June 23-24

"The graveyards are full of indispensable men."

--Charles de Gaulle; image from

VIDEO

Perspectives on U.S. International Broadcasting (Heritage Foundation)

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

Women's Rights Are Human Rights - Voice of America: "In a recent report, that office [the Secretary’s Office of Global Women's Issues] detailed its work with other State Department agencies, the United Nations and other public and private partnerships to promote programs which improve the lives of women and girls around the world. For, as Secretary Clinton noted on the 15th anniversary of the Beijing Conference, 'women’s progress is human progress.'

The U.S. Department of State works toward the political and economic inclusion of women, for equal access to quality education and healthcare, and toward freeing women from the threat of violence. To achieve these goals, the Office of Global Women's Issues works toward fully integrating women's issues into U.S. foreign policy decisions and State Department practices; creates programs and partnerships, bilaterally and multilaterally, to protect and empower women; works to expand legal reforms and strengthen the international framework for protection of women's rights; and engages in sustained and comprehensive public outreach and public diplomacy, according to the report." Image from

Clinton: We 'recognize with gratitude' contributions by LGBT members of State Department - Steve Rothaus, MiamiHerald.com: "Remarks by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton At An Event Celebrating Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Month June 22, 2010 Loy Henderson Auditorium Washington, D.C. SECRETARY CLINTON: ... [H]ere at the State Department, we will continue to advance a comprehensive human rights agenda that includes the elimination of violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. We are elevating our human rights dialogues with other governments and conducting public diplomacy to protect the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons."

East Africa getting ready for internet revolution‎ - Daily Ethiopia: "A June 28–29 symposium in Uganda organized by the U.S. telecom firm Verizon Communications and other planning partners is an effort to help improve East Africa’s Internet links with the rest of the world and thus stimulate enhanced educational opportunities and economic growth and development across the region, the executive said. Kathryn C. Brown, senior vice president of public policy development and corporate responsibility at Verizon, spoke with America.gov June 21 and previewed the event, which is expected to attract some 120 government, business and education representatives from the target countries of Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.

The symposium seeks to improve Internet access and applications for the region’s institutions of higher education. ... [S]he said ... U.S. Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Judith A. McHale will address the group. 'We are just so pleased that she is going to come to speak at the conference,' Brown said. Additionally, major service providers like AT&T, Google, Motorola, Qualcomm, Ericsson and Intelsat will join local operators to lend their voices and expertise to the conversation." Image from

Secretary Clinton not coming to Uganda - John Njoroge, The Independent: "The US Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs [sic] Hillary Clinton will not be visiting Uganda as earlier reported. Reports in the Ugandan media last week indicated that Ms Clinton 'is expected in the country this week for high-level talks with government officials.' However the US Mission in Kampala said today it had 'no information of such a trip.' Instead it’s the US Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Judith McHale who will visit Kampala on Monday, next week. The information about a ‘U.S Secretary' coming to Uganda was misunderstood and assumed to be a visit by Ms Clinton. McHale will deliver a keynote speech at the East Africa ICT and Higher Education Symposium at the Commonwealth Resort Munyonyo."

Assistant Secretary Judith Ann Stock confirmed‎ - Josh Rogin, Foreign Policy: "More than six months after receiving her nomination, the Senate has finally confirmed Judith Ann Stock to become Assistant Secretary of State for Education [sic] and Cultural Affairs. 'Ann Stock is already on the job and we are thrilled,' said Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs P.J. Crowley. 'This day has been a long time coming.' … Stock is currently the vice president for Institutional Affairs at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and served as an assistant to President Clinton and his social secretary from 1993 to 1997. She will report up to Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy Judith McHale. 'I am delighted by the confirmation of Ann Stock as Assistant Secretary for Educational and Cultural Affairs. I know she will provide terrific leadership of that bureau's people, programs, and initiatives in public diplomacy,' McHale told The Cable. According to the State Department website, the slot for her principal deputy is still vacant."

