July 19

"Air New Zealand hires people to shave their heads and emblazon temporary tattoos on their forehead with the slogan 'Need a change? Head down to New Zealand.'"

--Ferdinand Mount, The Times Literary Supplement (July 13, 2012), p. 3

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

Live video chat: US-India Higher Education Dialogue - ibnlive.in.com: "Watch live a video chat on US-India Higher Education Dialogue between US Under Secretary of State for Public Affairs and Public Diplomacy Tara Sonenshine and the Indian Ambassador to the US Nirupama Rao. The chat is moderated by Robert Blake, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs."

Urbanization and American National Security - Kori Schake, gt2030.com: "There are over twenty cities of more than a million people in which our State Department has no representation; where there are Embassies, they are literal bastions of American power inhospitable (because of security precautions) to engagement with civic groups. The Foreign Service spends nearly all of its resources on language training, yet the overwhelming majority of our diplomats lack the facility to participate in live debates in the native languages of the countries in which they are posted. This is the result of a system that prizes generalists; the nature of change in the international order demands specialist skills that we neither recruit or develop in our diplomats. While the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review acknowledges these shortcomings (even if it is somewhat breathless about the newness of developments that are not really new), State has not followed through with spending and managerial effort to redress them. Moreover, State

still treats shaping attitudes in other countries as a special skill — 'public diplomacy' — rather than the most important reason for posting diplomats abroad. As a society, we are predisposed to understand messy, small-ball mosaics of power and organization; as a government, we are typically too lazy or ignorant to operate that way. That must change. We must understand the complexity of other societies and navigate them effectively to build public support, not just engage the governments in power, if we want to remain successful in the international order Global Trends 2030 identifies." Image from

Dair Mar Elia, Mosul, Iraq - amazingpottery.com: "Dair Mar Elia (known in English as Saint Elijah’s Monastery) is an abandoned Christian monastery, the oldest in Iraq, dating from the 6th century. It is located in the Ninawa Governorate just south of Mosul. ... After the Iraq War, the site lay within Forward Operating Base Marez and American forces began to visit and later tend for the site. After being vacated by the retreating Iraqi Republican Guard, the 101st Airborne Division took charge of the area. Later, the 94th Engineer Battalion made a topographical survey of the monastery. Dair Mar Elia has been fenced off to protect the site and military chaplains guide soldiers on tours of the ruins. These actions were part of a long-term effort to help local Iraqis become more aware of the site as well as to promote the awareness for historic preservation. In May 2008, Iraqi archaeologists were able to visit the areas for the first time since before the Second Gulf War. While portions needed protection from the elements, other areas that were largely unexcavated had been protected from looters. ... [A]rchaeology students from the University of Mosul were invited inside the secure U.S. base to work on the monastery excavation, says Diane Crow, a public diplomacy officer in Mosul. Then, in June, a dean in the College of Agriculture was assassinated. Crow says she’s hopeful she can persuade students and professors to come in the fall."

Japan: Much Love and Thanks - Tokyonancysnow, tokyonancysnow.wordpress.com: "I cannot believe that our semester together at Sophia University is coming to an end. I very much look forward to your final papers. As you know, they are due Wednesday, August 1, 2012. I’ve asked you to create something new out of your imagination. Your paper is a blueprint for your own self-designed organization to tell America’s cultural story to the world. (In the politics and policy class, you must tell America’s foreign policy story to the world.) I am making you the architect, the visionary, and CEO of this new agency.

What is your main theme? What organizational divisions will you have, e.g., exchanges, international broadcasting, arts, online? How is it different from the way I describe the United States Information Agency in Propaganda, Inc.? Would you include celebrities in your public diplomacy? Why or why not? ... Tokyo Nancy Snow Fulbright Professor teaching American Foreign Policy and American Culture at Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan" Image from article

Olives and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict - exchangediplomacy.com: "Written by Nadia Hakim, Managing Editor and Public Diplomacy graduate student, Syracuse University. ... This summer I’ve been working with the Near East Foundation in the West Bank. The Near East Foundation (NEF) is the oldest development organization in the United States. In recent years, much of the organization’s focus has been on providing development support and assistance to countries in the Middle East and Africa. Based in Syracuse, NEF has offices around the world including Morocco, Egypt, and Lebanon. There is even an office in the West Bank, where I spent six weeks working on NEF’s Olive Oil Without Borders project. ... Olive Oil Without Borders is a project that is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development focusing on building relationships between Israeli and Palestinian olive farmers, mill operators, and business owners through economic cooperation.

