The term "Cool Japan" was a localized take on the UK's "Cool Britannia" idea of the 1990s. The idea of "Cool Japan" was centered on the country's position as a rising soft power superpower. Soft power is the culture influence countries have, while hard power is the influence from political, military, or economic power.

Recognised by the Chinese as a symbol of world peace, the panda represents the Yin and Yang concept and is also China's longest serving ambassador when presented as a gift to Japan during the Tang Dynasty around 685 AD.

The issue in question was the Chinese government-sponsored Confucius Institutes hosted by American universities. China has 70 such institution in the United States, more than any other country in the world. The U.S., meanwhile, has all of five America Centers in China.

The move was part of the State Department's new effort to transform how foreign policy is conducted. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made 21st Century Statecraft — using networks and technologies as part of the United States’ foreign policy agenda —a priority. Since then the Department has used social media to further its foreign policy agenda.

On Monday, I reported that the U.S. State Department was signing a $16.5 million agreement with Amazon to provide Kindles, content and service for overseas English language programs.

Trending on Twitter is a big deal—and the @Sweden experiment has been doing just that. It started as a government-backed venture to promote, through Twitter, a new, exciting, and diverse image of Sweden worldwide. Since its inception, @Sweden has spurred a tweeting trend that’s achieving global reach, dubbed Rotation Curation by its founders.