-Bush-41 era, writes Robert Parry.

Since 2009, the U.S. Department of State has worked to strengthen and deepen U.S. diplomacy and development around the world through public-private partnerships (PPPs) that leverage creativity and innovation for greater impact. The proactive pursuit of PPPs by the State Department offers tremendous public diplomacy opportunities. To date, the State Department has worked with over 1,100 partners to support key foreign policy objectives.