July 26

“Life doesn't imitate art, it imitates bad television.”

--Woody Allen; image from

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

Department of State Announces Two New Science Outreach Platforms - Media Note, Office of the Spokesperson, U.S. Department of State: "On July 25, Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns announced the creation of Networks of Diasporas in Engineering and Science, or NODES, at an event organized by the Office of the Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary of State (STAS). At the same event, Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Tara Sonenshine launched the Science, Technology and Innovation Expert Partnership.

NODES is a joint effort among STAS, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and the National Academy of Sciences to convene diasporas with skills in science disciplines to build their capacity to develop and influence effective policies and connect their talents with needs in their countries of origin." Image from

Saving Educational Exchanges with Ireland - guest post by Anne Glusker, chronicle.com: "The U.S. State Department has recently decided to cut all funds for the George J. Mitchell Scholarship program for fiscal year 2013. Born out of the peace process in Northern Ireland in which former Sen. George Mitchell played a pivotal role, the Mitchell program at its inception was intended to strengthen and modernize the relationship between the island of Ireland and the United States. But the scholarship has taken on a life of its own and has become about much more. It has evolved into a sort of laboratory for future American leaders and is now just as much about leadership development as it is about relations with Ireland. In just 12 years and with almost 150 alumni, the scholarship has come to be mentioned in the same breath as the Rhodes and the Marshall, quite a feat for such a young program. And given that the program’s operating budget of less than $500,000 annually represents just .08 percent of the budget of a single State Department bureau, Educational and Cultural Affairs, one has to wonder just what kind of signal State is trying to send. The State Department says the reason it cut support for the Mitchell program had nothing to do with the worth of the program but rather with shifting global priorities, which have moved away from Europe and toward more in-the-headlines trouble spots such as the Middle East.

And of course, no one would argue that in the aftermath of the Arab Spring, the Middle East is more important than ever – both for American foreign policy and for public diplomacy initiatives such as educational exchanges. But whatever changes have taken place in foreign policy priorities in recent years, priorities in education are an entirely different story. As Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a big point of mentioning just over a year ago, only a scant 1 percent of all American students study abroad, and the statistics on the number of Americans who hold passports is famously low. Europe has a long tradition of being a comfortable destination for American young people heading overseas for the first time – whether to study or to travel. Students from the United States who might be hesitant to study in a non-English-speaking country will feel at home in a place where they can speak their own language. And unlike England or Scotland, the island of Ireland offers the rich history and lessons — both in academe and in society at large." Image from article, with caption: Mitchell scholars visit University College Cork in Ireland.

Final Exam Paper - blakestilwell.com: "This is a final exam essay written for my Introduction to Public Diplomacy course, written by a highly idealistic, relatively young man who has obviously just begun his studies of the Middle East. ... [from the exam:] It is essential to challenge the perception of the United States as a cowboy nation, doing whatever it pleases at whatever cost with the perception of the United States as a philanthropic nation whose power is projected through real improvements in the lives of citizens of allied nations around the world. Foremost this requires the efforts of not just the Department of State, but also the Department of Defense (with its enormous budget) to implement infrastructure planning and building in foreign nations along with training the citizenry to maintain these efforts and even develop and build infrastructure on their own.

With this, the strategy of developing a friendly brand includes publicizing these efforts. Developing a legitimate media network throughout the region to compete with other points of views is necessary to combat disinformation from other sources that are more developed and established as well as disseminate information about true information to a population that relies on numerous sources to receive news. The United States will create tangible changes that will directly affect the people in the region to better their lives and show the people in that region exactly how they accomplished these feats. These efforts will be costly but they will provide the most goodwill for the longest time." Image from entry

Study finds world leaders take to Twitter, but new ‘Twiplomacy’ has its limits - Social Website Guru: "A new study finds almost two-thirds of world leaders now have a Twitter account, but many don’t bother to follow each other. The 'Twiplomacy' study Thursday by PR firm Burson-Marsteller says President Barack Obama is the most-followed world leader, including by 76 of his peers and other governments. It says his May 9 tweet that 'same-sex couples should be able to get married' is the most re-tweeted to date. Burson-Marsteller’s Matthias Luefkens says 16 of the Group of 20 world leaders actively use Twitter for public diplomacy, but their counterparts in China, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Italy have yet to join."

