"[A] couple of years ago I had a look at the online profiles for my mom's 40th high school reunion, and noticed that the people who mentioned that they'd taken time off to travel and 'find themselves' now looked much older and more haggard than those who didn't 'find themselves'."
--Blogger and Fulbright program observer [job description corrected from earlier edition] Molly Sisson; image from
PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
Overgrown Comment, Short Post - committeeofpublicsafety.wordpress.com: "Obama and Co. have to accomodate [sic] several often irreconcilable ends: ... What are the hypothetical means available? •nukes! •air power! •ground forces! •covert ops! •proxy Zionist entities! •cutting edge technology! •money! •diplomacy! •public diplomacy! •multimedia presentations! •lawyers! •*empty rhetoric!"
David Ensor: From Kabul to Voice of America - Domani Spero, DiploPundit: "From the BBG press shop: BBG Chairman Walter Isaacson swore in David Ensor as the new Director of the Voice of America.
Isaacson highlighted Ensor's distinguished career as a journalist and broadcaster for NPR, ABC and CNN as well as his recent work as Director for Communications and Public Diplomacy of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. Image from article, with caption: Minister of Border and Tribal Affairs Khalid greets David Ensor, outgoing Director of Communications and Public Diplomacy, U.S. Embassy, before the inauguration of the Access English program at Rahman Baba High School in Kabul, Afghanistan on Saturday, June 4, 2011.
¿Puedes oír la Voz de América ahora? VOA Spanish news available on mobiles - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting
Zimbabwe's defense minister says VOA's "crimes" are not the same as BBC's "crimes" - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting
ICS PhD Conference: Thoughts on the theme - Molly Sisson, Public Diplomacy and Student Exchanges: Experiences of American Fulbright Grantees in the UK and Turkey, and their counterparts in the US: "[T]he Fulbright experience can indeed reshape a participant's identity.
A former Fulbrighter will always include their grant on his/her CV, and might name-drop the programme in social or academic situations. But it can also reshape how they identify themselves, as an American or a citizen of the world, as a liberal or a conservative, as a researcher or student, etc. The big problem I'm running into now, however, is how this shift in identity can be accurately, scientifically measured..." Sisson image from her blog
Its Good to Be in DC - Day 2 and Departure/Arrival - Stephanie in South Korea: "I am doing an intensive study of the Korean language and culture during the summer of 2011 through the U.S. Department of State Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program. I will be in Jeonju, South Korea from mid-June to early August for this program, but I also hope to study abroad for the 2012-2013 academic year in South Korea as well. ... briefly mentioned this in the previous post, but despite being in D.C. I actually didn't see any famous sites. I think this gives my an excuse to go back again!
The picture above is actually the only one I took on the second day of orientation, but basically it was a lot of lectures. The Azerbaijani group had embassy officials visit them, but the Korean folks weren't as lucky. There also was a career panel, which included a Public Diplomacy Foreign Service Officer, but I was a little disappointed to discover that none of the three participants spoke Korean above an intermediate level. They also said there were little to no jobs in the U.S. related specifically to Korea, which is a little depressing to hear."
September: The rules of the game have already changed - 972mag.com: "Israel’s new ambassador to the UN, Ron Prosor, gave a fumbling interview to Haaretz, illustrating the panic growing in Israeli diplomatic circles ahead of September. The vote won’t bring the Palestinians a state – but rules of the game have plainly already changed, before the vote even happened. ... [Prosor:]I myself have a very resigned view on September – in terms of actual changes on the ground, it will not end the occupation, will not bring about a two-state solution, and might – might – spark a new round of violence (although chances for that now appear to be smaller than they did a few months ago). But there’s one thing I have to hand it to the September camp.
If the Israeli defeat at the UN is spoken about as if it’s already happen, if the US declines to act forcefully in any way to prevent it (it might veto, which won’t change that much – the vote is all about a show of solidarity, and the US veto will not cancel out the image of most of the world supporting a Palestinian state); if Israel is now reduced to going around begging to fourth-size players like Bolgaria [sic] and to rebranding its own defeat as 'moral' – then this is certainly no longer 'an attempt to change the rules of the game.' It’s a successful turning of the tables that already happened. The rules of the game for Israel on the diplomatic and public diplomacy arena have already changed, and September will merely make it official." Prosor image from article
Brand India: The expression of India’s Soft Power - Rudra Chakraborty, think.iulm.it: "Brand India are the two keywords chosen by the Government of India and its business community to describe the campaign the nation is using to attract business and accumulate consensus internationally. The concept is to differentiate in some way from other nations in order to stand out among the lot, very much like Coke stands out in the beverages industry. Now, If you’re wondering how a nation brands itself, think about symbols. Although branding is not about symbols and trademarks but has more to do with values, the symbols are useful as they evoke these values quickly. ... Generating a positive Indian reputation is a strategic task ordained at the highest levels of government. Since 2006, the Public diplomacy division of the Ministry of external affairs, closely modeled after the U.S State Department’s approach to public diplomacy, has the task to 'educate and influence global and domestic opinion on
key policy issues and project a better image of the country commensurate with its rising international standing.' Managing Brand India is one of its tasks and the division executes this via the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), a partnership between the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, and the Confederation of Indian Industry. ... Brand India is not just a coordinated institutional strategy, it is also felt by Indian citizens and non-resident Indian communities throughout the world as Indian media amplifies the country’s message through its channels. Last, but in no way least is India’s film industry; Bollywood has the ability to bridge differences between the west, the east, the Islamic world and India. ... Debate forums, media articles, films are all Soft Power resources, engineered to attract allies. They are part of the reason why the world is comfortable with the idea of an emerging India." Image from article, with caption: India
Web-savvy Ministry leads way with microblog - english.eastday.com: "Foreign Ministry events such as news conferences were previously considered to be the sole preserve of diplomats and journalists, but thanks to the wonders of modern technology, anyone who is interested in diplomacy can now get involved. ... Government organizations used to communicate with the public in an official and formal manner. But now, digital tools like microblogs are providing interactive channels that cater to personalized needs, according to Yu Guoming, a professor of communications at Renmin University of China. 'Public diplomacy no longer solely depends on official channels. The forms of communication will become increasingly diversified, digitalized and people-oriented in the future,' Yu told China Daily.