They have worked together to identify the common problems that they are facing in the olive oil sector, and they will continue working with each other toward solutions. The hope is for the project to continue beyond direct assistance and be completely self-sustaining over the next few years. ... Being in the West Bank, I was reminded that public diplomacy is about people. In spite of the occupation and checkpoints, the Palestinians are some of the kindest people that I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. Within my first days there, I stumbled into my neighbor’s garden one afternoon and she insisted on having me stay with her cousins for tea, pastries, and ice cream. Every other day was spent eating a home-cooked meal and drinking tea at someone’s house. Israel restricts where the Palestinians are allowed to travel, and many are unable to leave the West Bank. As a result, they are obsessed with foreigners and want to know everything about the outside world. They ask why I am an American, but do not have blonde hair and blue eyes. They complain that American movies always show Arabs as terrorists. They wonder why Lady Gaga is so crazy. They ask that I never forget them or Palestine." Image from entry, with caption: Nadia in the Palestinian Authority

Anonymous Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty journalist decries human rights violations at the U.S.-funded broadcaster - BBGWatch, USG Broadcasts/BBG Watch: "Alsou Taheri is the pseudonym of a journalist working at Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) in Prague, a U.S. government-funded broadcasting station and Internet news provider managed by the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), a U.S. federal agency. From Prague, RFE/RL targets 21 countries, with 18 of its 28 broadcasting languages spoken predominantly by Muslim people — notes the author in an article on the English-language online regional news website News.Az based in Baku, Azerbaijan. The article points out that the great majority of RFE/RL editorial staffers are foreigners hired on work contracts, which — the author charges — 'intentionally deprive them of legal protection – be it in the United States or in the Czech Republic.'”

VOA lured Macedonian musician from classical to jazz. And more history of Western broadcasts in the news - Kim Andrew Elliot reporting on International Broadcasting

Israel looks East and into the 21th Century - Nimrod Asulin, ekurd.net: "Israel vows to expand its ties with China and India but has to consider America’s approach in order to avoid jeopardizing the alliance. Whilst Israel is focusing on China, it would better serve its long term interests by betting on India. In 1992, Israel broadly expanded its international relations, taking advantage of the fall of the Soviet Union’s Iron Curtain. Notwithstanding, improving ties with the eastern powerhouses of China and India was not a primary focus up until few years ago. Recently, Israeli leaders have made successive high profile visits to China, while engaging in considerable public diplomacy efforts vis-à-vis the Chinese people. ... When the new geo-political order of the 21th century will materialize approximately 10-20 years from now, Israel has to be fully on the Americans side, as the alliance with the U.S. is its most precious asset.

Thus, Israel ought to deeply consider any diplomatic maneuver it conducts nowadays in order to avoid snags with the U.S. India is likely to play a main role in the international arena in the upcoming decades. Although India's dependence on Iranian crude oil has put many hinders on the current sanctions campaign against the Islamic Republic, in the long term, India is likely to change its policies due to its necessary to feed a rapidly growing population and balance China." Image from

