If there ever were a time for a new beginning in this country, it is now. The recession is still very much with us. Global crises and disasters compound daily. Our national attention is consumed with political candidates on both sides of the aisle who seem to have completely lost their minds. And yet amidst the absurdities, there are signs of real hope and cause for optimism.

Many images of South Korea in hit American television series have been “distorted,” raising concerns over their detrimental impact on the country’s overall image, a ruling party lawmaker pointed out Thursday.

In the United States, the pressure on Facebook, relatively mild so far, comes mostly from journalists and advocacy groups like the Electronic Privacy Information Center. But the time is coming when Facebook will begin to face ever more intense international pressure from foreign governments unpleased, for one reason or another, with how the site operates.

When two young Jews were shot dead at a gay club in Israel last summer, New York’s gay Jewish community responded immediately. The West Village congregation for gay Jews, Congregation Beth Simchat Torah, reached out to friends they made in Israel through a city-to-city partnership established 10 years ago.

The story of U.S. international broadcasting is getting something of a fresh start, or at least opening a new chapter. Eight new board members sit on the Broadcasting Board of Governors, which sets funding and gives direction to those efforts.

This new Agreement, which replaces an earlier 1994 text, marks an important milestone in the rich history of U.S.-Turkish scientific cooperation. As President Obama stated during his visit to Turkey in April 2009, "…Turkey and the United States must stand together -- and work together -- to overcome the challenges of our time."

The US has been generous to Pakistan in its times of need, but deep-seated hostility towards Washington won't change if people suspect that humanitarian aid has a hidden agenda.

U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Marie Yovanovitch has described her latest meetings with members of the Armenian-American community as "useful." Yovanovitch made a similar tour a year ago, as her predecessors had done before. The diplomat's itinerary this year included Philadelphia, Detroit, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.