Israel’s current Operation Protective Edge in Gaza, aimed at stemming rocket fire from the coastal enclave, may also propel the issue forward as the Jewish state faced a torrent of criticism partly, many believe, due to less than desirable public diplomacy efforts. “I think that the war itself will be the catalyst for that to happen, because I think people realize how critical it is that this just be organized,” Lipman affirmed.

Google “Kosovo”, and Petrit Selimi knows exactly what you’re going to see: dry, diplo-speak scouting reports at best, and depressing references to past conflicts at worst. It’s not exactly the promotional buzz a fledgling country with sights set on global integration would hope for*. To Selimi, Kosovo’s Deputy Foreign Secretary and a pioneer in Digital Diplomacy, this is a major problem.

This year also marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of diplomatic relations between France and Communist China. Urged on by President Charles de Gaulle, in 1964, the French became the first Western nation to recognize the new government in Beijing, much to the disgust of the Americans. A long established diplomatic bond of trust exists between the two nations, albeit a bond that has been stretched on one or two occasions. 

The Financial Times was blunt in a recent editorial entitled ‘Anti-Semitism is a menace to us all: Criticism of Israel should not extend to Jews worldwide.’ “Israel, a mature democracy, is frequently subjected to a double standard that is not applied to other states. In London this month, thousands marched in protest at Israel’s actions in Gaza.

Albert Royo-Mariné, secretary general of the Public Diplomacy Council of Catalonia, a government-supported group that seeks to raise awareness about Catalonia, says that regardless of its outcome, the Scottish referendum is a "victory for democracy and common sense, and thus, it is a great example to Catalans."

At the height of the Cold War, the BBC World Service, Radio Canada International and the Voice of America used high-power, multilingual broadcasts on the shortwave radio bands (1710 kHz–30 MHz) to blast news and information behind the Soviet Union’s “Iron Curtain.” In turn, Radio Moscow, Radio Havana Cuba and East Germany’s Radio Berlin International pumped their own versions of reality to the world via shortwave. 

Amid controversy in Russia and Ukraine, a U.S. Department of State scholarship program aims to enhance public diplomacy, beginning in Kansas. Two exchange students, from Russia and Ukraine, arrived Friday afternoon at Wichita Mid-Continent Airport. They arrived on the same flight. Both students have been awarded the prestigious scholarship through the Department of State.