It is not that often that the Western Wall is the focus of attention for celebrity magazines. But it was recently when actor David Arquette was in Israel and, upon visiting the Wall, decided to have the barmitzvah that he never had as a youngster, and to have it there.
While the barmitzvah was spontaneous, the growth in celebrity visits to Israel is not.

The practice of public diplomacy has evolved over past decades towards countries such as Egypt. From cultural exchanges and international development efforts of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to the Jimmy Carter peace initiatives with the U.S. and other allies, the relations between the U.S. and Egypt have been defined by numerous public diplomacy initiatives. Likewise, the challenges the U.S. faces in engaging and “winning” audiences in the Middle East have also drastically changed, over the last ten years.

APDS Blogger: Lydia Marcos

Tara D Sonenshine is the undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs at the US Department of State. In an interview with Forbes India, Sonenshine discusses initiatives to promote public diplomacy with India and how the Indian diaspora in the US is an important voice in this process.

I particularly like the idea of “using food as a foundation for public diplomacy programs to learn about different cultures and discuss important related issues such as nutrition, sustainability and food security.”

Through Serenta (outreach and public diplomacy programme), we inform students on how Asean was conceived and its successes to date," he said, adding that more activities were being planned..."With the support of ambassadors, high commissioners and ministries, we are very confident that we will host Asean and (assume) the chairmanship with success.

The agency is using social media to circumvent established news outlets in order to take its stories straight to an eager audience. That’s especially important at a moment when the general perception is that U.S. budget troubles, friendly relations with former space-race foes, and the Space Shuttle’s retirement have left the agency struggling for a new raison d’être.