For China, tourism is a tool. The country sees it as a facilitator of people-to-people communication and a way to spread international friendship. In other words: soft power. [...] However, in the discussions during the evening reception, most participants were first asking questions and offering stories about different forms of outrageous behavior seen among Chinese travelers. 

Turkish news channel TRT has signed a new agreement to launch its international news platform, TRT World, on 10 additional satellites to expand its reach and viewership. [...] TRT World will be able to be viewed all over the world in new territories via Turksat and 10 additional major broadcast satellites operating across Europe, Middle East, Asia Pacific, Africa, Australia and America. 

There has been much misinformation about Islam. Reports in Western media tend to perpetuate stereotypes that Islam is a violent religion and Muslim women are oppressed. Popular films like “American Sniper” reduce places like Iraq to dusty war zones, devoid of any culture or history. Fears and anxiety manifest themselves in Islamophobic actions such as burning mosques or even attacking people physically.

Chinese President Xi Jinping’s message to the newly established China Global Television Network sounds simple enough. It’s one he’s repeated over and over to state media during his nearly five years in power. “Tell China’s story well,” he said in a congratulatory letter published by the broadcaster on New Year’s Eve, the day the organization launched. 

In the last month of President Barack Obama’s two terms, he is focused on the same foreign country when he began his presidency: Japan. [...] Eight years later, Tuesday, President Obama and Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stood together at the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, to honor the sacrifices of Americans killed during the Japanese attack on U.S. warships 75 years ago.