June 27-28

“Many laptops seized from the Taliban and al-Qaeda are loaded with smut. U.S. intelligence analysts have devoted considerable time to poring over the terrorists’ favored Web sites, searching for hidden militant messages.”

--From I Am The Chaplain blog; image from

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

If War Is Not the Answer… - Robert Haddick, american.com:

"[T]he United States and its allies need to develop leverage against Iran. The absence of leverage is the principal reason the engagement and sanctions strategies have failed. ... Offensive action should not be limited to just conventional military actions. It should also include public diplomacy, cyber warfare, unconventional warfare, and covert actions aimed at undermining the authority of the regime. The goal would be to create credible capabilities in these areas in order to persuade the Iranian leadership to adopt different policies." Image from

The Case for Calling Them Nitwits - I Am The Chaplain: "Current U.S. public diplomacy centers on selling America to the Muslim world, but we should also work to undermine some of the myths built up around our enemies by highlighting their incompetence, their moral failings, and their embarrassing antics."

Are you empowered? – Martin, site14.fourfiveone.com: "But it’s not just cranky customers who can use readily available, powerful, hyperconnected technologies to make an impact. Employees can, too… Mark Betka and Tim Receveur, of the U.S. State Department, used off-the-shelf software called Adobe Connect to create Co.Nx,

a public diplomacy outreach project that presents webchats with U.S. government officials, businesspeople, and others." Image from

Through the Wormhole: The Secret State's Mad Scheme to Control the Internet - Antifascist Calling... - Exploring the shadowlands of the corporate police state: "That the revolving door connecting the military and the corporations who service war making is a highly-profitable redoubt for those involved, has been analyzed here at great length. With new moves to tighten the screws on the immediate horizon, and as 'Change' reveals itself for what it always was, an Orwellian exercise in public diplomacy, hitting the 'kill switch' serves as an apt descriptor for the new, repressive growth sector that links technophilic fantasies of 'net-centric' warfare to the burgeoning 'homeland security' market."

Public Diplomacy, Sports, and the Waning Influence of American Popular Culture - John Brown, Huffington Post: "As the worldwide popularity of that up to now quite un-American sport -- fútbol/футбол (the Italians have resisted the Anglo-Saxon linguistic temptation and call it calcio) -- tells us, US soft power, as concerns sports, may not be as automatically seductive to the rest of the world as we Americans sometimes naively assume it to be."

Note: From the New York Times: “[Kobe Bryant] moved to Italy when he was 6. His father, Joe Bryant, was playing basketball in the Italian league. Bryant has often said that had he stayed in Italy, he might have tried professional soccer. Instead, he moved back to the United States when he was 13.” Image: Kobe Bryant visited a youth soccer camp in Soweto in his first visit to South Africa.

Introducing My New Research Project - Di's Quiet Moment - Di Wu, Di's Quiet Moment: "Recently I was involved in a research project named Nation Branding at Expo 2010 Shanghai. It's a very edge cutting yet entertaining project mainly about how do countries portrait themselves using nation branding efforts to the Chinese audiences during the Expo. My two colleagues Chen and Cesar are in Shanghai videotaping the interviews, while I stay in LA maintaining the website and be supportive. Basically my job is to make sure the videos are shown on the CPD website and sometimes communicate with the LA team and Shanghai team. This project is going to be 12 weeks long. Each week we will feature one country, which means that there will be 12 countries in total. We plan to make 2-3 videos for a certain country every week. The videos will contain segments on certain topics. For example, there is a video on South Africa's co-branding with World Cup. The project is launched in early July and so far three countries have their videos on. The latest videos are on U.S., focusing on student ambassadors. We interviewed some student ambassadors working at the U.S. pavilion, either introducing their daily job or sharing their thoughts and opinions. Take a look at the side bar Youtube video. If you are in China, which is not likely because of the firewall, you can also watch our videos on Tudou.com. Just follow the link above and you'll find all the info. ... About Me [:] Di Wu Los Angeles, California, United States [.] A Chinese native living in LA who's interested in public diplomacy, strategic communication and international relations."