What the World Costs - Kurdistan - Paul Rockower, Levantine: 159,900 dinar ($130): 1 night suite at Amenuel Hotel as

per my commitment to media and public diplomacy 28,000,000 dinar ($22,400): bag money from the ministry." Image from

Report: VOA "pirate radio station" Studio 7, to Zimbabwe, faces large budget cut - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting

Riding the digital revolution makes governance sense - Madhurjya Kotoky, publicdiplomacyblog.com: "These are exciting times to be in the business of communications. The media landscape is dynamic and evolving rapidly. With Web 2.0 technologies, media’s role has changed from a medium to inform to one that engages and empowers. It’s possible to tell a story in 140 characters now, spark off revolutions by a tweet and carry the power of publishing in our pockets. This revolution has touched every person, institution and nation. With the responsibility to collect and manage massive amounts of data and the principal role of public information, governments worldwide realize that it makes great ‘governance sense’ to ride this revolution and use it as a force multiplier in its efforts to serve, engage and empower. Governments worldwide are going through a fundamental change in the way they interact with their citizens, driven by the near-universal adoption of Web 2.0 offerings. Today, there are numerous examples from all across the world of governments adopting social media from delivery of public services to the conduct of foreign policy. ... Propaganda [:] This engagement is not limited to management and delivery of public services alone.China for instance has its ‘50-cent army’ created to dominate online conversations and shape public opinion within and abroad. The country has employed nearly 300,000 people to push the government line by posting to the many forums, blogs and bulletin boards available on the World Wide Web. While the government line is supported by these ‘soldiers’ who are apparently paid 50 cents for each post they are also active on overseas forums to counter any negative publicity that China gets abroad. When CNN journalist Jack Cafferty made his famous ‘goons and thugs’ comment for Chinese politicians the 50-cent army was active shaping online conversations in favor of China. ... Public Diplomacy [:] The Public Diplomacy Division of the Government of India is also one of the most active departments of the Indian government on social media. Apart from numerous digital engagement campaigns one that particularly stood out in recent times include the ‘India is…’ Global Video Contest launched on YouTube. A global initiative, it is aimed at encouraging individuals and countries around the world to think of India in interesting, pervasive and positive ways and submit a 3 minute video film about India on different themes like colorful, creativity etc. This is currently an ongoing program and winners will be announced on March, 2013. The Division has a strong presence on Twitter and its twitter page was a major channel of communication during the NATO – led war in Libya. The government’s use of twitter to communicate real time with Indians stranded in Libya and facilitate their evacuation is a much admired case study of the use of social media by a government department."

Public Diplomacy vs Nation Branding - Madhurjya Kotoky, publicdiplomacyblog.com: Comments to this entry: "Hi Madhur, This is Efe. I am currently at American University writing my doctoral dissertation on power and public diplomacy. Thank you for the nice post. I have a couple of points to add, if you don't mind. Let me start with a disclaimer. I am yet to understand the relation between public diplomacy and nation branding (and international relations/communication) myself. Nation branding is, I would say, a misleading name. It automatically makes people think about logos, slogans, visuals, ads - everything based on a mere exposure understanding. Unfortunately, most of the nation branding campaigns out there are carried out by marketing firms and solely rely on message dumping. Yet, a proper nation branding understanding includes inputs from internal and external audiences. It aims to create an identity for a given nation / region / city / place. (Simon Anholt, for instance, argues that 2% of nation branding is communication).

Shortly, I argue that nation branding is a development exercise (and then you are expected to share the outcomes of the development move). It is not really the cover of a book in that sense, ut is the book and the drafts you wrote before the final copy. What do you think? Efe Reply Madhurjya Kotoky May 9, 2012 10:36 PM Thank you for your comments Efe. As a professional communicator myself I believe brand building process happens over time in several stages. Creating an identity for a nation is a mix of conscious and unconscious efforts steeped in history and politics etc. I am not too sure how much of it can be controlled. You are absolutely right that for marketing firms is not any more than message dumping. PD on the other hand seems more of a method and a force multiplier for generating 'influence' and has the scope to be more dynamic than 'nation branding'. Good to connect with you. Hope to continue this conversation. -- Madhur" Image from

Fourth Reich Lays an Egg - venitism.blogspot.com: "From all the slave countries of Fourth Reich, Greece has the worst diplomacy. Greece applies negative public diplomacy by persecuting dissident bloggers and journalists. It's ironic and funny for Fourth Reich to criticize foreign countries, when its member country Greece persecutes dissident bloggers, violates human rights, and applies kangaroo justice. Fourth Reich should rein in Graecokleptocrats and kangaroo judges first before accusing foreign kleptocrats of misconduct. Clean your own house first, before opening your mouth about the dirt in other houses. ... Public diplomacy is the process by which an international actor conducts foreign policy by engaging a foreign public. Public diplomacy has five components: listening, advocacy, cultural diplomacy, exchange diplomacy, and international broadcasting. Sinokleptocrats try to buy friends by cultivating influential figures in developing countries in the hope of displacing Western influence and values. China is demonstrating a growing sophistication and determination in this endeavor."

