Public Diplomacy: Foundations for Global Engagement in the Digital Age
Nicholas J. Cull
New technologies have opened up fresh possibilities for public diplomacy, but this has not erased the importance of history. On the contrary, the lessons of the past seem more relevant than ever, in an age in which communications play an unprecedented role. Whether communications are electronic or hand-delivered, the foundations remain as valid today as they ever have been.
Blending history with insights from international relations, communication studies, psychology, and contemporary practice, Cull explores the five core areas of public diplomacy: listening, advocacy, cultural diplomacy, exchanges, and international broadcasting. He unpacks the approaches which have dominated in recent years – nation-branding and partnership – and sets out the foundations for successful global public engagement. Rich with case studies and examples drawn from ancient times through to our own digital age, the book shows the true capabilities and limits of emerging platforms and technologies, as well as drawing on lessons from the past which can empower us and help us to shape the future.
This comprehensive and accessible introduction is essential reading for students, scholars, and practitioners, as well as anyone interested in understanding or mobilizing global public opinion.
“Public diplomacy is increasingly important in this era of information and social media. Few people are better placed to guide you through the public aspects of diplomacy than Nick Cull, and he does it deftly in this book.”
Joseph Nye, Harvard University and author of The Future of Power
The New Public Diplomacy: Soft Power in International Relations (Studies in Diplomacy and International Relations)
Jan Melissen
After 9/11, which triggered a global debate on public diplomacy, ‘PD’ has become an issue in most countries. This book joins the debate. Experts from different countries and from a variety of fields analyze the theory and practice of public diplomacy. They also evaluate how public diplomacy can be successfully used to support foreign policy.
Front Line Public Diplomacy: How US Embassies Communicate with Foreign Public
W. Rugh
This book presents the first-ever close and up-to-date look at how American diplomats working at our embassies abroad communicate with foreign audiences to explain US foreign policy and American culture and society. Projecting an American voice abroad has become more difficult in the twenty-first century, as terrorists and others hostile to America use modern communication means to criticize us, and as new communication tools have greatly expanded the worldwide discussion of issues important to us, so that terrorists and others hostile to us have added negative voices to the global dialogue. It analyzes the communication tools our public diplomacy professionals use, and how they employ interpersonal and language skills to engage our critics. It shows how they overcome obstacles erected by unfriendly governments, and explains that diplomats do not simply to reiterate set policy formulations but engage a variety of people from different cultures in a creative ways to increase their understanding of America.
Routledge Handbook of Public Diplomacy
by Nancy Snow (Editor), Philip M. Taylor (Editor)
The Routledge Handbook of Public Diplomacy provides a comprehensive overview of public diplomacy and national image and perception management, from the efforts to foster pro-West sentiment during the Cold War to the post-9/11 campaign to “win the hearts and minds” of the Muslim world. Editors Nancy Snow and Philip Taylor present materials on public diplomacy trends in public opinion and cultural diplomacy as well as topical policy issues. The latest research in public relations, credibility, soft power, advertising, and marketing is included and institutional processes and players are identified and analyzed. While the field is dominated by American and British research and developments, the book also includes international research and comparative perspectives from other countries.
Published in association with the USC Center on Public Diplomacy at the Annenberg School based at the University of Southern California.
Soft Power: The Means To Success In World Politics
Joseph S. Nye Jr.
Joseph Nye coined the term “soft power” in the late 1980s. It is now used frequently,and often incorrectly,by political leaders, editorial writers, and academics around the world. So what is soft power? Soft power lies in the ability to attract and persuade. Whereas hard power,the ability to coerce,grows out of a country’s military or economic might, soft power arises from the attractiveness of a country’s culture, political ideals, and policies. Hard power remains crucial in a world of states trying to guard their independence and of non-state groups willing to turn to violence. It forms the core of the Bush administration’s new national security strategy. But according to Nye, the neo-conservatives who advise the president are making a major miscalculation: They focus too heavily on using America’s military power to force other nations to do our will, and they pay too little heed to our soft power. It is soft power that will help prevent terrorists from recruiting supporters from among the moderate majority. And it is soft power that will help us deal with critical global issues that require multilateral cooperation among states. That is why it is so essential that America better understands and applies our soft power. This book is our guide.
Understanding Public Diplomacy in East Asia: Middle Powers in a Troubled Region
by Jan Melissen (Editor), Yul Sohn (Editor)
Set against the backdrop of tensions in East Asia, this book analyzes how East Asia’s “new middle powers” and emerging powers employ public diplomacy as a key element of their foreign policy strategy and in so doing influence regional power dynamics. The volume brings together contributions from an international and influential group of scholars, who are leading debates on public diplomacy within East Asia. Where the study of public diplomacy has so far focused primarily on the West, the essays in this book highlight the distinct strategies of East Asian powers and demonstrate that understanding public diplomacy requires studying its strategies and practices outside as much as within the Western world. A focus on public diplomacy likewise gives us a more varied picture of state-to-state relations in East Asia.
