May 17

"One of the most popular Twitterers here in Prague is following almost 57,000 people, with 53,000 followers of his own! 'You follow me and I’ll follow you, even if I’m not really listening to you and I suspect you’re not listening to me,' says the elephant in the room."

--Grant Podelco, RFE/RL; via; image from

How Obama Divides—and Conquers - Michael Fullilove, Daily Beast: "Barack Obama has gotten off to a remarkably sure-footed start on foreign policy. There is the pragmatism of his policies on Iraq and Afghanistan, in which he has managed, so far, to square his campaign promises with the advice of his military commanders; the liberalism of his early moves on detainee treatment and nuclear disarmament; and the ambition of his efforts on public diplomacy and Middle East peace. The real measure of his success, however, is the confusion of his enemies." Image from

Inflamming Public Opinion - Mark Dillen, Public Diplomacy: The World Affairs Network: "Further evidence that President Obama is prepared to take some political heat at home in order to improve America’s standing abroad comes in the form of his decision on torture photos. Obama said on Wednesday that publishing additional pictures, taken by U.S. servicemen in Iraq, similar to those previously published from the Abu Ghraib prison, 'could not add any additional benefit' to the country’s understanding of 'what was carried out in the past by a small number of individuals.' Instead he said it would '... further inflame anti-American opinion and to put our troops in greater danger.' Interestingly, except for the ACLU, Obama is not taking too many hits for his reversal. … While displaying political finesse, Obama seems to understand that changing the Muslim world’s view of the United States for the better is a tricky business." Image from

Hiding Torture Photos is Just Another Tactic in the 'Information War' - Ron Fullwood, OpEdNews: "It's just another guess, but those torture photos President Obama's going to fight the release of must resemble the propaganda shots al-Qaeda puts out - probably complete with hoods and captors brandishing their weapons over the heads of their hostages. That must be why they're being withheld. They must make America look just like the ones we like to call terrorists.

Richard Holbrooke, our envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee the other day, alluded to the reasoning behind the control of these images which sounded very much like the last administration as they defined their view of the state of their 'war on terror'. Holbrooke said about our efforts in Pakistan: 'We are developing a strategic communications plan to counter the terror information campaign, based in part on a strategy that proved successful in Iraq . . . This is an area that has been woefully under-resourced,' he said, 'The strategic communications plan - including electronic media, telecom, and radio - will include options on how best to counter the propaganda that is key to the insurgency’s terror campaign.'" Image of Richard Holbrooke and his wife, author/journalist Kati Marton from

What Comes Next for New Media and Public Diplomacy? - Ben Katcher, The Washington Note: “[A]s Steve Clemons has pointed out on this blog, political leaders are only beginning to learn how to use new media to advance their public diplomacy and political agendas. In the clip [at this link], British Foreign Secretary and blogger David Miliband tells the story of a former British ambassador to Afghanistan who used his camera phone to educate citizens of his home country about the legacy of Soviet occupation. It will be interesting to see how far the United States and other governments will go to empower their foreign servants and international development workers to tell stories like this - and how the benefits and risks of these kinds of public diplomacy will be managed." Image from

POMED Notes: Public Diplomacy: Reaching Difficult Audiences - Jed, The POMED Wire, Project on Middle East Democracy: "The Hudson Institute hosted an event titled 'Public Diplomacy: Reaching Difficult Audiences'. The event comes on the heels of the Senate’s confirmation of Judith McHale as Under-Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy. The event was moderated by Richard Weitz, Director of the Hudson Center for Political-Military Analysis, and included a distinguished panel of media experts. The panel’s participants included Joan Mower, Director of Public Relations at Voice of America, Deirdre Kline, Communications Director for the Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Imad Musa, Senior Producer at Al-Jazeera, and Nargiz Asadova, Deputy Washington Bureau Chief for RIA Novosti."

What Role for Diplomacy in Reconstruction and Stabilization? Presented by The American Academy of Diplomacy, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and the RAND Corporation, May 13 2009, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. – events at the Center, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars: "Ambassador Thomas Boyatt, chair of the 'Foreign Affairs Budget of the Future: Fixing the Crisis in Diplomatic Readiness' report, will discuss budgetary needs to enable the State Department and USAID to accomplish their missions in classic diplomacy, training, public diplomacy, development diplomacy, and reconstruction and stabilization." Image from

Twitter Free Europe/Twitter Liberty - Kim Andrew Elliott discussing International Broadcasting and Public Diplomacy

Verejna diplomacia - Veronika Profantova, mv3fpvmv: "1. Historický kontext používania verejnej diplomacii v diplomatickej praxi … . 2. Faktory vplývajúce na zvýšenie významu verejnej diplomacie pre diplomatickú prax … . 3. Konkrétne prístupy štátov k realizácii verejnej diplomacie … . Záver [:] Verejná diplomacia je logickým výsledkom tendencií súčasného sveta a má v ňom nezastupiteľné miesto. Rozmanitosť jej realizácie však zodpovedá historickým a kultúrnym charakteristikám konkrétnych štátov. Z historického aspektu sa odvíjala od pojmu propaganda, ktorý sa približuje jej negatívnemu poňatiu. Na druhej strane, v podmienkach povojnovej Európy sa verejná diplomacia priblížila pojmu infopolitika.” Translation available via Google on site.