Quarterly public diplomacy: how Beijing - jasonarchi.allmyblog.com: "Years to, world pattern in-depth adjustment, my integrated strength and influence continued rose, but international opinion of discourse right still master in Westerners hands. in such of large background Xia, how improved I international image, and enhanced soft strength became I diplomatic work important topics. traditional of Government between diplomatic in improved public image Shang has its limitations, and local foreign affairs sector relying on city image this a interactive platform, played

daniel roth Watches GEO-and resources advantage, has targeted to-oriented abroad public carried out city public diplomatic, has very high of flexibility,¡¡¡¡Can easily be accepted by foreign public. practice has proved that the urban communication are an effective means of carrying out public diplomacy should also be important ways to actively develop. 'Little Ambassador' building bridges of friendship in May 2009, in recognition of Mr gangtianzhuo to promote Sino-Japanese friendly exchanges between the two peoples and the contribution to the ecological environment construction in Beijing, the Beijing Municipal Government has granted Mr gangtianzhuo 'Beijing glory [']." Image from

RELATED ITEMS

HIV prevention done right: Local control is vital to the success of anti-AIDS efforts in other countries - Daniel Halperin, Los Angeles Times: When powerful Western donors set out to help people in poorer parts of the world, they sometimes end up creating more problems. However, when done properly, with local communities and their leaders centrally engaged, international health initiatives can save millions of lives.

Haiti Says G’bye to Ambassador Merten While AP Complains About the $1.8 Billion Reconstruction Promise - Domani Spero, DiploPundit: "Even when US contractors were willing to release the information on the Haiti reconstruction, apparently they become unreleasable because the information is considered “proprietary” by their funder. And who is the funder? USAID. To my last recollection, USAID is still run by the U.S. government, and funded by U.S. taxpayers."

Chinese maker of U.S. Olympic uniforms baffled by backlash: Li Guilian has built Dayang Trands into a $300-million company that tailors clothing for some of the world's most famous brands and powerful people - David Pierson, Los Angeles Times: "I have a simple question," said the bespectacled, raspy voiced Li in an interview at company headquarters in this industrial seaside city in northeastern China.

"Can America really make the suits we make? We have cheaper costs here so you can have cheaper prices in America." U.S. officials, she said with a wry smile, really ought to get a grip. "Pay attention to the performances of the U.S. athletes and not their clothes," she said. Image from

The ‘day after’ in Syria - David Ignatius, Washington Post: The best thing that can be said about this administration’s foreign policy is that it’s patient. Officials seem confident that a process is in place that will eventually lead to Assad’s fall. The situation reminds me of last summer in Libya, when critics were demanding escalation to prevent a stalemate. The administration was right to keep its cool then, and now.

Stockpiling arms against cyberattacks - Editorial Board, Washington Post: An open, vigorous debate is needed about the threat of cyberwar and the potential response. We had a decades-long debate about nuclear weapons, and it was healthy for the country and the world. We ought to bring the discussion about offensive cyber-conflict out of the shadows.

No bailout coming for European culture: Funding for the arts is a casualty of economic crisis - Roland Flamini, The Washington Times: A Rome court that monitors the government budget has warned that new austerity cutbacks in public spending on culture is putting the country’s immense heritage of museums and historic sites in jeopardy. In its review of Prime Minister Mario Monti’s recent attempts to bring Italy’s huge debt under control, the so-called Court of Auditors — roughly equivalent to the U.S. Government Accountability Office — cautioned that the 2012 reductions are likely to result in neglect and deterioration of the country’s monuments, museums and archaeological sites. Elsewhere in Europe, repercussions from the cutbacks were plentiful. In Greece, the poster child of the eurozone's economic debacle, sporadic closings of museums and archaeological sites followed layoffs of more than 10 percent of the ministry of culture's staff. In June, a television commercial paid for by the nation's leading archaeologists warned that reductions in security personnel at museums have led to a spike in artifact thefts.

