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.…
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…
Having highlighted some of the Public Diplomacy Council’s new Rising Professional members this summer, I am shifting the series’ focus to feature several of the PDC’s more experienced members in the coming weeks. My intent to highlight the importance of intergenerational learning echoes PDC President Sherry Mueller’s message in her book Working World, coauthored with…
1.DEBATES COMING UP: The nonprofit, non-partisan Commission on Public Debates (CPD) has released the schedule for the important 2020 presidential election debates. The three presidential debates will be September 29 in Cleveland; October 15 in Miami; and October 22 in Nashville. The one vice presidential debate will be October 7 in Salt Lake City. The…
1. U.S. CRACKS DOWN ON CONFUCIUS INSTITUTES: The days when China could quite freely sponsor Confucius Institutes (CIs) to promote Chinese language and culture on U.S. campuses are over. The State Department has decided to designate the Confucius Institute U.S. Center (CIUS), which is the Washington, DC-based de facto headquarters of the CI network, as…
1.TEACHING ABOUT PUBLIC DIPLOMACY AND POWER: The bipartisan U.S. Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy (ACPD) is continuing to do productive work to improve the public diplomacy functions vested in U.S. Government entities. Its latest product, Teaching Public Diplomacy and the Information Instruments of Power in a Complex Information Environment, is an 88-page special report intended for…
1. A “DEADLY WARGAME”: PD professionals – like the public generally – aren’t usually exposed to wargames, an often classified strategy game that the Pentagon loves to use to simulate a military exercise or crisis. CNAS – the independent, non-partisan think-tank focused on security and defense policies – deserves credit for increasing public awareness of the…
The United States’ closure of China’s consulate in Houston, which was followed by the shuttering of the U.S. consulate in Chengdu by China, was attributed to intelligence activities supported by the Chinese government. But it’s worth remembering China’s expansion and authoritarian control measures that underly the diplomatic clash. The PRC tightens its grip on Hong…
1.UNITED STATES REJECTS CHINA’S SOUTH CHINA SEA CLAIMS: Amidst the increasingly public escalation of charges and name-calling between the United States and China over a long — and growing — list of bilateral concerns, the United States issued very tough guidance on the long-simmering maritime disputes over South China Sea water and seabed rights. On…