“This edited volume is comprehensive in both geographic scope and analytical breadth and, with several thematic chapters and six case studies, largely succeeds at its appointed task. … I enjoyed the diverse array of viewpoints and case studies offered by this volume. Individual chapters are clearly presented and well written, and the manuscript provides an informative and valuable starting point for both politics students and lays audiences interested in the use of public diplomacy in East Asia.” – Erin Zimmerman, Journal of Asian Security and International Affairs
New Public Diplomacy in the 21st Century: A Comparative Study of Policy and Practice
James Pamment
This book examines the concept of new public diplomacy against empirical data derived from three country case studies, in order to offer a systematic assessment of policy and practice in the early 21st century.
The new public diplomacy (PD) is a major paradigm shift in international political communication. Globalization and a new media landscape challenge traditional foreign ministry ‘gatekeeper’ structures, and foreign ministries can no longer lay claim to being sole or dominant actors in communicating foreign policy. This demands new ways of elucidating foreign policy to a range of nongovernmental international actors, and new ways of evaluating the influence of these communicative efforts.
The author investigates the methods and strategies used by five foreign ministries and cultural institutes in three countries as they attempt to adapt their PD practices to the demands of the new public diplomacy environment. Drawing upon case studies of US, British, and Swedish efforts, each chapter covers national policy, current activities, evaluation methods, and examples of individual campaigns.
European Union Public Diplomacy: The Need for a New Frame
Marina Litvinsky
A new approach to looking at the EU is presented in “European Union Public Diplomacy: The Need for a New Frame.” Struggling to define and explain itself to foreign publics, the EU is often criticized for lacking one voice. Litvinsky shows that this criticism is actually incorrect because it assumes the EU is a nation-state. Instead, she contends, the EU is a supranational institution, unlike any other international entity, and, therefore, in need of a new set of criteria according to which it is evaluated by the world. Litvinsky offers specific suggestions for the EU’s new public diplomacy strategy in order to promote this new frame in the U.S. and abroad. She argues that the union must educate publics about its innovation and leadership in global governance and highlight the ways in which it is constantly evolving and improving.
The Digitalization of Public Diplomacy (Palgrave Macmillan Series in Global Public Diplomacy)
Ilan Manor
This book addresses how digitalization has influenced the institutions, practitioners and audiences of diplomacy. Throughout, the author argues that terms such as ‘digitalized public diplomacy’ or ‘digital public diplomacy’ are misleading, as they suggest that Ministries of Foreign Affairs (MFAs) are either digital or non-digital, when in fact digitalization should be conceptualized as a long-term process in which the values, norms, working procedures and goals of public diplomacy are challenged and re-defined. Subsequently, through case study examination, this book also argues that different MFAs are at different stages of the digitalization process. By adopting the term ‘the digitalization of public diplomacy’, this book will offer a new conceptual framework for investigating the impact of digitalization on the practice of public diplomacy.
“This book provides a timely analysis of how digital communication technologies present challenges and opportunities for public diplomacy. The cases situate digital public diplomacy within broader social transformations wrought by the logic of ubiquitous digital platforms. Manor’s work weaves together a nuanced study of digital public diplomacy around the world, with an interdisciplinary perspective on technology and influence. The result is an important reflection on how international actors define and act on the terrain of digital engagement.” – Craig Hayden, Security Studies, Marine Corps University, USA
The First Resort of Kings: American Cultural Diplomacy in the Twentieth Century
Richard T. Arndt
During the last five decades, U.S. cultural diplomacy programs have withered because of politics and accidents of history that have subordinated cultural diplomacy to public relations campaigning, now called “public diplomacy.” With anti-Americanism on the rise worldwide, cultural diplomacy should become an immediate priority, but politicians continue to ignore this relatively inexpensive, age-old tool for promoting understanding among nations. Richard Arndt probes the history of American cultural diplomacy to demonstrate its valuable past contributions and to make a plea for reviving it for the future. Cultural relations occur naturally between people in different nations as a result of trade, tourism, student exchanges, entertainment, communications, migration, intermarriage—millions of cross-cultural encounters. But cultural diplomacy only happens when a government decides to channel and to support cultural exchange through planned programs to promote broad national interests. The First Resort of Kings examines the first eight decades of formal U.S. cultural diplomacy, from its tentative beginnings in World War I through the 1990s. Arndt also compares America’s efforts with those of other nations and enriches his narrative by detailing the professional experiences of the men and women who have represented American democracy, education, intellect, art, and literature to the rest of the world. His work shows that this dialogue of American culture and education with the rest of the world is neither a frill nor a domestic political concern but is the deepest cornerstone of a positive, forward-looking U.S. foreign policy. Arndt argues that, particularly in the wake of the Iraq War, America must revive its cultural diplomacy programs as a long-term investment in international goodwill and understanding.
“With twenty-four years of direct experience in America’s efforts at cultural diplomacy, Richard Arndt is adept at sorting out the petty bureaucratic struggles from the serious efforts of many talented practitioners to find an answer to the proper role of our government in this policy minefield. His broad intellectual background and his felicitous expression make him an ideal guide through this contentious field, and his many personal portraits of distinguished Americans in our recent history are a real treat.”— Arthur Hartman, former U.S. ambassador to France and the Soviet Union