Pragmatic Overdose: Ethics and creativity are stifled in the draft U.S. development policy - Evan O'Neil, Policy Innovations: "The Obama administration is in the design phase with its Presidential Study Directive on global development, calling for 'A New Way Forward.' A leaked draft of the policy review indicates that American development funding should 'reinforce the universal values we aim to advance.' Yet the administration is doing little to examine its values or whether they are accepted globally. Obama's advisors want to energize U.S. development policy by framing it in terms of American national security, calling development a 'strategic imperative.' ... But national security can't be the only way to sell a development policy. A less cynical way to frame the new way forward would be through a narrative of public diplomacy, cultural identity, fair trade, and green energy innovation. ... The need for better public diplomacy is driven by the explosion of information and communication technologies and the transparency they engender. As my colleague Joshua S. Fouts points out,

no amount of political spin can save a country from being judged by its actions. International relations going forward must be about authentic dialogue, not information (or actual) warfare. ... [T]he emergent ethic of Green Diplomacy—using development policy to build renewable energy infrastructure—holds great promise in light of the BP oil spill, especially with regional countries that might be affected. Such projects would tie in well with a revival of public diplomacy. ... We won't see a new way forward until the United States views other nations as equal peers in the quest to realize a good life, instead of treating them as instruments in pursuit of American national security or favorable trade. To achieve this, the State Department must stake out its own values—beneficial immigration flows, fair trade, and regional green energy innovation—instead of cutting turf from Defense and other departments." Fouts image from

Cultural Diplomacy: Message from Dan Sreebny, Senior Media Advisor, Office of the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs - John Brown, Notes and Essays:

"John - I read your discussion of the Strategic Communication and Public Diplomacy caucus meeting, and noted your short description of the discussion of Cultural Diplomacy by Ms. DiMartino. I was surprised you only included what you did – Ms. DiMartino also underscored how cultural diplomacy is a critical tool in our toolbox for engaging foreign publics, talked about how it furthers our interests by allowing us to establish contacts with people who we might not otherwise engage with, and noted how cultural diplomacy allows us in many instances to engage with the important change agents within societies. Best regards, Dan Dan Sreebny Senior Media Advisor Office of the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs (R) Department of State." Sreebny image from entry

Currency Manipulation and Globalism: The Big Backstory‎ - Eric Ehrmann, Huffington Post: "[W]hile Washington puts the negative public diplomacy spotlight on China, Japan, with a current portfolio of about $769 billion, is the largest long term holder of US Treasury bonds.

Thanks to US trade imbalances linked to its globalist induced dependence on foreign goods China and Japan hold more than $1.52 trillion in US Treasury instruments. That's about ten times the total amount of gold (148 million ounces) believed to be held at the US gold depository at Fort Knox, Kentucky." Image from

MN delegation reacts to McChrystal dismissal - Derek Wallbank, MinnPost.com: "Rep. Keith Ellison said he supports the decision to replace McChrystal and reiterated his calls for more civilian aid to Afghanistan. 'I have long argued that in order to achieve peace and security in the region, we must have a civilian surge coupled with transitioning our troops out of combat missions and readying them for redeployment,' Ellison said in a statement. 'I continue to call on President Obama and General Petraeus to increase public diplomacy to ensure long term stability, and to bring our troops home from this near decade long conflict.'"

Foreign exchange students risk exposure to predators‎ - Danielle Grijalva, SDNN: "[T]here have been numerous cases of abuse of foreign exchange students by host families throughout the world,

and ... there are 700,000 convicted sexual predators in the U.S. So the United States Department of State is now proposing tighter scrutiny before foreign exchange students can be placed in homes. ... Many wonderful memories and lifelong international friendships can result from participating in the Exchange Visitor Program of the United States. It is the cornerstone of our nation’s public diplomacy efforts. Planning in advance and being informed can ensure a positive experience for the foreign teenager and the host family." Image from

“Get a Ph.D. in America Without Knowing English!” - twitter myspace facebook: "This is the style of a June 16th article about U.S.-based rogue providers (unauthorized schools) operating in Vietnam. The 'university' in question is Southern Pacific University, what one. has two 'accredited centers' in Vietnam. SPU also has agents in China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Taiwan, Thailand, and the UK. In this put in a box, the director of the department of culture, sports and tourism in Ph Th in north Vietnam 'earned' an online Ph.D. from February 2007 to September 2009. The of the university work, such as it was, was in translation, including the 'essay defense.' And the cost of a 'Ph.D.' from SPU? ... Below is an excerpt from a forthcoming article of mine about rogue providers in Vietnam. This result is a quietly ticking time bomb that will explode not every part of at once but over an extended period of time, slowly, insidiously, invisibly for the most part but nevertheless destructively. The cumulative effect of 'US higher discipline institutions' cheating students and parents will tarnish the luster, damage the fame and dilute the integrity of accredited US colleges and universities. Thus, we leave be doing ourselves and foreign countries a favor by taking the passage out of learner protection seriously and taking the necessary steps to control in, or at least expose, unaccredited schools. It is an issue that should also concern the US State Department because part of its work is immediately related to public diplomacy and the United States’ image in the eyes of the Vietnamese and lower classes of other nationalities."

