The purchase might invigorate a campaign by the Chinese government to boost the country’s “soft power,” or cultural influence, in the U.S. and other countries...According to Xinhua, the Party’s Central Committee said “China is facing a difficult task in protecting ‘cultural security’ and feeling the urgency of enhancing its soft power and the international influence of its own culture.”

The paper provides a round-up of some of the major turns of events between 2005 and 2011 in the realms of Internet governance, the development of online public diplomacy at the State Department, the evolution of the Internet-fueled Arab Spring, and the establishment of the shadowy U.S. Cyber Command in Fort Meade, Maryland, among other things

Dilma doing a cameo in a Spike Lee joint, and spotlighting human rights violations. Lula rolls out a new Facebook page and gets tagged at an arts crawl with Dilma. It's all part of the cultural public diplomacy designed to make those who say "they don't care about us" say Go Brazil, Go! before the World Cup and the Rio Olympics.

The Second Nishan Forum on World Civilizations dedicated to promoting cultural diversity and cross-cultural dialogue opened Monday morning in Confucius' birthplace Qufu. With a theme of "Harmony with diversity and the harmonious world: belief, moral values, respect, solidarity," the three-day event has drawn over 90 experts and scholars from more than 20 countries.

A Chinese Disneyland-style amusement park, the Fantawild Theme Park, will be completed and open for business in Esfahan, Iran, by the end of this year. Fantawild Holdings, like Disney, is primarily an animation produce..."These cartoons were both aired at home and exported to other countries," Liu said.

Sierra Leone and the People's Republic of China have embarked on efforts aimed at further strengthening not just people-to-people and government-to-government diplomacy, but to also strengthen the political diplomacy between the two countries.

Suzanne Philion, a 34-year-old who works under Clinton as Senior Advisor for Innovation in the Bureau of Education & Cultural Affairs at the U.S. State Department, embodies that new era. Foreign Service in the 21st century is far cooler than many people realize, she says, and thanks to ever-changing job assignments, not to mention an ever-changing global political landscape.