Saturday, October 24, 2015

What Can PD do for Israelis and Palestinians?




Oct 23, 2015
Amid the recent violence that has broken out between Israelis and Palestinians, citizens from both sides of the conflict are seeking new ways to bridge the gap. Headlines this week in PD News showcased how engagement through food, technology, and civilized discourse “might be used to unite people toward a common cause.” An Israeli feminist group is using social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to encourage women to put an end to the violence, while a hummus café is offering discounted meals for Arabs and Jews who dine together “to show that ‘we’re all human beings.’” Social media can reach the masses, but are digital platforms the best method of communication about such a volatile topic? From the complications of unofficial spokespeople (i.e. ex-porn star turned Jewish convert Jenna Jameson) to official channels “depicting staggeringly different realities” of events, headlines this week reveal that effective public diplomacy is not just about getting one’s message across, it’s also about listening, dialogue, and people-to-people engagement. 

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