January 27

"Culturomics"

--The umbrella term used to describe rigorous quantitative inquiries in the social sciences and humanities; image from

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

"Public Diplomacy is a cornerstone of today’s influence operations" -- PSYOP Honorary Colonel [Comment] - John Brown, Notes and Essays: "Vestniek said...We have to ask ourselves, John, WHY

did the taxpayers pay for us to conduct public diplomacy? I believe the reason we conduct public diplomacy is pretty much the same reason our military conducts their information operations: to influence foreign people and to achieve U.S. national interests." Image from

Why It Matters - right-side-of-lowell.blogspot.com: "Focusing in on Secretary of State Clinton's testimony [on the 'Benghazi imbroglio']... If it was all due to the video, Innocence of Muslims, then it is incumbent upon the Department of State and its Public Diplomacy program to make clear that we will not be curtaining any of our freedoms because of concerns overseas. Just as we don't allow mobs to run wild in the streets of Washington, DC, because someone objects to polygamy or female circumcision in certain Islamic nations, or suppression of homosexuals in Russia, nations overseas should be about protecting American Citizens and American Embassy property from mobs in their nations. If it is all about the video then the responsibility of the Department of State is clear, and it isn't about apologizing."

"Public Diplomacy" Karen Hughes at Harvard as a Spring Fellow - John Brown, Notes and Essays: "Of all the people on our small planet to choose as an inspiration for the young (and not-so-young) students at a major American University, Harvard, I cannot think of a worst choice than Ms. Karen Hughes.

[See .. Harvard announcement on 'Harvard’s Institute of Politics Announces Spring Fellows']." Hughes image from

Fox, Marks, BBG Watch and others on Clinton and ‘defunct’ U.S. international broadcasting - BBGWatcher: "The bottom line is that the BBG’s International Broadcasting Bureau executive staff wants more centralization, less specialization, more global programming, less broadcasting, more online content, 'fluff journalism' and more central control over surrogate broadcasting, and definitely less ideological content. It is all part of the BBG’s five-year strategic plan. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wants something different, but she is, of course, on her way out. It would be interesting to see what Secretary-to-be John Kerry wants from U.S. international broadcasting. We suspect it will not be different from what Secretary Clinton wants. They are both politicians who understand U.S. domestic and foreign public opinion. The BBG executive staffers do not. ... Coming from the U.S. journalistic tradition, they don’t appreciate biting commentary. Having never experienced repression, they don’t see much need for commentaries and ideas. They see it as propaganda."

With repeal of domestic dissemination ban, will US news outlets quote VOA more often? - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting: "[Elliott comment:] When news organizations quote VOA, do they do so because they perceive VOA as an authoritative news outlet, or because they think the report reflects the

official US government position on the subject covered by the report -- like quoting 'the semi-official newspaper Al Ahram' to get the Egyptian government's take on a certain matter?" Image from

Who’s Faking It? Pentagon “Cyber-Warriors” Planting “False Information on Facebook” - Soraya Sepahpour-Ulrich, wtfrly.com: "On November 22, 2012, the Los Angeles Times published an alarming piece of news entitled 'Cyber Corps program trains spies for the digital age'. The 'cyber-warriors' who are headed for organizations such as the CIA, NSC, FBI, the Pentagon and so on, are trained to stalk, 'rifle through trash, sneak a tracking device on cars and plant false information on Facebook [emphasis added]. They also are taught to write computer viruses, hack digital networks, crack passwords, plant listening devices and mine data from broken cellphones and flash drives.' ... [O]n January 24, 2013, Guardian’s blaring headlines exposed fake blogs and Facebook pages made for BBC Persian’s Iranian journalists with claims that these were made in order to harass, intimidate, and discredit the journalists. These fake blogs, according to The Guardian charges, are not by the American Cyber Corps warriors, but are alleged to be the creation of the Iranian ‘Islamic cyber-activists’ in 'what appears [emphasis added] to be an operation sponsored by the authorities'. ... [D]eception and digital warfare by the Pentagon, and with the recent Los Angeles Times revelations of the Cyber Corps training, truth become [sic] indistinguishable from falsehood and thus accepting or rejecting the authenticity of allegations by the Guardian becomes subjective, in spite of the reality of the victimhood of BBC journalists (ditto Radio Farda, VOA) whose reporting is not welcomed in Iran. ...  Soraya Sepahpour-Ulrich is a

Public Diplomacy Scholar, independent researcher and writer with a focus on U.S. foreign policy and the role of lobby groups." Image from

Miloš Zeman is elected President of the Czech Republic - wpfdc.org: "Former Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Miloš Zeman was elected President in the second-round poll. For the first time in history of the country presidential elections have been decided by direct vote. ... Experienced statesman with wide European outlook, Miloš Zeman is also an old partner of WPF [World Public Forum] 'Dialogue of Civilizations'.

