Greetings from Washington. Along with the warmer temperatures and afternoon summer thunderstorms, a firestorm has erupted over a Congressional amendment related to U.S. public diplomacy. I put this post under Culture Posts, because the ferocity of the debate has had little to do with the technical aspects or merits of the legislation itself. At stake, and what the argument was really about, were iconic American values. The debate also reveals a surprising lack of understanding about just what is public diplomacy in the modern era of global communication.

This program is part of the President’s Young African Leaders Initiative, the Obama Administration’s long-term program to engage Africa’s young leaders who are actively promoting positive change in their communities. The President’s Initiative...has included more than 2,000 U.S. Government-sponsored programs for young leaders across sub-Saharan Africa.

"The distinguished Pakistanis living abroad can also play a vital role to be a bridge between the countries of their residence and Pakistan and contribute towards expansion of business, trade and cultural relations. They can build goodwill and friendship between Pakistan and the world community through public and cultural diplomacy initiatives," Mr Malik said.

Is this “superpower” model going against the very fundamentals of India’s “soft power”? Three characteristics distinguish India: a 5,000-year-old extant, unbroken, well-documented, civilisational, cultural heritage; an overwhelming population of no less than 1.2 billion; and a living laboratory for pluralistic development without a common spoken language.

A new Confucius Institute for Traditional Chinese Medicine — the first of its kind established with the cooperation of a foreign medical institute — is expected to open in September, said Gao Sihua, president of the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine.

These “Three Ts” don’t account for all of the changes which are transforming diplomatic practice in the 21st century. But they do go some the way towards providing an explanation of why so many governments are placing an increased reliance upon public diplomacy and branding to advance their international agendas.

In the previous three entries in this series I have tried to compare and contrast various aspects of public diplomacy

The jubilee is meant more as a unifier than a pacifier, and the national broadcaster is entrusted with gushing appropriately, often when nothing is happening but a bout of rain-washed punting. But the project of British propagandising looks like falling apart under examination.