Cuba is in a position where it could use some soft power appeal, particularly on the same social issues—like unemployment or the treatment of Afro-Latinos—that neighboring countries are going through. If Cuba is aiming to have a rap scene with actual international appeal beyond the club circuit, the state should relax its hold.

A historically-grounded narrative is needed to counter China’s charges, which have real implications for American and other national policies. The PRC plays the “victim” card to its advantage [...] to indoctrinate internal opinion to support the regime, to stoke “nationalism” for leverage, and to arm psychological warfare that positions Beijing as “just.”

Those in charge of foreign policy, be they the president of the United States or the prime minister of Great Britain, face situations their predecessors never experienced. Literally every important event around the globe is instantaneously reported, most of the time on television. 

Something of a musical exchange-student program, the organization brings young musicians from all over the world to the U.S. together for a month each year to collaborate on music. Started in 2012, OneBeat hopes to celebrate the ways that the arts can impact local and global communities, as well as help people connect across cultures through music. 

Sports are an intrinsic part of the American life — bringing folks together on the field, in the backyard and around the TV. But sports are also bringing people together in an even bigger way — people from different continents, cultures and walks of life — thanks to a concept called sports diplomacy.

Since its premiere in Beijing in 2013, the 90-minute show has become something of a cultural calling card for China as the country seeks to bolster its efforts to project soft power abroad. Having already toured in Europe, the production will move to New York in January and then to the Kennedy Center in Washington.

Utah, a spacious state crossed by mountains, valleys and desert, takes in more refugees than some U.S. states with much larger populations. “It’s perfect here,” says Nour Eddin Abdul Bari, who worked as a chef and restaurateur in Damascus before fleeing Syria. He lauds the medical and education services provided for three of his five children with special needs.