Monday, January 16, 2012

January 16


"Funeral Diplomacy"

--Jovan Kurbalij, "Funeral Diplomacy in Prague and Pyongyan," deepdip.wordpress.com; image from

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul's YouTube Presentation From a Public Diplomacy Perspective - John Brown, Huffington Post: "First, the negative [impressions about the presentation], from the perspective of U.S. public diplomacy with the Russian Federation, and especially its younger generation: 1. Repeated references to the Soviet Union (including showing a map of that former geographical expression), which collapsed some 20 years ago; 2. The fact that the Ambassador did not speak in Russian (as his predecessor did fluently on YouTube clips), except for a few words at the end of his remarks; 3. The use of the word 'help' (translated as pomogat' in the subtitle) in U.S. dealings with the Russian population. Of all things Russians dislike most about foreigners, it is condescension of any sort on their part; 4. No reference

to high Russian culture, except for Tchaikovsky (to which the Ambassador refers in the same breath as he does to Russian hockey)... 5. Irritating, feel-good background music that could be straight out of a U.S. TV commercial for a penile dysfunction pill. Positive: 1. Mentioning a new visa agreement that will make it easier for Russians to visit the U.S.; 2. An effort to reach out to the Russian 'provinces' by comparing them to the Ambassador's home state of Montana; 3. A 'down-to-earth' approach that might appeal to the 'muzhik' (regular guy) side in the character of many Russians; 4. Stress on people-to-people exchanges; 5. He did not go on for too long, as do so many Russian politicians." McFaul image from

Typical Types of diplomacy
- suchak-indian.blogspot.com: "The term Facebook diplomacy was coined sometime in October 2008 in casual notes exchanged on Twitter, in connection to U.S. President Barack Obama's electoral political campaign's keen use of Facebook and other social network websites.

The term Facebook diplomacy was further introduced and elaborated to describe the potential 'soft power' that can be created with Internet social networking tools like Facebook to counter terrorism, and interfere with repressive governments and militant groups in a discussion at a social networking and technology conference in December 2008 in New York. During the December conference in New York, the United States Undersecretary of Public Diplomacy, James Glassman said, 'New technology gives the United States and other free nations a significant advantage over terrorists.' In his presentation at New York's Columbia University Law School, he went on to illustrate how Facebook diplomacy and on-line activism created success through the use of Facebook groups and the use of the platform to create activism and cause global awareness relative to issues in Colombia against the infamous FARC rebels." Image from

Poland during and after the Cold War: Diplomacy and Public Diplomacy in One Country - Dick Virden, American Diplomacy: "Between 1978 and 1990, one of Poland’s native sons became the first non-Italian Roman Catholic Pope in more than 400 years and another led a political movement that overthrew an entrenched communist power. Both men won Nobel Peace Prizes for helping make Poland’s revolution non-violent as well as triumphant. Few countries could match the drama and history Poland jammed into this brief span. I was privileged to witness some of these events during two tours with the U.S. embassy in Warsaw. The observations that follow are based on my experience during these sharply contrasting eras. ... The theory [after the collapse of Communism] that we no longer required 'Cold War tools,' such as public diplomacy, led to USIA being folded into the State Department a few years ... . It was as if the end of the Cold War — and history — meant America no longer needed to explain and seek public support for its foreign policies. Really? Hollywood captured this myopia in 'Charlie Wilson’s War,' in which America coughs up billions to drive the Soviets out of Afghanistan but is unwilling to spare even chump change for schools and roads for our Afghan allies. We now know how that movie turned out."

Iran is jamming Al Jazeera via Arabsat. VOA Persian News Network jammed via Syria - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting: "[At]the Broadcasting Board of Governors meeting on 13 January, it was announced that

jamming of VOA Persian News Network originates in Syria. This locationing of the jamming source probably should be verified, but if it is Syria, perhaps the reason is that it is easier for the jamming transmitter to reach the satellite from Syria rather than Iran itself." Image from

Broadcasting Board of Governors: All Along The Watchtower – The Federalist: BBGWatcher, USG Broadcasts/BBG Watch: "Somehow the BBG, IBB and other senior staff seem to have forgotten that they are public officials. ... [T]he BBG/IBB vulnerable and expendable. It is ripe for the picking. The current administration – caught up in the national election cycle – can make a production out of eliminating it altogether or absorbing it into some other agency, in order to demonstrate for short-term political traction, that it is doing something to eliminate waste in the Federal Government. ... In today’s world, it’s all about timing, opportunity and perception. And the timing is bad for the BBG/IBB. Among other things, the agency has demonstrated itself to be the poorest of poor performers in the annual survey of Federal agencies and has institutionalized and solidified that position. ... One should not have confidence in the grand schemes of the BBG/IBB. They have reduced US international broadcasting to the category of an also-ran."

