"Gently touching with the charm of poetry."
[Lat., Musaeo contigens cuncta lepore.]
--Lucretius, De Rerum Natura (IV, 9); image from
PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
In Exposing China Abuses, Congress Shows Another Way - Matthew Robertson, theepochtimes.com: "The human rights lawyer Jared Genser is the founder of Freedom Now, a group that advocates for the release of prisoners of conscience. He offered the committee several proposals. He suggested the preparation of a public list, for example, of all Chinese Party officials involved in torture, wrongful imprisonment, disappearances, and other crimes against international law: their activities would be listed and made available to the public, a ban would be issued on their entry to the United States, and any U.S. assets they held would be frozen. 'Just by gathering evidence from existing cases we could come up with thousands of names. That would be the first batch.' Ideas like this may have an impact because they have 'teeth,' Genser
said. U.S. public diplomacy could also be leveraged to helpful effect in educating the public about human rights abuses in China: inviting dissidents to the Oval Office to meet with President Obama, or having the President meet with Geng He, wife of Gao Zhisheng, the human rights lawyer that was disappeared and tortured after defending Falun Gong practitioners—he is currently in prison." Image from
State, USAID Must Learn From Afghanistan Errors. Whatabout Iraq? - Domani Spero, DiploPundit: "The State Department has been doing stuff in
were supposed to hold hands on the 7th floor, but it never happened. I bet you want to know how come that’s indefinitely postponed. No, it’s not because she was traveling, silly! The State Department, by the way, has some quite talented storytellers — authentic and even pee in your pants funny writers. But State is in such a schizo mess when it comes to social media that it runs after bloggers (well, not all of them, just some of them). Sometimes it wields a large hammer, and whacks a mole or two just so everyone can appreciate its whack-a-mole ability and the 'friendly' warning to those who potentially can be whacked also." Image from, with caption: Jeff Bezos with Kindle
A Democratic Transition in Trouble: The Need for Aid Conditionality in Egypt - Shadi Hamid, brookings.edu: "[I]f the goal is to pressure recalcitrant governments and encourage real, sustained democratisation, then the current strategy will not do. First, when it comes to Egypt, the US and the European Union should coordinate policy and seriously consider temporarily suspending military aid. Second, any future economic assistance should depend on demonstrating progress on key political indicators, including transfer of power to civilian rule and respect for civil society. Those benchmarks should be clearly defined and announced in public as part of a broader public diplomacy strategy. SCAF [Supreme Council of the Armed Forces]’s violations have been and continue to be rather egregious. In the span of one week in June, it reinstated martial law, dissolved a democratically elected parliament, and imposed an eleventh hour decree which stripped the presidency of its powers. If this is not a red line for the United States and Europe, then what is?"
London and the Olympic Games - sutispeaks.blogspot.com: "[A]s the Olympics begin ... , ten and thousands of young people from China, India, Far East, Africa and Central Asia who have studied in the British universities over the last decade will proudly admire and feel associated with the games. This is one of Britain’s strength and a public diplomacy success of the past decade which usually go unnoticed.
As a British graduate myself, I can testify how my friends across the world appreciate some of the values they have learnt in that country, and how at times they say that they miss being in Britain. The BBC, which has always been a public diplomacy tool of the British government outside the UK, has been admiringly playing a leading role in educating and entertaining the global audience about London and the British culture and values. Anyone who has been watching the programme ‘London calling’ on the BBC World Service online, television and radio will appreciate the objectivity of the programme. It not only highlighted all that is great and unique about Britain but also critically showed the challenges and the problems of modern Britain. BBC’s campaign is admirable because it also speaks volumes about transparent and unbiased reporting." Image from entry
Stasi And Scandinavia – An Unfinished Business -- Paper prepared for the Conference“Civil Society in Transition”, 5-7 oktober 2006 (revised in 2012), Södertörn University College, Sweden - varldsinbordeskriget.wordpress.com: "I am employing terms such as 'active measures' and 'political warfare'. The first is a Soviet term for disinformation. It was the method used by the Soviet Union and other communist regimes in Europe to present especially prepared data, used for the creation in the mind of the enemy, of incorrect or imaginary pictures of reality, on the basis of which the enemy would make decisions beneficial to the communist regimes. Political warfare is roughly equal to propaganda warfare. This type of warfare was during the Cold War used by the Warsaw Pact states against the West. The latter did not engage in political warfare of the type used by the communist regimes. In democracies the terms 'information' or 'public diplomacy' are the standard terminology for such activities. In a democracy, also, information abroad is controlled by a democratically elected government and parliament. From the 1990s up until now I have attempted to follow research in the field of GDR-studies including Stasi activities abroad. GDR has attracted some interest in the academic community in Sweden. Andreas Linderoth has studied East German foreign policy towards Sweden 1949 – 1972. Nils Abraham is involved in research on GDR public diplomacy towards Sweden at the Historical Institute of the University of Greifswald."