Participating in Rhodes Forums he generously shared with us his perspectives on global development. Our joint work at several conferences in Prague (2004, 2006, 2009) is convincing testimony of the public diplomacy's constructive potential in the modern world. This kind of interaction is underpinned by belief that every nation's interests are best provided through partnership and dialogue conducted in mutual respect." Image from entry

Somali foreign missions are in failure and neglect - Mahdi Haile, opednews.com: "Somali foreign missions have become embarrassment and nuisance to the integrity, pride, and national identity of Somalis living abroad. The state foreign missions have been literally abandoned and neglected, leaving the country's public diplomacy in complete shambles with sloppiness and inefficiency. The conduit of choice to conduct Somalia postwar international affairs and public diplomacy are Somali mission in the Arab world, European countries an at the United Nations for instance. If you try to contact the mission on official matters especially when the President or government delegations are scheduled at the United Nations or Washington DC and institution like our kind get in touch with the mission, you hardly get anyone. Even if you leave message on their phone, you won't get a call back from their offices. And if you try again, the same barrier will be your fate. ... The foreign Ministry of Somalia has abandoned their mission. They hardly do the activities of the mission, nor do they keep the line of communication opened, the lifeblood of conducting public diplomacy and foreign policy. By our account, Somalis who work most of embassies are usually unprepared and left out of several important opportunities and matters because the Foreign Ministry in Mogadishu will not send their qualified people. ... Somalia's foreign missions must be resuscitated and cleansed from the current shambles and state of neglect rattled with the sloppiness and inefficiency looming in the conduct of Somalia post transition public diplomacy."

Diaspora Affairs Minister Edelstein to Brief Cabinet on 2012 Anti-Semitism Report - theyeshivaworld.com: "Diaspora Affairs Minister Yuli Edelstein at the weekly Cabinet meeting Sunday 16 Shevat 5773, on the occasion of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, review the findings of the 2012 report on trends in anti-Semitism. The report indicates an increase in the number of terrorist attacks and attempted terrorist attacks against Jewish targets, mainly by elements identified with extremist Islamic movements or the radical right, and a sharp increase in

the harassment of Jews, including verbal and physical violence, mainly in Western Europe, in proximity to Jewish community centers. ... Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Minister Edelstein said, 'The report clearly shows that the oft-used premise that this or that policy of the State of Israel leads to an increase or decrease in anti-Semitic incidents is absolutely without foundation. As evidence, one may note that during and after Operation Pillar of Defense, there was no sharp increase in the number of anti-Semitic incidents. There is no doubt that against the background of anti-Semitic phenomena, there are also anti-Zionist approaches and the delegitimization of the State of Israel. However, to our regret, no policy by the State of Israel affects or reduces these manifestations of racist hatred towards Jews.'” Image from article

RELATED ITEMS

‘Real’ Life in North Korea - Didi Kirsten Tatlow, New York Times: With North Korea in the headlines again amid concerns it could explode a third, more powerful nuclear device, many people around the world may be wondering: What are they like? North Korea is “a real country with real people,” wrote John Everard, a former British ambassador to Pyongyang, in The Independent on Sunday. They were curious about the world. “I once lent one a set of DVDs of ‘Desperate Housewives’
 

and met the same person the next day with big rings under their eyes.

They had sat up all night and watched the entire series in one sitting,” he wrote. While the anti-American propaganda the state puts out is powerful, not everyone believed it, Mr. Everard wrote. “They had been taught to hate Americans, but most of them did not. One of them told me that they had worked with Americans during one of the thaws in relations with that country, had liked them and hoped that they would return,” wrote Mr. Everard. Of course this all was based on experiences that ended in 2008, but it’s unlikely attitudes have changed fundamentally since then, despite the latest round of threats to target the United States. Image from article, with caption: Off-duty North Korean police officers lacing up skates at a rink in Pyongyang earlier this month; other image from

Anonymous Targets China’s Propaganda Site On Amdo, Tibet - tibettruth.com: This week has seen a number of Chinese government websites disabled by Anonymous in an ongoing exercise in what is a clear example of ethical hacking. Operation Tibet

has struck again today with news that a site representing China’s regime in the occupied region of Amdo has been crashed once again. The site http://www.gansu.gov.cn was at the time this post was published, not loading, a matter of celebration for Tibetans, whose own official sites have come under relentless cyber attack from China’s state approved hackers. Image from entry

Military North Korean Propaganda Posters - vintag.es: Among them:

I Want You….To Put Away Your Smartphone: Propaganda Posters for the Modern Age - artofmanliness.com: "During the 1920s, 30s, and 40s, the use of 'propaganda posters' were popular for encouraging good behavior — teaching safety, boosting worker morale, and rousing wartime sacrifice. I’ve always enjoyed the art and design of these posters, and decided to have Ted whip up a set of originals to address an area of behavior where modern society is often lacking: smartphone etiquette. Enjoy." Among the posters:

AMERICANA

--From: Jennifer Senior "Why You Truly Never Leave High School," New York Magazine, with caption: Pancho, 1983 and 2010. Via KY on Facebook

MODERN FRIENDSHIP

"Here's what Facebook actually wrote to me: 'You've continued to send friend requests to people who don't know you, even though you’ve been warned. Sending friend requests to people you don't know personally is against Facebook’s Terms and could be considered harassment. If you don't

change your behavior, you could be permanently blocked from sending friend requests. Learn more. The block will be active for 27 days and 1 hour more."

--American Diplomat Peter Van Buren on Facebook; image from