US seeks concept papers for HIV/AIDS prevention in VN‎ - VOVNews.vn:

"The US Mission to Vietnam is seeking concept papers from local public, non-profit organisations and civil society groups interested in designing and implementing small activities for HIV/AIDS public diplomacy and outreach communication in 2010." Image from

Shanghai 2010, the USA Pavilion and the Future - Patricia H. Kushlis, Whirled View:

"I think Clinton, the USA Pavilion private sector steering committee headed by Frank Lavin; Ambassador-at-large Elizabeth Bagley; Beatrice Camp, US Consul General in Shanghai; and US Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman as well as their staffs and others involved deserve bouquets of roses and kudos not huzzahs and raspberries for doing the very best they could within the limits forced on them and beyond their control. These restrictions are home grown. They can and should be changed. Now is the time to start." Article includes comment by Bob Jacobson: “The long and short of it ... is that we could have had a publicly-funded, formidable US Pavilion -- one representing all Americans -- in place well before the opening of the Expo. We could have, had not the very people you want to award roses and kudos done their work responsibly, openly, and collaboratively. They did not. ... Also, there may be congressional hearings after the elections that will look into the privatization of public diplomacy that the US Pavilion in Shanghai portends.” Image from

Turkey and Iran: America's true allies in the region? – Lena, Global Chaos: "Yesterday I got to attend one of the many 'launches' of Stephen Kinzer's new book: Reset: Iran, Turkey, and America's Future . ... Kinzer did make a substantial presentation, outlining his views on the current and future U.S. policy in the Middle East. ... Kinzer called for more, what seemed to be, public diplomacy. He said it is important to think beyond the 'narrow spectrum of acceptable options', and switch from a 'regime-to-regime' approach to one that considers the people of these nations. Thus, a hostile American policy toward Iran (or, especially, a military action) will 'kill the biggest strategic asset in the region': the pro-American sentiment. He said the U.S. needs to involve, rather than marginalize hostile regimes, since that will expose the cracks to their own publics and thus, facilitate an organic process of change. Such an approach would be more viable in the long-term, as opposed to attempts to 'impose democracy' in places where its natural pace simply needs more time."

ConnectSolutions Project in Harvard Business Review - Jeff Hale, connectsolutions: "ConnectSolutions collaboration with the US State Department was recently mentioned in the Harvard Business Review. The article 'Empowered' by Josh Bernoff and Ted Schadler is included in the July-August 2010 issue, and focuses on empowering employees to solve company’s problems. Here’s an excerpt: 'But it’s not just cranky customers who can use readily available, powerful, hyperconnected technologies to make an impact. Employees can, too. Mark Betka and Tim Receveur, of the U.S. State Department, used off-the-shelf software called Adobe Connect to create Co.Nx, a public diplomacy outreach project that presents webchats with U.S. government officials, businesspeople, and others.

The webchats now have international audiences in the tens of thousands and more than 100,000 Facebook fans.' The State Department’s Co.Nx public diplomacy project has conducted over 250 live broadcasts with ConnectSolutions, featuring speakers like President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton, ambassadors, policy analysts, and even an astronaut. Their next broadcast will be another in a series of World Cup webchats. The chat on Wednesday, June 30, will feature a discussion with DC United Head Coach Curt Onalfo." Image from article

Gov. Hirschberg speaks at Heritage Foundation Event - On June 21, the Heritage Foundation hosted an event titled 'Perspectives on U.S. International Broadcasting' and BBG Governor Jeff Hirschberg gave remarks and participated in the discussion. Also in attendance were James Glassman, Founding Executive Director George W. Bush Institute; Ambassador Tom Korologos, Strategic Advisor TCK International, LLC; Robert Reilly, Senior Fellow for Strategic Communications American Foreign Policy Council; Josh Carter, Legislative Director Office of Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Tim Shamble, President AFGE Local 1812. To read Hirschberg's remarks, as prepared, click here."