Rocco Landesman: From Broadway to NEA nominee - Culture Monster, Los Angeles Times: "Rocco Landesman is … a veteran showman who has helped produce 15 Tony Award-winning plays and musicals, including 'Angels in America' and 'The Producers.' President Obama announced his nomination Wednesday to chair the National Endowment for the Arts. … 'Just to have somebody who has produced Tony Kushner and August Wilson — he knows that it starts with the individual artistic voice, and if it’s not offending somebody ... it’s not doing its job,' Lavine [Steven Lavine, president of the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia and a member of the National Arts Policy Committee that advised Obama during his presidential campaign] said. Landesman image from

Exploring new ideas and broader horizons - Wan Linxin, shanghaidaily.com: "The World Expo 2010 in Shanghai now has 237 confirmed participants, including 189 countries and 48 international organizations. In the six months after its opening on May 1, around 70 million visitors are expected. … According to an official description, Expo is a 'testimony to trust between nations and an important instrument of public and cultural diplomacy.'"

President Adamkus presented Ambassador Ina Marčiulionytė as candidate for UNESCO's Director-General - penki.lt: "Addressing the Director-General of UNESCO, Mr. Koïchiro Matsuura, and other guests at the reception, President Adamkus presented the joint candidate of the three Baltic States

for the organization's Director-General: Ambassador Ina Marčiulionytė - permanent delegate of Lithuania to UNESCO. … President Adamkus supported Ambassador Marčiulionytė's proposal to launch a Global Cultural Diplomacy Initiative in 2010, which would create a unique opportunity to combine UNESCO's strengths with the needs of all countries and set an ambitious agenda for a true dialogue between the cultures." Image from

Danish Embassy celebrates the life and work of Inger Christensen – Jeanny Gering, Cultural Diplomacy News: “The following transcript is a conversation I had with Ms. Tovborg Jensen, cultural attaché for the Danish Embassy in Berlin. Ms Jensen and I had the opportunity to discuss Inger Christensen, the power of poetry and cultural diplomacy. Ms. Tovborg Jensen what makes poetry a strong medium for cultural exchange? Poetry can’t be instrumentalised for cultural exchange. ... Poetry, said Christensen herself, is a way of cognitive understanding like mathematics. Art (poetry included) allows encountering the other – in this way art is always cultural exchange. How much weight can cultural exchange as a form of diplomacy have? Cultural exchange can find ways to bring people into conversation where conventional forms of diplomacy and politics fail. In times of great political conflicts about values, cultural exchange became increasingly important – as a pathfinder and door opener. But it always remains a balancing act not to abuse culture as means to political ends.”

Lost in translation and loving it! An evening at the international language party - Mathew Noblett, Cultural Diplomacy News: "Charles Clawson came to Berlin from his home city of Seattle seven years ago … . For the last four years the Eastern Comfort boat has hosted Charles’s weekly international language parties every Wednesday night. … Trying to learn and speak another language is also an extremely valuable exercise. Given that the parties promote cultural exchange between peoples from a diverse array of nations, it is no surprise that the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, a Berlin based NGO, has shown an interest in Charles’ parties." Image from

Sun May 17 - Thu Jun 25: Jazz Heritage Center presents: Jam Session: America's Jazz Ambassadors Embrace the World - Only West Coast Showing – SFStation: "From the heart of San Francisco’s Jazz District comes a photographic exhibition that chronicles the international tours of legendary jazz musicians selected by the U.S. State Department to serve as roving cultural ambassadors. Over 90 compelling images, together with posters and other materials, portray the journeys of music greats such as Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Dave Brubeck ,Duke Ellington, Benny Carter, and Sarah Vaughan." Image from article.

More Willis Conover jazz memories – Kim Andrew Elliott discussing International Broadcsting and Public Diplomacy

Cricketers’ Gift Evokes Memories of Cold War Diplomacy - Priscilla Linn, Newswire GTS: "Who were the 'cricketers of Prague,' and why were they so appreciative? This group of diplomat sportsmen, assembled from various embassies in the Czech capital, had nowhere to play in Prague during the late 1940s and early 1950s. Soviet leaders reacted harshly to all Czech citizens having cultural contact with the capitalist West, including observing 'decadent sports.' Ambassador and Mrs. Briggs rescued the team by inviting them to play on the grounds of their residence, or 'Petschek Palace,' the name used at the time. … Non-Communist diplomats did not want to endanger the lives or well-being of Czech citizens, and as a result, spent virtually no time face to face in public diplomacy. The diplomatic corps of Prague had to rely on each other for information, intelligence and recreation." Prague image from

Mary Jane Wick - Obituaries, Los Angeles Times: "Mary Jane Wick, a longtime supporter and personal friend of Ronald and Nancy Reagan and a civic leader in both Los Angeles and Washington D.C., died Thursday, May 7th, of natural causes at her Los Angeles home. She was 84. Mrs. Wick was married to the late Charles Z. Wick, the longest serving Director of the United States Information Agency. The Wicks were married for 61 years." Via LB.

Sri Lanka: Military Conflict vs. Propaganda War?
- Thalif Deen, IPS: "The Sri Lankan government, which has come under heavy fire for the massive humanitarian crisis in the country's war zone, is winning the 25-year-old military conflict but is on the verge of losing the propaganda war overseas." See also.

Propaganda infiltrated movies as United States entered WWI: Songs also were employed to strike a patriotic note - George Poague, The LeafChronicle.com: "[There is] a DVD of a movie made in 1917: 'The Little American,' starring Mary Pickford

and directed by Cecil B. DeMille. This wasn't just any old silent movie. It was one of its era's biggest hits. And it was designed to rally support for America's role in World War I. As propaganda, the movie is brilliantly effective. It recreates the 1915 sinking of the Lusitania. It depicts German soldiers -- a.k.a. 'Huns' -- getting drunk, shooting old men and raping young women, though the rapes take place discreetly off screen. And it has Mary Pickford -- known as 'America's Sweetheart,' although she was Canadian-- forced to kneel before a Prussian officer and clean his boots." Pickford Image from

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