Cities Going Global - Jessica Castillo, PD News–CPD Blog, USC Center on Public Diplomacy: "[A] project I began [is] called 'Going Global: How Cities Can Change the World'. It is a blog, a forum--a one-stop-shop if you will—intended as a place where municipal employees, young professionals and citizens can find inspiration as they take the lead in shaping their own cities. ... Because this project began as my practicum for the Master of Public Diplomacy program, it encompasses one core component that was reiterated throughout the curriculum: listening. With this in mind, the dialogue
I hope to create will result from listening to the challenges city governments face, the concerns of urbanites, and the initiatives of various organizations to address the changing nature of cities. The practice of public diplomacy emphasizes the role of members of the public as both audiences and active participants in diplomatic action. This project is a way for many stories to be shared from obvious to unsuspecting corners of the urban landscape, so as to build greater interest and gain a broader perspective on the meaning of city diplomacy and the increasingly important role it holds in tackling global issues." Image from, with caption: Quote of the Day: Going Global: Every day, people all over the world are at their computer and looking at my tweets. Now I know how Pamela Anderson feels." -- Ellen
RELATED ITEMS
London Struts on the World Stage - Sergei Lobanov-Rostovsky, New York Times: It’s been a summer of spectacle in London, from the celebrations of the queen’s Diamond Jubilee
to the ambitiously named World Shakespeare Festival, and now the grandest show of them all, the 2012 Summer Olympics, which will formally begin tonight with an extravagant opening ceremony orchestrated by the film director Danny Boyle. It’s no accident that all this theater is taking place in a Britain staggered by economic meltdown, a controversial austerity budget and a crisis of political legitimacy following the hacking scandal, which exposed the cozy relationship between News Corporation and the nation’s elite. At times of political or economic crisis, the BThe British can no longer conquer the world with yeomen’s cries of “God for Harry! England and Saint George!” but the world still tunes in to watch their spectacles with fascination. And more important, so do the British. These spectacles allow them to regain their composure after a season of bad news, but also to compose themselves as the Great Britain we know so well, turning the well-worn face of majesty to the world once more.ritish have always turned to spectacles as a way of projecting — or creating — power. Image from
Romney: Olympic SNAFUs 'disconcerting' - politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com: Security shortfalls and a now-cancelled strike from border guards make for a "disconcerting" start to the London Olympic Games, presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney said in an interview Wednesday July 25. British Prime Minister David Cameron was asked about Romney's comments at a press conference Thursday, ahead of his scheduled meeting with the GOP candidate. "I think we will show the whole world
not just that we come together as a United Kingdom but also we're extremely good at welcoming people from across the world," Cameron said, adding that he anticipated the country would come together to welcome world athletes. Cameron said he planned to make similar points to Romney during their meeting. Romney image from
Al Qaeda's War for Syria: Now is the time to begin moving against the terror group's Syrian assets - Seth Jones, Wall Street journal: Assuming Assad's regime eventually collapses, a robust al Qaeda presence will undermine transition efforts and pose a major threat to regional stability. With U.S. troops now gone from Iraq, al Qaeda in Iraq has increased its attacks to nearly 30 per month, up from roughly 20 per month during the past two years. And this week Matthew Olsen, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, testified to Congress that al Qaeda in Iraq even poses a growing threat to attack the U.S. homeland. What can be done? The U.S. and its allies should launch a covert campaign to ramp up intelligence-collection efforts against al Qaeda, capture or kill its senior leaders, and undermine its legitimacy.
Washington unleashes its dogs on Syria - presstv.com: Western media misreport what's happening in Syria and why.