Tuesday's 63 Senate confirmations do not include the eight BBG nominees - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting

Activist hopes for "new direction" at VOA Persian, says Congress will be monitoring - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting

Terrorist Motivations – Shooting to be Big Shots? - Michael B. Kraft, Counterterrorism Blog:

"The vexing question of 'what makes terrorists tick' is an important one, especially as governments are paying more attention to the need to counter radicalization. Some countries such as Saudi Arabia and Indonesia have programs, with limited success, to try to deradicalize captured terrorist suspects. They and western governments, especially Britain, the Netherlands and more recently the United States have been trying to develop and strengthen programs to counter terrorism radicalization, including public diplomacy efforts. This is important and necessary. It is essential that we try to counter the ideology, spread so easily on the internet that justifies mass murders for the sake of some 'sacred cause' or restoring an idealized 15th century world of purity and/or the Muslim Caliph that stretched from the Middle East into Spain. Ideology, however, is not the only factor in why some people, especially young men, embrace violence and terrorism and done suicide belts. Although some writers have discussed the psychological aspects of terrorists, this aspect is often overlooked in the pontification about policies and 'root causes.'” Image from

Oiling the Hoi Polloi – Martha Bayles, World Affairs: "The art of public diplomacy, very different from that of advertising, is to engage people over and over, to listen patiently to their complaints and objections, to show that you appreciate their point of view, and then to explain as clearly as possible why your government is doing what it’s doing. The private-sector equivalent would be to keep running the same ad campaign even though no one is buying. The point is not to move product, it’s to keep the lines of communication open. If you think this is a useless exercise, just imagine how Americans would feel if, instead of finding a more suitable representative to talk to us in our own language, BP were to simply cut us off."

"Militainment"? Or "Operation Perception Management"? – Lena, Global Chaos:

“One of the major public diplomacy discussions I have come across ... is the use of the entertainment industry to promote the country's relevant interests. The US government is, perhaps, one of the few major countries that does not directly support the production of from-America-with-love type movies (with a single exception that dates back to the 1960s), and my understanding is that it prides itself for that. 'Hollywood will do the job by itself.' And yet, the case is far from being such for Pentagon, which has a long-running relationship with the film industry (and not only).” Image from

World Cup Diplomacy – Katherine, A World Not Our Own: A Public Diplomacy Blog: "As I've been following the FIFA World Cup, I can't help but wonder how all the events surrounding it further public diplomacy. I think of the Ping Pong diplomacy between China and the US and wonder if football (or soccer for my fellow Americans) can be a vehicle for diplomacy. Therefore, I'd like to start a discussion on the public diplomacy of the World Cup, and sports diplomacy more broadly. If you come across any articles pertaining to this topic, please post in this discussion thread. Includes comment by John Brown, “Public Diplomacy, Sport, and the Waning Influence of American Popular Culture,” which appeared earlier in the author’s Notes and Essays. See also.

National football teams and country brands - Felix Wetzel, Nation Branding Everything about Nation Branding and Country Brands: "With football players becoming celebrities in their own right, their impact on the nation brand will increase in importance, which highlights the lack of control a nation has over its brand, especially as nation brands do not have the power to control who will become a famous representative. The adoption of one specific individual as the brand representative leads to other dilemmas: are they representative of the entire population?

What happens if their reputation gets tarnished (especially as they are seldom replaceable as brand personalities are in the corporate world)? The synthesis of the research culminates in to the following point: the most influential method of nation branding is public diplomacy by individual citizens, be they well known players or individual fans, interacting with other citizens of other nations. The effectiveness of this public diplomacy depends on the level of pride, ownership and voluntary participation of the individual citizen towards his or her own nation brand." Image from

Bridging the trust deficit - Ashok K Mehta, Daily Pioneer: "The three-day grand Peace Jirgah of 1,600 delegates held earlier this month in Kabul, which was briefly interrupted by suicide-bombers, produced 16 recommendations chiefly about establishing peace by reconciling with 'our opponents'. ... The 16-point Kabul declaration following the Jirgah was a shrewd act of public diplomacy — a message for the Taliban, the Kabul Government, Afghanistan’s neighbours and the international community that Afghans are committed to holding parliamentary elections in September 2010, respecting human rights and democratic values."