america china not to use soft power by force to b [sic] - fieldoffashion.info: "China has become a millions of dollars to establish a Confucius Institute around the world for huge sums of money on a cultural exchange programs, play videos on the electronic billboard in Times Square in New York. In addition, some of the best universities in China will be public diplomacy as a discipline to train the next generation of experts in this field. invested so much money and effort, the result? Around the world, polls show that in some parts of Africa, China’s popularity on the rise because of China to help in these areas to build roads and stadiums. However, in some Chinese seek to expand the influence of the region, it is also accused of do not care about the local political and economic life. China’s public diplomacy officers, academics, to promote the enthusiasm of the Chinese public diplomacy is clearly visible, but unfortunately they lack of overall planning. Responsible for the promotion of China’s public diplomacy staff also need a better understanding of the principle of mutual understanding and accommodation of superpower diplomacy. They should understand that if the multilateral relations is taking shape, reciprocity becomes very important. If China wants to export the Confucius Institute and the United States and other countries, it must be allowed to establish a cultural center in China. If China wants to extend to the world, it must allow other countries to broadcasters established in China to their own international broadcasting industry. However, China is determined to become the important If the United States and other countries insist on public diplomacy with China, China may be more open, which in turn also cause China to continue to rely on soft power, seeking to develop."

Senior diplomat the South China Sea issue , the u [sic] - i521.org: "[T]he CPPCC Provincial Committee and Guangdong Provincial Public Diplomacy Council invited the senior diplomat, former Ambassador to France Wu Jianmin Laiyue of our foreign policy and public diplomacy."

'India-Australia ties on the mend’ - Y-Axis Australia Blog: "After a lost decade of nagging tensions and bad publicity, Australia-India relationship is on the mend, according to a report brought together by Indians and Australians with decades of experience in diplomacy, public policy and media.

Launched in Sydney on Tuesday and made available to The Hindu here, the report by the Australia India Institute’s Perceptions Task Force aims to answer questions relating to the state of bilateral ties, how the two peoples and nations view each other and how these perceptions are being formed in the era of rapid, global communications. The report suggests a dramatic improvement in the perception of Australia in India since concerns about the safety of Indian students triggered a media firestorm in 2009-10. Indians once again rank Australia as a top ten country; a well-governed, business, tourist and student-friendly destination. Yet the relationship remains brittle and bold initiatives are needed to consolidate progress and chart a course towards deeper ties. Image from article

US-India-China and the indian ocean: impact on Sri Lanka - Neville Ladduwahetty, lankaweb.com: "The resolution on Sri Lanka at the recently held UNHRC secessions in Geneva has caused Sri Lanka to reassess the effectiveness of its investment in the deployment of diplomatic capital – its soft power.

A direct consequence of this assessment has been to summon Heads of Sri Lankan Mission for a briefing by the President who emphasized the need to focus on Public Diplomacy and to realign its missions abroad. This has resulted in opening new diplomatic missions in Africa and South America while closing established missions in parts of Europe. While realignment of missions in keeping with evolving global trends would be beneficial, awareness of developments in the ‘near abroad’, namely developments in the Indian Ocean itself and in the countries in the Indian Ocean Rim, would complement the benefits because of their potential to affect Sri Lanka’s national interests." Image from article, with caption: A section of the diplomats who participated in the Residential Workshop for Heads of Sri Lankan Missions, at Diyatalawa

Public Diplomacy with Digital Diplomacy - Vasileios Gkinopoulos, vasgk.com: "Social Media has dramatically shifted the ground rules of Public Diplomacy.

As Public Diplomacy always seeks to expand the ways in which it informs and engages with people; Social Media offers a way to conduct that in real-time with much broader reach; and support current Public Diplomacy campaigns." Image from

Guest Post: What’s More Important Than Olympic Gold? - Sulagna Misra, medalheads.wordpress.com: "This is another great guest post by another one of my sharp Master’s of Public Diplomacy peers, Denise Luu. ... Sulagna Misra is a graduate student in the Master’s of Public Diplomacy Program at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism and School of International Relations. She is making a documentary on the fans attending the Olympic Games and creating a social media campaign to include all fans near and far."