Propaganda substitutes for truth and full disclosure. Image from article, with caption: Members of a foreign-backed terrorist group in Syria
"Progressive" War Propaganda: Deception with a Human Face - globalresearch.ca: Is the Western "progressive" alternative media being duped by classic war propaganda cloaked in a humanitarian narrative or is it trying to lure the public into supporting military intervention? Several Global Research
authors have questioned the focus of high profile alternative news outlets, which have supported the so-called Arab Spring revolutionaries in Libya and Syria. Throughout history "left-wing" pundits have been recruited by war propagandists to galvanize "progressive public opinion" in favour of a humanitarian "Responsibility to Protect" military intervention. Image from entry
The Kremlin’s blacklist - Vladimir V. Kara-Murza, Washington Post: Symbolically, the adoption of the Magnitsky Act has been tied to the repeal of the antiquated Jackson-Vanik Amendment, thus replacing trade sanctions against a nation with personal sanctions against specific criminals. Perhaps the most pro-Russian piece of legislation ever put before the U.S. Congress, the Magnitsky Act offers Washington an opportunity to speak with a unified voice and with unquestioned moral clarity.
US Militarization of Africa: 5000 Personnel, Ten Countries+ - Peter Van Buren, We Meant Well: Here’s something genuinely different fromTomDispatch.com. In response to Nick Turse’s July 12 piece, “Obama’s Scramble for Africa,” Colonel Tom Davis, the director of the U.S. Africa Command Office of Public Affairs, wrote in disputing a number of Turse’s points. Though TomDispatch does not normally post letters to the editor or have a comments section, this seemed interesting enough to make an exception. The debate is now up at the site. Bonus: While the Army took the time to read, respond and intelligently challenge TomDispatch, the web site remains blocked and unavailable to State Department employees still, due to some mysterious “Wikileaks” connection never made clear. State Department employees cannot follow this important debate, by senior management decision. Sorry, enjoy your irrelevance.
First lady publicity latest sign of N.K. change - koreaherald.com: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un continues to shake off the regime’s long-held tradition of secrecy, intriguing watchers eager to find signs of change in the reclusive state. In the latest breakaway, Pyongyang’s state media late Wednesday confirmed that the mystery woman beside the 20-something leader at recent public events is his wife, Ri Sol-ju. The couple’s public appearances and the brief declaration of Kim’s marital status stand out against his father Kim Jong-il’s style.
During his 17-year rule, the elder Kim maintained a secret life and his companions and children were rarely discussed in public. He also kept Jong-un to himself until an official introduction in late 2010. Analysts said the latest announcement was strategically calibrated and aimed at forging a settled image of the youthful leader, who inherited power after the December death of the longtime autocrat. Image from article, with caption: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (center) and his wife Ri Sol-ju (right) attend the opening ceremony of the Rungna People‘s Pleasure Ground on Rungna Islet along the Taedong River in Pyongyang. Via ACP III on Facebook
On Eve of the Olympics, China Rolls out new Tibet Propaganda - patheos.com: There is practically a factory for Chinese propaganda on Tibet, the Cultural Palace of Nationalities, which the NY Times describes as: a socialist-style confection whose current exhibition, “50th Anniversary of Democratic Reforms in Tibet,” is getting rave reviews from the soldiers, schoolchildren and government officials who are bused in day after day. With its display cases of gruesome torture devices, grainy film scenes of mutilated faces and the “liberation” shots of beaming Tibetans, the exhibit is a propagandist tour de force that reinforces the Communist Party’s unbending version of history during what is referred to here as a “sensitive time.”
Taiwan Is Not Fooled by the CCP’s Propaganda - plsreadthetruth.wordpress.com: On December 14, 2008, more than 7,000 practitioners attended the Falun Dafa Cultivation Experience Sharing Conference held at Zhongxing University in Taiwan, in which more than 20 practitioners shared their cultivation experiences based on the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Among them were students, senior citizens and members of the military. I found that this level of attendance was meaningful: the people and government of Taiwan are not fooled by the CCP’s propaganda.
In the early years when the persecution first started, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regime went full force with their propaganda machine and utilized various diplomatic means to slander and defame Falun Gong worldwide. They put all kinds of terrible labels on Falun Gong and fabricated vicious accusations. While many people did not believe the one-sided allegations from the regime, they did not know much about what Falun Gong really was either. They did not want to “get involved”and be persecuted, so they simply chose to keep their distance from Falun Gong. In Taiwan, though, the number of people practicing Falun Gong has steadily increased and now it has reached 500,000. Image from article
Exhibition displays wartime Japanese propaganda publications - 7thspace.com/headlines: The Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence's current exhibition "Paper Weapons: Wartime Japanese Propaganda Publications" is now on show until March 27 next year. Showcasing more than 100 original artefacts published in the 1930s and 1940s in Japan, the exhibition gives visitors a better understanding of Japanese militarists' ambition to annex Asia and reign over the whole world, as well as how these publications had become "paper weapons" used in war.
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