The History of United States Cultural Diplomacy: 1770 to the Present Day (New Approaches to International History) [updated, 11/19/2017]

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The History of United States Cultural Diplomacy: 1770 to the Present Day (New Approaches to International History)

In the wake of 9/11, the United States government rediscovered the value of culture in international relations, sending cultural ambassadors around the world to promote the American way of life. This is the most recent effort to use American culture as a means to convince others that the United States is a land of freedom, equality, opportunity, and scientific and cultural achievements to match its material wealth and military prowess. In The History of United States Cultural Diplomacy Michael Krenn charts the history of the cultural diplomacy efforts from Benjamin Franklin's service as commissioner to France in the 1770s through to the present day. He explores how these efforts were sometimes inspiring, often disastrous, and nearly always controversial attempts to tell the 'truth' about America.

This is the first comprehensive study of America's efforts in the field of cultural diplomacy. It reveals a dynamic conflict between those who view U.S. culture as a means to establish meaningful dialogues with the rest of the world and those who consider American art, music, theater as additional propaganda weapons.

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See also (non-academic efforts not cited in the book's index/bibliography)

Brown, John. "America as a Shopping Mall? U.S. Cultural Diplomacy in the Age of Obama by John Brown, Huffington Post,"  Layalina Production, 2010
--- "Arts Diplomacy: The Neglected Aspect of Cultural Diplomacy," in William P. Kiehl, ed., America's Dialogue with the World, Public Diplomacy Council, 2006
--- "Diplomacies, from Public to Pubic," Huffington Post
--- "Cold War Modernist" [book review of Greg Barnhisel, Cold War Modernists: Art, Literature, and American Cultural Diplomacy, New York: Columbia University Press, 2015], American Diplomacy, 2015
--- "Public/Cultural Diplomacy as a Hot Potato: Foreign Projects Give Afghans Fashion, Skate Park and Now 10,000 Balloons," John Brown's Notes and Essays, 2013
--- "The Backlash against Cultural Diplomacy," Huffington Post, 2011
--- "The Globalization of American Culture," [book review of Richard Pells, Modernist America: Art, Music, Movies, and the Globalization of American Culture, New Haven and London, 2012] American Diplomacy, 2013
---"What We Talk About When We Talk About Cultural Diplomacy ..." American Diplomacy, 2016
"Cultural Diplomacy in Historical Perspective—From 19th Century World’s Fairs to the Cold War,"cceae.umontreal.ca
"Interview with John H. Brown," American Diplomacy, 2007