Bosphorus Diary: Freedom on razor's edge - Yavuz Baydar, Bosphorus Diary:

"The bans wildly and often ignorantly implemented on the Internet are ... [a] cause for concern -- and certainly a shame for Turkey. The problem of the YouTube ban remains; and the government’s battle with Google displays signs of arrogance rather than enhancing the domain of freedom on the Internet. The most significant part of the problem is this: At the moment, it is impossible to access data on the number of banned websites because the supervising authority, the Telecommunications Directorate (TİB), refuses to share it with the public. The estimated number of banned sites is around 6,000-7,000. It is perplexing that the government, which needs the Internet if it wants to expand its public diplomacy on the international front after issues such as the off-Gaza incident and Iran, prefers to shoot itself in the foot instead. The only leader who shows signs of concern in this matter is President Abdullah Gül, but he has no power to change the problematic law." Image from

Edelstein: Disengagement Harmed Israel's Public Diplomacy‎ - Yoni Kempinski, Arutz Sheva: "Yuli Edelstein, Minister of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs, disputes the claim that the expulsion of Jews from Gush Katif five years helped Israel's image. He visited the Nitzan community of expulsion victims, who were evicted from their homes in the Jewish communities of Gush Katif in the Gaza Strip five years ago as part of the Sharon government's 'disengagement' plan. Edelstein came to visit Nitzan in wake of the recent report of an inquiry committee that concluded that the government abandoned and neglected the expulsion victims and to mark the fifth anniversary of the eviction, which will be marked during the upcoming week. Speaking with Arutz Sheva TV, Edelstein says that such action should never be repeated and that the claim that the pullout would promote Israel's image may have been right for a week or two but has since been proven wrong."

'Israel to fund high-school programs': Exclusive: Gov't, JA launch major effort to extend funding to youths - Haviv Rettig, Jerusalem Post - "After spending tens of millions of dollars in recent years to bring college-age Jewish youth on subsidized trips to Israel, the government and Jewish Agency are launching a major new effort to offer similar funding for high-schoolers. Together, Israel and the Jewish Agency have spent well over $100 million in recent years to help fund short-term trips through Taglit-Birthright Israel

and long-term stays in the country in the framework of Masa. In recent days, the Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Ministry and the Jewish Agency have offered $2m. to the Lapid organization, an umbrella body of 27 trip providers for high school-age kids, to start a pilot funding mechanism that will offer financial assistance to Diaspora youth applying to Israel programs." Image from

UK - MFA - Minister of State visits Olympic Site - ISRIA: "This afternoon Minister of State Jeremy Browne toured the London 2012 site in Stratford to see how the Olympic Park is developing. We are on track to deliver venues and infrastructure on time and on budget. ... Jeremy Browne is Minister for the Olympics and Public Diplomacy at the Foreign Office."

Tim Fischer draws attention to Mary MacKillop's 1873 visit to Rome - CathNews: "Australia's Ambassador to the Holy See, former deputy prime minister Tim Fischer, has said he hopes Mary MacKillop's extraordinary trip to Rome to see Pope Pius XI in 1873

would serve as inspiration for pilgrims to her canonisation ceremony. 'All of us should recall that in 1873, a thirty-one year old Australian lady battled her way across the high seas, then through Egypt, across the Mediterranean, then Brindisi to Rome to meet with Pope Pius XI,' Mr Fischer is reported saying by the Blessed Mary MacKillop website. ... Mr Fischer said arrangements for the events being held in Rome to mark Mary's canonisation are coming along well. 'It has been a joy and a privilege to work closely with the Sisters of Saint Joseph, especially Sr Anne Derwin at HQ and Sr Maria Casey in Rome on the Public Diplomacy and coordination aspects of the canonisation of Mary MacKillop.'” Image of portrait of MacKillop from

RELATED ITEMS

A Profile of the Taliban's Propaganda Tactics - Abdulhadi Hairan, Huffington Post: The Taliban's propaganda tactics exploit a particular incident or issue by elevating it with seemingly related background information to provoke the local people to stand up for violence. Mosques are favorite places for the Taliban propagandists who always seek to convince the villagers that the international forces are fighting against Islam and it is their holy obligation to stand up for jihad. Internet has proved the fastest and the most useful propaganda tool for the Taliban during these years. According to news reports, several times the Taliban established its Voice of Sharia radio which aired propaganda programs at least two hours a day and was listened to on both sides of the Pak-Afghan border from Waziristan to Khost and as far as Ghazni and Logar. There is so far no official Taliban newspaper (though there are two Hizb-e-Islami newspapers: Shahadat and Tanveer openly published and distributed in Peshawar and the adjacent areas) after the group fell from power in 2001, but many Pakistani newspapers volunteered to fill this vacuum.

