soft power
In the aftermath of the Beijing Olympics, there's been much discussion about an increase in China's soft power, not least by Joseph Nye, the originator of the concept. [Link] Nye and others (this writer included) have evaluated China's film industry and U.S.-Chinese co-productions as a strategic asset for the Middle Kingdom. I was discussing the subject recently with a U.S.
The purpose of this project is to develop a new approach to national power that allows senior policy makers to better integrate the assets and tools of coercive power such as military action ("hard power"), with the resources of traditional and public diplomacy ("soft power").