When I think of the "implications for public diplomacy" in the wake of the 2012 election, I can only come with—zero, zip, zilch... All of this is to say that few elements of our foreign policy will, for awhile, be a significant part of our national conversation. Thus, a small subset of our foreign policy concerns, like public diplomacy, will be even less salient.

This week was actually a double-victory for Barak Obama, who won both the White House and the title of first Western leader to survive re-election for some time. According to the polls, it was also a victory for America's international appeal.

The legacy of ping-pong diplomacy has given the veteran player enduring enthusiasm for his sport as well as a range of activities aimed at strengthening China-US relations... Braithwaite continues to serve as a board member of the Sino-American Friendship Association, a nonprofit organization that promotes Chinese culture and China-US ties.

Soon, I realized that the event was not intended for Americans. It was to impress people from here in Jakarta: Invited Indonesians and Indonesians who read the news from the invited press. It was a showcase of American “soft power”, a term popularized by Joseph Nye, a professor at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.

As temperatures drop across the East Coast, where the clean up efforts from Super Storm Sandy are ongoing, stories of resilience are permeating online: tales of New York City Marathon runners shifting gears from the cancelled event to volunteer efforts in Staten Island, tales of moms in New Jersey organizing clothing and supply drives to help those in the cold and dark, tales of musicians gathering in Brooklyn to entertain volunteers.

USAID launched three grand challenges for development – to save lives at birth, get all children reading, and power agriculture through clean energy. We’ve also created new funding mechanisms that will help bring new ideas to scale like our Development Innovation Ventures program, which is supporting new solutions to prevent electoral fraud and to expand access to credit for underserved populations.

The United States Embassy Kuala Lumpur and the Sultan Ismail Library is holding a special photo exhibition called An Enduring Bond to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps.

In marked contrast to a euphoric surge four years ago, when many hailed Mr. Obama’s victory as a herald of renewal, the mood was subdued, reflecting not only the shadings of opinion between the American leader’s friends and foes but also a generally lowered expectation of America’s power overseas.