Japanese authorities now want to tap this soft power for tourism, amid an ambitious drive by the Abe administration to double burgeoning foreign tourist arrivals to 40 million by 2020. [...] The association, working with industry members and local governments, wants to create a whole suite of services and products, from shuttle buses to merchandising, to boost the experience for visitors - and bring in the yen.
 

External Affairs Ministry has emerged as one of the top central ministries to effectively use the social media with its Twitter handle @MEAIndia crossing one million followers. "Marking a #digitaldiplomacy milestone with 1,000,000+ followers! Hope to continue to serve & inform in the best traditions of the MEA," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup, who runs the handle, tweeted.

In October, the world was listening to a very important story, one that the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs shares every day: the story of how empowering women and girls through educational and professional opportunities changes lives and communities. 

A decade ago, NATO’s Public Diplomacy Division and its stakeholders stared blankly at the skyrocketing evolution of social media. Facebook, LinkedIn, Flickr, Twitter—just to name a few—were new phenomena which at first seemed to attract young people, but had no place in a serious international organization that dealt with high-level political topics, let alone security and defense.