RELATED ITEMS

Hey, Ralph Lauren, sweatshops aren't chic - Olympic gear shouldn't come from such factories — ours or theirs - Robert J.S. Ross, latimes.com: The Ralph Lauren firm physically produces nothing: It is a design, marketing and licensing operation that hires factories to make its stuff. The company has had the U.S. Olympic team deal since 2008. Perhaps it is the high unemployment rate or the in-your-face patriotism induced by an election year, but the news that Lauren's prep-chic outfits are made in China has produced a rare bipartisan storm of criticism. Olympic athletes will wear their gear at the peak of world attention, clothed by a billionaire's company hired by a committee of notables. Toiling at the bottom of the pyramid, for meager pay and under terrible conditions, are those who cut, sew, press and pack the clothing. Image from

Chinese Propaganda Makes a Good Point About American Propaganda - John Hudson We poke fun at China's media a lot here at Propaganda Parade, but today we have nothing but praise for the Middle Kingdom. This morning, China's state-run news agency Xinhua published an editorial slamming U.S. politicians for their recent outrage over the made-in-China uniforms of the U.S. Olympic team. In case you missed it, lawmakers bristled at the news that the Ralph Lauren outfits were made in China rather than the United States. "I think they should take all the outfits, put them in a big pile and burn them and start all over," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said. Today's editorial is having none of it: "The fury over the U.S. Olympic uniforms is just another example of the fierce, and sometimes ridiculous, political fighting going on the Capitol Hill in the year of election, which is dominated by economic growth and job creation. By criticizing Ralph Lauren for outsourcing jobs, the politicians attempted to reap political gains by portraying themselves as a champion of insourcing U.S. jobs so as to attract greater support among U.S. voters ... The Olympic Spirit, which has nothing to do with politics, chants mutual understanding and fair play, so tagging the uniforms with politics by those U.S. politicians exposes narrow nationalism and ignorance, and violates the original Olympic Spirit."

Hired Gun Fight: Obama's aid chief takes on the development-industrial complex - John Norris, Foreign Affairs: Rajiv Shah, President Barack Obama's U.S. Agency for International Development administrator, is waging a high-stakes battle to make U.S. foreign aid programs less dependent on American for-profit contractors. At the same time, he's aiming to roughly double the amount of assistance that flows directly to governments and local organizations in the developing world.

A Geography of Twitter - oii.ox.ac.uk: The six largest countries in terms of information production through Twitter are: (1) the United States, (2) Brazil, (3) Indonesia, (4) the United Kingdom, (5) Mexico, and (6) Malaysia. It is interesting to note that only two of the countries on that list are in the Global North and are traditional hubs of the production of codified knowledge.

After the Battle: Winning Back Hearts and Minds - Guest Contributor Thomas Preece, Whirled View: The American military is in a war with itself, and US society can't afford it. Fewer soldiers have been killed in combat in the Iraq/Afghanistan conflicts than have killed themselves. Army suicides are said to have grown 80 percent since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003. Secretary Leon Panetta recently announced visionary goals for reducing the suicide rates. Let’s hope he succeeds.

The Coming Defense Crack-Up: The Commander in Chief smiles into a damaging sequester - Review and Outlook, Wall Street Journal: Defense shouldn't be immune from cuts, but Mr. Obama's policy choices are turning America into an entitlement state with a shrinking military—in other words, Europe. The U.S. would be left with the smallest Navy since World War I, the smallest ground forces in 70 years, and at just over 2.5% of GDP the smallest defense budget since Pearl Harbor. Image from

Propaganda: The Language of Empire - Daniel McAdams, lewrockwell.com: Only in the mental illness that is the US media, lost in its sordid love affair with the national security state, could you see the acceleration of US military preparations for an attack on Iran termed "defensive moves." Yet once again proving that its crude nickname is every bit as accurate as its legal name, the War Street Journal tells us under the headline "Pentagon Bulks Up Defenses in the Gulf" that: "The Pentagon is building a missile-defense radar station at a secret site in Qatar and organizing its biggest-ever minesweeping exercises in the Persian Gulf, as preparations accelerate for a possible flare-up with Iran, according to U.S. officials." Defending the United States — by attacking a country 6,300 miles away that has neither attacked nor threatened attack on the US. Once again it is useful to turn to the great Eric Blair: “Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.” — George Orwell

Looking for a Syrian endgame - David Ignatius, Washington Post: The Syrian denouement promises to be much bloodier and more destabilizing than what happened in Libya. It’s a measure of U.S. caution that officials speak not of preventing sectarian violence after Assad is toppled but of keeping it from spinning out of control. The United States still wants Russian help in managing the Syrian transition, but officials warn that as the situation becomes more violent, the window for effective international cooperation may be closing.