Diplomacy is not supposed to be mysterious, said Zhang Ying, associate professor at the Public Diplomacy Research Center of Beijing Foreign Studies University. With its microblog and holding its Open Day event during which the public can visit the Foreign Ministry, more people have the chance to get involved and gain a deeper understanding of the country's foreign policy. 'The government now attaches more importance to public diplomacy programs, and its input in them is growing. Compared with other forms of diplomacy, public diplomacy programs require a smaller input but have a greater impact,' she told China Daily." Image from
India, Canada to deepen educational ties - mangalorean.com: "The first-ever Education Summit between India and Canada ended at Carleton University here with the two sides committing themselves to deepening ties in research and higher education. ... In his plenary address, Canadian foreign minister John Baird said the Education Summit is 'an important step in developing bilateral academic relations after the signing of the bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Education during PM Manmohan Singh's visit in June last year.' He said the newly created Canada-India Centre for Excellence in Science, Technology, Trade and Policy will raise awareness about bilateral studies and public diplomacy, and develop initiatives to build a better understanding of both countries."
Dutch cabinet announces reductions at Radio Netherlands, whose editor asks "Is our country really going back behind the dikes?" - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting
Kyrgyzstan: Food and Markets - Ian, links.kg: “We have been described as adventurers, adaptable professionals, and – most recently – as full-time travelers.
RELATED ITEMS
Obama must tell Assad to go - P.G. Crowley, Washington Post: The writer, a former assistant secretary and spokesman for the State Department in the Obama administration, is the Omar Bradley chair of strategic leadership at Dickinson College, the Penn State Dickinson School of Law and School of International Affairs, and the Army War College.
NATO risks credibility with civilian deaths -- Frattini - Reuters: NATO risks losing the propaganda war to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi because of actions which have killed civilians, the Italian foreign minister said on Monday. NATO admitted on Sunday it destroyed a house in Tripoli in which Libyan officials said nine civilians were killed -- an incident that sows new doubts inside the alliance about its mission in Libya.
"NATO is endangering its credibility; we cannot risk killing civilians," Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini told reporters ahead of an EU foreign ministers' meeting in Luxembourg due to discuss ways to aid rebels opposed to Gaddafi. Frattini expressed concern that NATO was losing the propaganda war to Gaddafi and that Western media reports did not emphasise enough the good work done by the alliance every day in protecting civilians in Libya. "We cannot continue our shortcomings in the way we communicate with the public, which doesn't keep up with the daily propaganda of Gaddafi," he said. Frattini image from article
The Failure of Rational Choice Philosophy - John McCumber, New York Times: After World War II, a ... variant gained momentum in America. It defined individualism as the making of choices so as to maximize one’s preferences. This differed from “selfish individualism” in that the preferences were not specified: they could be altruistic as well as selfish. It differed from “expressive individualism” in having general algorithms by which choices were made. These made it rational. This form of individualism did not arise by chance. Alex Abella’s “Soldiers of Reason” (2008) and S. M. Amadae’s “Rationalizing Capitalist Democracy” (2003) trace it to the RAND Corporation, the hyperinfluential Santa Monica, Calif., think tank, where it was born in 1951 as “rational choice theory.” Rational choice theory’s mathematical account of individual choice, originally formulated in terms of voting behavior, made it a point-for-point antidote to the collectivist dialectics of Marxism; and since, in the view of many cold warriors, Marxism was philosophically ascendant worldwide, such an antidote was sorely needed. Functionaries at RAND quickly expanded the theory from a tool of social analysis into a set of universal
doctrines that we may call “rational choice philosophy.” Governmental seminars and fellowships spread it to universities across the country, aided by the fact that any alternative to it would by definition be collectivist. During the early Cold War, that was not exactly a good thing to be. The overall operation was wildly successful. Once established in universities, rational choice philosophy moved smoothly on the backs of their pupils into the “real world” of business and government (aided in the crossing, to be sure, by the novels of another Rand—Ayn). Today, governments and businesses across the globe simply assume that social reality is merely a set of individuals freely making rational choices. Wars have been and are still being fought to bring such freedom to Koreans, Vietnamese, Iraqis, Grenadans, and now Libyans, with more nations surely to come. At home, anti-regulation policies are crafted to appeal to the view that government must in no way interfere with Americans’ freedom of choice. Even religions compete in the marketplace of salvation, eager to be chosen by those who, understandably, prefer heaven to hell. Today’s most zealous advocates of individualism, be they on Wall Street or at Tea Parties, invariably forget their origins in a long ago program of government propaganda." Image from article
ONE MORE QUOTATION FOR THE DAY
"The paradox of personalization and the self-expression promoted by the Internet through Twitter, Facebook, and even Chatroulette is that it simultaneously diminishes the value of personhood and individuality."
--Sue Halpern, New York Review of Books
AMERICANA
Image from: Princess Sparkle Pony, "Callista Gingrich Wants To Rock And Roll All Night, Party Every Day"
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