RELATED ITEMS

Russia forms commission to improve its image - Nation Branding: Some weeks ago, Russian newspapers reported that President Medvedev had just created a new commission in the Kremlin to promote a positive image of Russia abroad.

It is not a new case of nation branding by far, but this high-level commission points out that countries are increasingly conscious of how critical image and reputation are to a country’s prospects in today’s world, especially on economy and foreign affairs. Image from article

On U.S. policy in Afghanistan, who's running the show? By naming Gen. Petraeus to replace Gen. McChrystal, Obama only began to resolve the crucial question concerning the war effort in the region - Doyle McManus, latimes.com

In 'Restrepo,' the Afghan war's brutality as viewed through the soldier's scope - Philip Kennicott, Washington Post: In the post-Vietnam era, artists, writers and filmmakers have sought closer communion with members of the military. Part of this is no doubt a long-standing redress for the neglect and in some cases overt hostility with which soldiers returning from that highly divisive war were treated. It also reflects a real sense of obligation and indebtedness to the troops in the age of the all-volunteer army. But part of it is also an act of self-protection. By viewing the war through the prism of the soldier's experience, the artist can insulate himself or herself from the danger of appearing anti-military.

"The Tillman Story," for instance, criticizes government propaganda about the war through the experience of Army Cpl. Pat Tillman, the football star killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan. Image from

World Cup Diplomacy: We Should Send Ghana Fans to the Quarter Finals - Americans should set up a way–through a simple text message or a website–to send over a few dollars to help send Ghana fans to the Quarter Finals. Sure, for good public relations, some corporations could pitch in. But this strikes me as the perfect opportunity to engage in some “people-to-people” diplomacy, as the US State Department has called it, or even “fan-to-fan” diplomacy. Considering the world’s craze for the World Cup, there is perhaps no better way to win “the hearts and minds” of soccer fans around the world than for American fans, as individuals, to contribute to sending fellow fans to cheer their own team.

Deja Vu - England Germany - World War II – goal.com: Commando! For decades, British kids devoured these naughty little propaganda comics (maybe they still do) filled with evil German soldiers marching around saying "Himmel" and "Achtung" in nicely pressed uniforms that their mums had ironed before they went out to kill everyone in sight.

The Brit right wing tabloid newspapers keep this tradition of pasting Gerry alive and Sunday's battle between the two old foes offers another opportunity to fire one more shell for World War II. Expect to see in print the march of perceived German faults, from their cold-hearted style of play, to their humorless defense, and should England prevail and the Germans look unhappy, the "sour-kraut" label sticks. Image from article. See also

Terrorists Versus Soccer: Repressive governments and extremist insurgent groups have attempted to tamp down soccer obsession without success - Adam Serwer, The American Prospect. Via PR.

MORE QUOTATIONS FOR THE DAY

'In the discreet white-collar realm,

men and women are interchangeable, doing the same, mind-based work. Physicality is suppressed; voices are lowered and gestures curtailed in sanitized office space. Men must neuter themselves, while ambitious women postpone procreation. Androgyny is bewitching in art, but in real life it can lead to stagnation and boredom, which no pill can cure.'

--Camille Paglia, "No Sex Please, We’re Middle Class," New York Times; image from

"#1: Retrosexual

Definition: a man who adopts a traditional masculine style in dress and manners

Example: 'Think of him as the anti-metrosexual, the opposite of that guy who emerged in the 1990s in all his pedicured, moussed-up, skinny-jeans glory. That man-boy was searching for his inner girl, it was argued. The retrosexual, however, wants to put the man back into manhood.' — Lini S. Kadaba, Philadelphia Inquirer, Apr. 7, 2010

Submitted by: West4th, NY

Editor's Note: Retrosexual is a word that has been used in two very different ways.

It sometimes describes an old-fashioned 'manly man' – e.g. a beer and football-loving guy who cares little for his appearance.

But it has also been used, as in the example above, to describe someone who self-consciously adopts traditional masculine styles – e.g. old-fashioned manners and clothes typical of the early 1960s (think Mad Men)

--Top 10 User-Submitted Words, Vol. 3, Miriam Webster; image from article