In the United Kingdom, leading figures in the cultural world led the protest against government plans to cut 30 percent of its overall 2014-2015 subsidy to the Arts Council, the main body that dispenses funds to British cultural organizations. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s stringent budget cuts included lopping $12 million from the appropriation of the Cervantes Institute, which advances Spanish culture overseas, forcing the cancellation of many of its programs. In March, the government in hard-pressed Portugal went one further and abolished its ministry of culture altogether. Despite the crisis atmosphere, two countries increased their arts and culture budgets. Germany, the EU’s only solvent state, appropriated 7 percent of its budget for the culture sector, a slight increase over the previous year. The French government also voted a nominal increase to fulfill a campaign promise by President Francois Hollande. In Paris, a 17th-century building on the grounds of Versailles will shortly open as a luxury hotel: The administrators of the landmark site don’t have the $7 million it would take to restore it. And in Rome, the Italian entrepreneur Diego della Valle, who makes the highly expensive Tod handbags, won an agreement to donate $32 million toward restoring the Colosseum where gladiators entertained Roman emperors by killing each other. In return, Mr. Della Valle has exclusive use of the Colosseum image for 10 years. Image from article, with caption: Scaffolding now encases part of Rome’s Trevi Fountain, shown at night in an undated photo, as experts survey damage. Stone and stucco sections of the fountain have broken off.

Israel’s Settlers Are Here to Stay - Dani Dayan, New York Times: If the international community relinquished its vain attempts to attain the unattainable two-state solution, and replaced them with intense efforts to improve and maintain the current reality on the ground, it would be even better. The settlements of Judea and Samaria are not the problem — they are part of the solution.

Recycled Propaganda from Libya: Media Hysteria Over Syrian Government "Bombings" of Aleppo: If tired WMD lies won't convince the public to back foreign intervention, perhaps recycled lies from Libya? - Tony Cartalucci, globalresearch.ca: NATO and its allies see Syria's vigorous defense capabilities as an obstacle to Western-planned regime change - therefore if neutralizing them through covert means is not possible, they will attempt to neutralize them by declaring them a threat to "civilians," invoking "Responsibility to Protect," and initiating foreign military intervention.

Intense Anti-Assad Propaganda - Stephen Lendman, indybay.org: Western propaganda is relentless. Media scoundrels regurgitate official misinformation and bald-faced lies. Truth and full disclosure are verboten. Judith Miller is back. In fact, she never went away. Earlier she fell from grace for shilling for GW Bush's Iraq war. She wrote daily propaganda pieces. She was a Pentagon press agent. She still is. She’s not a legitimate journalist. After Syrian officials were killed last week, she called its defense apparatus "decapitated." In fact, those killed were quickly replaced. Syrian forces routed Western death squads in Damascus and elsewhere. It's battling them in Aleppo. It's the nation's largest city and commercial hub. Expect a similar result there. Assad's government remains in control overall. Miller did what she does best. She lied and never says she's sorry.

"Al Qaida in Syria" As Propaganda For Intervention - moonofalabama.org: It seems every news outlet is suddenly confirming what the Syrian president Assad has claimed months ago. To a quite large part the insurgency in Syria consists of foreign Salafi fighters.

The Insanity of Anti-Iran Propaganda - Nima Shirazi, mwcnews.net: This morning's Up With Chris does an excellent job setting the record straight: [O]ut-of-context, demonization propaganda is now in full swing with regard to the recent tragic terrorist bombing in the coastal Bulgarian town of Burgas that targeted Israeli tourists. The difference is that such propaganda, unlike that of U.S. presidential campaign mudslinging, is a matter of life and death and establishes disgusting falsehoods as facts that race around the internet and the world, forever defining the narrative, obscuring the truth, and perpetuating pervasive mythologies that permeate our already skewed discourse on the issues of Iran, Israel, U.S. foreign policy and, now, the Burgas bus bombing.

N.Korea sends propaganda leaflets to South - english.ruvr.ru: North Korea used balloons to send 16,000 propaganda leaflets across the South Korean frontier, reports say quoting an official source in Seoul.

The leaflets contain criticism of President Lee Myung-bak's administration. It is the first time North Korea has dropped such leaflets since promising not to slander Seoul at a landmark 2000 summit, a source in the ministry said. The South's military resumed the distribution of anti-Pyongyang leaflets in late 2010 after the North shelled a border island and killed four South Koreans. Lee Myung-bak image from article

Understanding Climate Change: Powerpoint and Propaganda - Chris Eberhardt, worldpolicy.org: Quite often the message on the streets in China is not one of climate change, but rather one of carbon. The propaganda (宣传)/public service announcements’ (PSAs) (公益宣传) machine that is used to instruct citizens on how to cross the street, ride the trains during the holidays and use public toilets in a civilized way (文明), has also been retooled to address climate change.