Cyber warfare on Israel is a serious threat': Public diplomacy and diaspora affairs minister rails against hacking attacks on Israeli companies, citizens - Gil Shefler, Jerusalem Post: "Cyber warfare is a serious threat to Israel's security, Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Yuli Edelstein said Monday, after hackers allegedly took down the Tel Aviv Stock

Exchange and El Al websites. ... 'The cyber war against Israel is very real,' he said. 'It's not just about writing Jews drink blood and something like that. It's an attack on [the Israeli air liner] El Al, on its companies and its people.'" Edelstein image from article

1000 Vietnamese farmers to study in Israel this summer - isria.com: "As part of the project, trainees from several Asian countries (mainly Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam) will come to Israel for an eleven-month combined work-study program in the regional councils of Ramat Negev and the central Arava. The project does not require funding by either the Vietnamese or the Israeli governments - the only cost is the plane tickets, borne by the farmers, who will be paid a monthly minimal wage during the 11-month program. mong the economic advantages of the program: the trainees will establish agricultural

farms in their own countries, spending tens of millions of dollars on advanced Israeli technologies - greenhouses, drip irrigation equipment, seeds, etc. As a result of the increase in the scope of the program, investments of Israeli companies in Vietnam are expected to increase, and the strengthening of agricultural-economic ties will bring millions of dollars to the Israeli economy. From a political point of view, the program will strengthen ties between Israel and Vietnam, eager for advanced agricultural training, high-tech and innovation-based. From the aspect of public diplomacy, thousands of trainees over the years return to their countries as good-will ambassadors of Israel and its advanced technologies." Image from

Perceived as evil: Pakistan, US, Israel & China - Coline Jaine, dawn.com: "[T]o those studying public diplomacy in the west, China appears as the master of quiet diplomacy."

Department of Defense: China’s development of weapons are not targeted at any country and specific goals - 3abc.ne: "International (reporter Yang Q, Wang Tao): Chinese Ministry of National Defense Major General Qian Lihua, director of the Foreign Affairs Office 16 in Beijing for China Radio International interview, reiterated that China firmly pursues a defensive national defense policy, the development of weapons and equipment to meet the needs of national security, not targeted at any country and specific goals. ... Qian said in recent years, as China’s rapid development and the military are being enhanced, by the Chinese army’s growing international concern, but from the international misunderstanding, doubt, suspicion began to rise. China attaches great importance to international concerns, explain to the world increased the intensity of the Chinese army. To this end, China has established a Ministry of Defense system of regular press conference and issued the '2010 China’s National Defense,' White Paper, to carry out military culture and sports exchanges, are also invited to an interview with foreign reporters into the barracks to visit. In the naval escort ships have visited the hospital ship visits and other foreign military operations, the Chinese people and army officers and soldiers of foreign exchange at close range, extensive interaction. These public diplomacy activities to enhance the international community China’s defense policy and army building understanding of the Chinese army to establish peace, cooperation, openness, self-confident image."

2012 Melbourne Conference on China: Global Media and Public Diplomacy in Sino-Western Relations - dgeneratefilms.com: "Date: Wednesday 30 May and Thursday 31 May 2012 Venue: The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia Organisers: The Asia Institute and the Centre for Advanced Journalism at the University of Melbourne, and Radio Australia of the ABC Website: www.chinastudies.unimelb.edu.au/conferences/2012 Contact: Conference-on-China@unimelb.edu.au The Asia Institute and the Centre for Advanced Journalism at the University of Melbourne and Radio Australia of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (the ABC) are jointly hosting the 2012 Melbourne Conference on China at the University of Melbourne

on Wednesday 30 May and Thursday 31 May 2012, and seek participation from journalists, media professionals, experts and academic scholars from all sectors and disciplines. The theme of this international conference is Global media and public diplomacy in Sino-Western relations." Image from

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Policy in 2011: A Breakthrough Year - milaz.info: "[T] have been hundreds of articles about Azerbaijan, many in outlets which had largely ignored the country in the past. That attention will only intensify over the coming months. Most of the coverage will be positive, not only because Azerbaijan has a good story to tell, but because its leaders, officials and diplomats are working more actively in this field of public diplomacy than ever before. President Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, and their daughter Leyla Aliyeva have all received international recognition for their efforts in this regard."