Taliban Propaganda Watch (RC South/Southwest) – 232345UTC Jun 10 - MILNEWS.ca Blog

SKorea, Japan activists fly leaflets toward NKorea‎ - Associated Press: South Korean and Japanese activists floated hundreds of thousands of leaflets by balloon toward the border with North Korea on Wednesday to condemn the country's government amid tensions over the sinking of a South Korean warship.

North Korean defectors living in the South and other activists regularly fly leaflets across the heavily armed frontier in a campaign to urge North Koreans to rise up against leader Kim Jong Il's authoritarian regime. ...

The sending of the leaflets comes amid North Korean threats to launch an all-out strike against any South Korean government propaganda facilities at the border such as loudspeakers. Image from article: A South Korean activist prepares to release balloons with leaflets condemning North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in Cheorwon near the demilitarized zone, South Korea, in Wednesday, June 23, 2010; Trojan prophylactic image from

Israeli Gaza move called 'propaganda' - Vancouver Sun: Israeli officials said Sunday they are easing a land blockade on the Gaza Strip to allow in everything except weapons. The softening of a policy criticized as collective punishment of Gaza's 1.5 million Palestinians to weaken their hard line Islamist leaders follows an Israeli raid on a flotilla in which nine activists died. But Canadian activist Rifat Audeh, who was aboard the flotilla when it was raided on May 31, said he doubts Israel has done anything to help people in the Palestinian territory. He dismissed the announcement as "Israeli propaganda."

Expert: Azerbaijani Propaganda Machine bit its own tail - aysor:

Azerbaijan’s hysteria before and after any negotiation on Nagorno Karabakh conflict has got regular, YSU Department of Journalism lecturer Anahit Menemshyan said. According to her, Azerbaijan’s propaganda is not competent, it lacks for arguments and connection between cause and effect. In Menemshyan’s opinion, Azerbaijani media mainly work on quantity, not on quality. In return, information security expert Samvel Martirosyan, speaking about the June 18 Chaylu incident said that the Azerbaijani Propaganda Machine acted strangely and “being in time trouble bit its own tail.” “Various officials, experts spread contradictory information that allegedly it was Armenia that had started the attack, while the very Azerbaijani Propaganda Machine got something like schizophrenia since the Azerbaijanis did not expect aggressive information advancement from the Armenian side,” Martirosyan said. Speaking about Armenian media Samvel Martirosyan stressed that “they were consolidated in their actions against the foreign enemy.” Image from

Russian propaganda - claritaslux.com: "I have been a Russian history buff (and Russian propaganda buff) since I was 14 years old. Why? In the New England prep school where I went, there was no Polish or Ukrainian history courses (because of my family roots, I had interest), but there were a few Russian history and Russian studies programs, as the 1970s was the height of the cold war. And Russian history for me was close enough. At 14 I was an arm chair Pan-Slav. My interest in Russian history absorbed me, reading Russian literature, history and even listening to the Voice of Moscow, on a short wave radio set. I have a 100 yard antenna across our back yard I constructed. Of course I knew it was all Russian propaganda, but for me it was a connection to a culture that fascinated me. It was a strange as Russian propaganda in Soviet realistic art. Today I think the best sources of Russian propaganda are Pravda.ru and ruvr.ru (both pages conveniently have an English language version of course, so you do not need to learn Russian to read and listen)."

Shanghai Propaganda Poster Museum - geeza.com.au: "Yang Pei Ming was concerned that the posters created since the formed Chinese Republic in 1949 were disappearing and in danger of being lost forever.


So he set up a museum. I was in Beijing a few years back and bought a bunch of replicas from the markets, i love them, so stark and real and strong." Image from entry

Coda on Propaganda by the Deed - Sina Odugbemi, blogs.worldbank.org: "I am interested only in adding a coda to an earlier post: The Power of Propaganda by the Deed. In that post, I drew attention to a technique available to the underdogs of the world when confronting the powerful. It works as follows:
1. You organize and launch a visible public action designed to provoke the powerful.
2. You endure the lashing out of the powerful.
3. But you make sure it is all captured on camera and beamed to a broader audience of bystanders.
If it works, you achieve at least three things:
1. You suddenly drive your issue up the Agenda for Public/International Action.
2. You shift public opinion in your direction, including, as in this case, international public opinion.
3. You inspire bystanders -- those who had stayed out of the fight - to join the fight on your side.
In this instance the propaganda of the deed would appear, for now, to have produced a result."