The message is one of living the “low carbon life and rdquo” (低碳生活)— quite often the characters for climate change are absent. Chinese youth are told in subway restrooms that saving paper reduces carbon. Television commercials using celebrities cite the carbon-cutting benefits of using less plastic bags in a grocery store, and community sign-boards instruct one to live the low-carbon life by using a fan instead of air conditioning and using an energy efficient rice cooker. The private sector joins the government and non-government bodies by encouraging one to buy their efficient products and by using “live the low carbon life” as a placeholder when selling advertising space in public spaces. Image from article

The Nexus Between Terror Propaganda and Terrorism: Bremer and Jenkins - Kevin Ryan, foreignpolicyjournal.com: The propaganda that drove the Cold War was effective in establishing government policy primarily because it was effective in framing the national conversation about what threats were important to consider, and in controlling the media. The same has been true for the propaganda driving the War on Terror.

The Olympics: a perfect fit for Nazi propaganda - swinburne.edu.au: Goebbels, Hitler's Minister of Propaganda, saw an excellent opportunity to show the world the ‘new' Germany. He thought the Olympic Games could be an ideal platform to promote Aryan "superiority" at home and abroad. The influx of foreign money to the German economy was an added bonus. All areas of public life in Nazi Germany were ‘Nazified': subject to the Nazi ideals and policies. Sport was not excluded and it was used in the drive to strengthen and purify the "Aryan race." The Nazis introduced the torch relay, a propaganda-infused ritual still going strong today. The Olympics were a perfect fit for the Nazi agenda, not only because they promoted sports, but because of their origin. Nazi propaganda already claimed that the superior German civilisation was the rightful heir to the culture of Greece's classical antiquity. The Berlin Olympics would simply emphasise this link further. Nazi spin-doctors used images of German athletes to spread the Aryan racial myth as a self-evident truth. The promotional posters depicted German athletes with well-developed muscles, heroic strength, blond hair and blue eyes. The Nazis inaugurated an Olympic ritual still used today. German middle-distance runner Fritz Schilgen arrived in Berlin bearing a lit torch carried by relay from the site of the ancient Games in Olympia, symbolising Prometheus' gift of the fire of the gods to the people. It is worth noting that torches were a key element in Nazi choreography. Even before Hitler became Chancellor, Nazis effectively used dramatic torch-lit parades and massive public rallies to attract disenfranchised young Germans.

Olympic Art Competitions: 1936-1948 - worldsstrangest.com: We’re taking a look back at the fine art competitions that originated in ancient Greece and were revived as part of the modern Olympics from 1912 to 1948. When Adolf Hitler assumed power in January 1933, the future of the 1936 Berlin Games was suddenly in doubt. Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s Minister for Public Education and Propaganda, convinced the chancellor that the Games were an opportunity to shape Nazi Germany’s image and showcase the country’s athletic prowess and shape. The 1936 Games would go on as planned. One of the changes the German Art Committee proposed for the 1936 Olympic art competition was the addition of a Works of the Screen category.

Berlin Organizing Committee president Theodor Lewald proposed the idea in a letter to Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who had continued to serve as an honorary head of the IOC following his retirement as president in 1924. Coubertin respectfully denied the proposal, which would have welcomed “purely documentary films and films of general propaganda” and excluded theatrical submissions. The IOC also denied requests to add dance and creative gold and silver smithing to the program. Germany moved ahead with plans to host a dance competition concurrent with the Games. Legendary American modern dancer Martha Graham was invited, but she declined. “So many artists whom I respect and admire have been persecuted, have been deprived of their right to work, and for such unsatisfactory and ridiculous reasons, that I should consider it impossible to identify myself, by accepting the invitation, with the regime that has made such things possible,” Graham wrote. The proposed competition became an international dance festival, with every participant awarded a diploma. Spain and the Soviet Union boycotted the Games and low participation numbers in the art competition from other countries prompted Germany to extend the deadlines for submitting works. The 1936 art competition featured roughly half the total number of entries as had been submitted in previous years, but managed to attract 70,000 visitors. According to Richard Stanton, author of The Forgotten Olympic Art Competitions, Germany considered building a full-scale model of the Temple of Zeus to serve as the entrance to the art exhibition, but the plan was scrapped due to budget concerns. In a move that must have delighted Coubertin, Germany arranged for several of the medal-winning music compositions to be performed by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in a concert at the end of the Games. Image from entry, with caption: Berlin, 1936

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