Technology shifts soft power goals from ‘winning hearts and minds’ to forming relationships

WASHINGTON – Successful deployment of soft power in the 21st century requires rethinking not only methods but also goals. That was the message this week from Nicholas Cull, who spoke at a CCLP forum here this week. Cull, who directs the Masters Program in Public Diplomacy at USC, urged policy makers to shift from "winning hearts and minds" to a new framing, enabled and driven by social media. "It is post-statecraft," said Cull. "It's not about 'hearts and minds.' It's about relationships."……