Today, as the world is going through one of the sharpest crises of international relations in recent years, the Cuban missile crisis — or, as Russians call it, "the Caribbean crisis" — may help us understand some very important things. The most pertinent of these is the escape from "historical inevitability."

The two Koreas briefly exchanged machine-gunfire across the border as speculation swirled about North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, who hasn’t been seen in public for weeks and missed another official gathering Friday.

Could a digitally adept nation change the rules of public engagement and become an influence far beyond their physical and financial resources? Why not? For one thing, the digital diplomacy space needs positive presences. In some ways, it has become a slightly moribund arena, with innovation at a premium. It's a digital cliché, of course, but diplomacy needs its disruptors.

North Korea sent its highest level delegation to South Korea on Saturday and the two sides agreed to reopen dialogue amid a flurry of diplomatic activity which has raised hopes for improved ties between the arch rivals.

Just as the United States has begun an aggressive air campaign against the militants, Richard A. Stengel, the under secretary of state for public diplomacy, believes the United States has no choice but to counter their propaganda with a forceful online response.

A user's recent social media posts read like a movie: A woman trained as a doctor travels to a war zone. She falls in love and gets pregnant. She suffers the inevitable reality of war in Syria.  The social media user posts on Twitter and Facebook links to a Tumbler blog titled "Diary Of A Traveler". 

U.S. Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Richard Stengel says that in the face of strong foreign propaganda machines such as Russia and the Islamic State, the U.S. needs to harden its "soft power" with its own participation in the global conversation.

North Korea's use of captured or detained Americans to score propaganda points and extract political concessions from Washington has a long history stretching back to the Cold War, but analysts say the tactic may be wearing thin. The isolated state currently has three American citizens in detention -- Kenneth Bae, Matthew Miller and Jeffrey Fowle.