China’s Panda Diplomacy
by Lily Werlinich, Emma Barrera and Mailinh McNicholas Nuclear arms may be the current talk of the town, but China has been successfully deploying a furrier weapon for years: the panda. Late last year, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chinese President Xi Jinping...
Facebook Meets Global Agitprop
By Rob Cline and Olivia Dupree Facebook has come under fire by Washington lawmakers and the American public in recent months for their apparent involvement in the 2016 election. It has been discovered that Russian disinformation operations paid for targeted Facebook...
The Peace Corps and Public Diplomacy Connection
by Samantha Cookinham and Meredith Hessel Washington Post Contributor Bren Flanigan feels that the importance of the Peace Corps’ role in public diplomacy is forgotten with the budget cuts that President Trump proposed in the spring.* Flanigan finds he, along with...
Formation of race stereotypes is undermining Chinese effort in Africa
A well-intentioned Chinese Central Television (CCTV) comedy show went horribly wrong last month. CCTV brings out its best programming during the peak Chinese new year’s holidays, but one comedy sketch this year earned wide international media criticism for its...
Fashion in Public Diplomacy: Why Symbols are the Key to Acknowledging Identity
Recently, Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, gathered his wife and kids for a state trip to India. The picturesque man and his picturesque family flew halfway around the world for a week of meetings and dinners with everyone from Indian government officials to...
How Anti-Americanism in Pakistan can be mitigated through Diplomacy and Public Diplomacy
Image Source: “U.S. – Pakistan Relationship.” Chappatte Globe Cartoon, Chappatte in International Herald Tribune, 30 May 2012, www.chappatte.com/en/images/u-s-pakistan-relationship/. Pakistan is the 7thlargest country in the world in terms of its population and a...
Venezuela and its ‘’victim’’ narrative
The Washington Post reported a couple of weeks ago that Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, referred to the international coverage of Venezuela and its problems as ‘’propaganda against our country’’ and that international media is waging a ‘’psychological war’’....
I Spy With My Little Eye – How U.S. Surveillance Punctured German Trust
Imagine being a 25-year-old adult who has moved out of your parents’ house and is successfully living on your own only to find out that your parents are spying on you and reading your text messages. It’s pretty egregious and a violation of trust. That is...
The Pyeongchang Narrative Olympics: Win, Lose, or Draw?
The Olympics are known for bringing the world together. They unite people of all demographic backgrounds and nationalities around sport. While most people are focused on the sports, world leaders are focused on the politics. This is especially true of the host...
When a Handshake Isn’t Just a Handshake: Breaking Down the New French-American Dynamic
It was the cracking of knuckles heard around the world. During a visit to France, Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron put their relationship on display for the entire world as an extended, strong handshake exemplified the close bonds between France and the United States....
