Shanghai is sparing no effort to develop itself as a center for international finance, economic activity, trade and logistics in China. According to the latest report, The International Image of Shanghai, among its four goals, the position of Shanghai as an international financial center was best known by foreigners.

For the past 64 years, the Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy has been providing "honest appraisals and informed discourse on" efforts by U.S. officials interacting with key overseas citizens to "increase global awareness and understanding of our values, policies and activities." Now with little fanfare, it died quietly.

Nowadays, video games have become a dominating entertainment medium. The industry alone creates tens of billions dollars for other industries, every year. Like other pop culture staples, people have noticed the cultural influence of video games. By releasing online game featuring Hollywood characters, Taiwan's innovation and soft power are manifested.

Over the years, the “public” at which U.S. public diplomacy was aimed was carefully limited to exclude the Islamist community. However, the events of 2011 have turned the Islamists who were once viewed as adversaries by American policymakers into the mainstream of Arab politics. It's high time U.S. public diplomacy caught up with this new reality.

The US state department, already established as a major provider of English language teaching support through its international public diplomacy strategy, is seeking to promote more aggressively US ELT skills and expertise to meet the growing global demand for language learning.

For years, Hosni Mubarak and other Arab leaders relied on a straightforward mantra: “It’s me or the Islamists.” American presidents and other Western leaders shuddered at the word “Islamists” and embraced their thuggish allies. What could be worse than Islamists?

U.S. public diplomacy followed that pattern. Over the years, there was some splendid rhetoric from Condoleezza Rice, Barack Obama, and a few others, but the “public” at which public diplomacy was aimed was always carefully limited to exclude the Islamist community.

The Chinese government is encouraging domestic publishers of foreign-language periodicals to target the overseas market as part of the country's strategy to boost its media presence abroad, a major step to build China into a big player in the world media and publication market and make the cultural sector a pillar industry in the country.

Art is often the vehicle of choice in building bridges in cultural diplomacy. The “Ahh” moment is one of appreciation when our imagination has been captured. Cultural diplomacy can take the inherent power of art and transform it from an “Ahh” moment of appreciation found in one cultural setting to an “Aha!” moment of delight and wonder in other cultural settings.