...as a part of larger scheme of building up China’s “soft power.”... Xi’s trip to Iowa is evidently designed to do just that, projecting an image not of a Communist dictator, but a caring leader of a modern nation who cherishes his friendship with Americans, in the hopes of garnering some American goodwill.

Americans remain highly dissatisfied with the United States' position in the world. This may be an extension of their dissatisfaction with conditions in the United States more generally, likely as a result of the economy. However, Americans' assessment of how other countries view the United States is improving, and Americans continue to believe the U.S. should play a major role in international affairs.

In the eyes of the U.S. Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the events of Sept. 11, 2001 revealed that public diplomacy efforts with predominantly Muslims countries had been neglected for many years. Soon afterwards they helped establish the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange Study (YES) program.

The president’s 2013 budget proposal this week was big news in Washington, but for those who care about public diplomacy and international broadcasting, the most interesting parts involved the Voice of America (VOA), Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia, Radio & TV Marti, and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks of Radio Sawa and Alhurra TV.

Many VOA assets are being reprogrammed to enhance the rapid pursuit of new media formats. The only encouraging aspect of the budget is the notion that VOA Central News, although greatly reduced in size, will become the site of a global news network incorporating the best reporting of all five publicly-funded overseas broadcasting entities.

20 years ago when the Berlin Wall fell. Twenty years have gone by, several countries have graduated into market democracy, into the international institutions – the EU, NATO – and we felt it was time to sort of normalize the assistance for those countries in the regular budget so that we no longer have a separate carve-out.

The WikiLeaks cables show that governments really do think along these strategic lines about the entertainment industry. They call it soft power. Let's hope that they don't forget that someone – Hollywood, Bollywood, or Chinese – is supposed to be making the next generation of classic films at the same time.

For some industry insiders, the trio personify a growing partnership between Beijing’s aspirations to export what it calls “soft power” – a sugarcoated version of China and its myriad social problems – to the West and Hollywood producers, who are bending over backwards to get a piece of the world’s fastest growing film market.