The role of public diplomacy in statecraft; professional ethics; organizational principles; arguments for using public diplomacy
1. THE BTS PHENOMENON AND “K-POP” DIPLOMACY: If you haven’t heard of BTS, you either have no access to old or new media, or you live on another planet! The wildly successful, squeaky clean, seven-member boy-band from South Korea continues to take the world by storm with its popular music and powerful social media messages.…
For America’s publicly-funded overseas broadcasters, it has been the most perilous summer and fall in the 78 years since the Voice of America went on the air during World War II with the pledge: “The news may be good, the news may be bad for us (the U.S.), but we shall tell you the truth.”…
In two years’ time, shortly after graduating from the Harvard Kennedy School, we will join the U.S. Department of State Foreign Service to begin serving as American diplomats. At that time, we will be presented with the same question that all diplomats must answer: where do we wish to serve? Our answer to that question…
Imagine the herculean task of feeding nearly 100,000,000 people in 88 countries, as the World Food Programme has done this past year! That’s active lifesaving public diplomacy at its best. The U.N. organization was clearly thrilled at unexpectedly receiving the coveted Nobel Peace Prize, announced in Oslo on October 8 by the chair of Norway’s…
1.U.S. TECH GIANTS: ARE THEY TOO BIG? Few players have a greater influence on the digital economy — or on international communication or exchange or the work of public diplomacy professionals — than the four so-called “Big Tech” companies: Apple, Amazon, Google, and Facebook. As powerful, private firms with a truly global reach, they are…
President Trump’s battle with coronavirus and its spread to several of his top aides have dominated global media since the news broke October 1 that the president had contracted the disease. The President is one of more than 35 million persons around the world confirmed to have contracted the disease according to the World Health…
1.REMEMBERING JUSTICE RUTH GINSBURG AND “SCOTUS DIPLOMACY”: Amidst the avalanche of media coverage of the September 18, 2020 death of Justice Ginsburg, one photo may have stood out for many in the PD community. It was the unforgettable picture of liberal Justice Ginsburg seated behind her conservative friend and colleague, Justice Antonin Scalia, while riding…
This Q&A series has emphasized the ways in which PDC members practice Public Diplomacy at all stages of their careers. With this latest installment, PDC member Kathleen Sheehan demonstrates the various forms that a career related to Public Diplomacy can take. My intent is to highlight the importance of intergenerational learning echoes PDC President Sherry…
The Public Diplomacy Council’s mission statement commits PDC to promoting excellence in professional practice, academic study, and advocacy for public diplomacy. Advocacy — effectively making the case for public diplomacy in legislative, policy, and public circles — is central to our work. In Forces for Good: The Six Practices of High Impact Nonprofits Heather Grant…
1. IKE’S MEMORIAL AND PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ACCOMPLISHMENTS: The National Park Service has just opened its fifth presidential memorial off the National Mall. Designed by architect Frank Gehry, the memorial honors Dwight D. Eisenhower, and is appropriately located on Independence Avenue, SW between 4th and 6th Streets, SW, across from the Voice of America. Although it…