Assassination in Damascus - Editorial, New York Times: It is getting steadily harder to understand how Russian leaders think their stubborn support for Mr. Assad and his reign of terror could help them, the Syrian people or regional stability. Instead of digging in their heels on an indefensible cause — and trying to outmaneuver the United States — they could be contributing to a practical diplomatic solution.

Republicans and Russia: The House would help Putin if it kills a trade bill - Review and Outlook, Wall Street Journal: Who says Congress never does anything? On Wednesday the Senate Finance Committee voted unanimously to expand trade with Russia while including an important human-rights codicil. If reluctant House Republicans now act, Vladimir Putin will have something to think about.

The Senate bill establishes permanent normal trade relations with Russia, which is needed if the U.S. is going to take advantage of the Kremlin's decision to join the World Trade Organization next month. But the bill also bans officials of any country implicated in human-rights abuses from travelling to or banking in the U.S. Putin image from

About the Irrelevancy Thing at State… - Peter Van Buren, We Meant Well: An online State Department pamphlet, A Safe Trip Abroad, that appears to have been written in 1955 by the Beaver’s mother. “To help avoid becoming a target, do not dress in a way that could mark you as an affluent tourist,” it scolds. “If you wear glasses, pack an extra pair.” “Bring travelers’ checks.” Do they even sell those anymore? Has anyone tried to cash a travelers’ check in this decade? “If possible, lock your luggage.” Oops, if you do that TSA will simply break the lock to inspect your underwear before you even board the plane. “Make two photocopies of your… airline tickets.” R i g h t… who out there is old enough to even remember paper aero-plane tickets?

State Dept OIG [Office of Inspector general] Reports: Oh, Redactions, Is Double Standard Thy True Name? - Domani Spero, DiploPundit

Propaganda Campaign Grows in North Korea as Kim Jong Un Consolidates Power: Wednesday's announcement, combined with a pervasive propaganda push, suggests that the new leader is firmly in control - Austin Ramzy, Time: Even before Wednesday’s noontime “special announcement” that Kim Jong Un had been named to the top military title of marshal, there were signs that the young heir of deceased dictator Kim Jong Il was shoring up his standing as ruler of the isolated state. North Korea announced on Monday that military chief Ri Yong Ho had been removed from all his party and government positions, a move that was attributed only to “his illness.”

And in the months before, the country was blanketed with propaganda meant to elevate the status of the status of Kim, who after the death of his father in December was quickly elevated to the top of North Korea’s leadership. Image from article, with caption: Kim Jong Un, front, is accompanied by officers of the Korean People's Army.

Alchemist Talks 'Russian Roulette' Album and Soviet Union Propaganda - Alex Gale, billboard.com: More than "artist" or "producer," the job description of "designer" is perhaps the best way to classify Alchemist's role on the album, a 30-track-deep conceptual montage of obscure, cacophonic loops; spacy sound effects; and retro vocal clips inspired by a recent trip to the former Soviet Union. The visit clearly had an impact on the hip-hop impresario, who was born and raised in Beverly Hills, Calif. "Russia's underrated -- it's bad-ass," Alchemist says, half-joking. "If you grew up in the '80s during the Cold War, you grew up thinking, 'Russia: bad.' Remember [the 1984 film] 'Red Dawn'? I really thought Soviet troopers were going to run up in my sixth grade class. So I've got to give Russia props."

AMERICANA

Binge drinking increases risk of cognitive decline - Janice Lloyd, USA Today: Moderate drinking and binge drinking among older people increase the risk for cognitive decline and memory loss, according to two studies presented today at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference 2012 in Vancouver, Canada. Binge drinking appears to be a big problem in the USA. The findings follow a study in January by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting that one in six adults in the USA are binge drinkers and those in the 65-plus age group binge-drink more often than any other age group. In that survey, binge drinking is defined as men having five or more drinks within a short period of time and women having four or more drinks.

SOVIETICA

--From Soviet Posters on Safety Measures"

IMAGE

--Via G B-L on Facebook