Perspectives on Politics: Critical Dialogue — Prepublication Version — Dr. Philip N. Howard and Evgeny Morozov (Part I, II, and III) - pitpi.org: Howard: "Public diplomacy can mean many things with regard to specific bilateral relations. But the Internet is now one of the primary means by which people in other countries keep in touch with family and friends living in the West, a supplementary means by which people expand their news diets

with international content, and an important means by which middle-class youth develop a political identity. So it would be delusional not to work toward some integration of digital media in the program of statecraft and give even the most seasoned foreign policy experts a better understanding of the new media environment. Dismissing digital media altogether would be dangerous for foreign policy." Image from

RELATED ITEMS

U.S. propaganda sends just the right message January 16, 2012 - Scott Taylor, on Traget: A couple of notable news stories from last week serve to illustrate just how effective modern propaganda can still be. The first is the shocking video of U.S. marine snipers in Afghanistan laughing as they urinate on the corpses of Taliban fighters. Once the video went viral on the Internet, the marine corps made all the right noises by vowing to investigate the matter thoroughly and to punish the perpetrators if their identity could be established. While the news headlines and official reaction registered the correct tone of shock and revulsion, it was distressing to see that those sentiments did not resonate with all Americans. The online comments were overwhelmingly supportive of the marines. Even more disturbing, the total disrespect shown to the dead combatants seemed to inspire a bizarre sense of U.S. nationalism.

Was American arrested for spying in Iran producing "propaganda games" for CIA? - Cory Doctorow, Boing Boing: It's one thing for Iran to arrest an American and sentence him to death for being a spy. It's a whole other thing when you say the spy made video games as propaganda for the CIA. Yet that's precisely one of the charges Iranian-American Amir Hekmati confessed to on Iranian television in December. (Let's remember that Iran routinely accuses foreigners of being spies, and there's no way of knowing exactly what methods were used to get Hekmati to read out his confession).Hekmati did once worked with

Kuma Games - a New York based game developer. Iran believes Kuma Games are CIA propagandists, that the company makes video games to disseminate a pro-USA message internationally. Some of Kuma Games' offerings are playable scenarios of real-world events. You can be a rebel trying to track down Gadhafi in Libya. You can join Team Six and kill Osama bin Laden. You can also be a soldier inserted in Iran, trying to sabotage their nuclear weapons program. But does that necessarily mean they're a CIA front? Entry includes video of BBC documentary on the topic. Image from

Number of Web users in China hits 513 million - David Pierson, Los Angeles Times: The number of Web users in China soared past 500 million last year, a tech-industry group said Monday, capping a period of explosive growth that has elevated Chinese Internet companies and challenged social and political discourse in the communist-controlled state. The government-run China Internet Network Information Center said Monday that the number of Web users in China grew 12% in December, to 513 million, compared with the same period in 2010.

Chinese Internet giants such as search engine Baidu Inc., news portal Sina Corp. and gaming and messaging service provider Tencent Holdings added millions of users, raising the profile of the increasingly lucrative sector. Image from article, with caption: Chinese youths at an Internet cafe in Beijing.

Somaliland closes TV station, arrests journalists - af.reuters.com: Somaliland has shut down a private television station it accuses of airing anti-government propaganda, and arrested 13 journalists as they held a protest against the move, a minister said on. Minister of Interior Mohamed Nour Arrale said that the government of the breakaway territory had suspended the licence of Horn Cable TV, which was taken off air on Saturday. "Its activities have been suspended for disseminating anti-Somaliland propaganda which contradicts the freedom of media," he said told reporters, without elaborating.

Jewish outcry on SBS series Leesha McKenny - A leading Jewish body is seeking to halt promotion and DVD sales of SBS series The Promise, a drama set in Israel and the occupied territories that it likened to Nazi propaganda.

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry said the British-made drama, inspired by accounts of British soldiers who served in Palestine during the 1940s, was anti-Semitic and in direct violation of the SBS code covering prejudice, racism and discrimination. Image from article, with caption: The Promise

Social Media Propaganda - Amy, "I created a few parody propaganda posters for social media. Or should I say, making fun of social media, targeting: Facebook. First we have the 'like' button. This is not only extremely overused, but Facebook users tend to go 'like' crazy, by telling all of their Facebook friends what their interests consist of…. okay, we get it. Here, we have a Chinese inspired propaganda poster."

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