Researcher Zhaleh Boyd is conducting a fact-finding mission in Vietnam in conjunction with the CCLP Technology and Trafficking in Persons initiative. Boyd, a 2010 Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Foreign Affairs Fellow, reports in from the mid-way point of her trip on her latest findings on human trafficking in Asia and the Pacific Rim. —————————————————————————————— I have just completed the first week of my 16-day research trip to Vietnam. This week was spent in the Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam's boomtown. L-R: Mark Preston, Candace Burnham, Jerry Edling, and Zhaleh Boyd standing at the entrance to the US Consulate in……
Tag: diplomacy
The New Arab World Requires New Public Diplomacy
This article was written by CCLP Faculty Fellow Phil Seib. DOHA — My conversation with two North African friends ranged widely, from the role of satellite television in the Arab world to the prospects for electoral reform in the region. Then we came to how other nations would deal with the new dynamics of Arab politics. One of my friends said, "In the past, diplomacy has been with the leaders, but now it must be with the people." In other words, public diplomacy will now be of unprecedented importance for governments, such as that of the United States, that want……
Secretary Clinton and the Information War
This article was written by CCLP Faculty Fellow Philip Seib. In testimony to Congress last week, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton acknowledged the existence of an ongoing "information war" that the United States is losing. In addition to saying that "Al Jazeera is winning," Clinton pointed to the major investments in international broadcasting being made by China and Russia. The Chinese effort is of particular importance. As Secretary Clinton said, "We are in a competition for influence with China; let's put aside the moral, humanitarian, do-good side of what we believe in, and let's just talk straight realpolitik."……
Education and training of foreign service must be enhanced to protect US interests
With support from the Center on Communication Leadership & Policy, senior fellow Jeremy Curtin was the lead drafter of a major new study Forging a 21st Century Diplomatic Service for the United States Through Professional Education and Training , sponsored by the American Academy of Diplomacy and the Stimson Center in Washington, DC. The report focuses on the new and expanding demands on American diplomacy in the 21st century and the training and resources required to meet them successfully. The report argues that the rising importance of "civilian power" in the U.S. national security equation, as Secretary of State Hillary……
U.S. Public Diplomacy and the New Egypt
This article was written by CCLP Faculty Fellow, Phil Seib. Events of the past few weeks belong wholly to spirit of the Egyptian people, not technology. And although it was built on democratic aspirations, this was not a revolution that drew any inspiration from the United States. Think about that. In China's Tiananmen Square in 1989, there was a Statue of Liberty-like model and many signs written in English as protesters there looked toward the nation that was seen as a beacon of freedom, born of a revolution of its own. In 2011, in Cairo and Alexandria, the signs in……
Qatar’s Well-Funded Public Diplomacy
This article was written by CCLP Faculty Fellow Philip Seib. DOHA — Money is a wonderful thing. Qatar has plenty of it and is putting it to use in its expanded public diplomacy. With wealth rather than weaponry, Qatar is becoming a new kind of superpower. The tiny state's latest triumph is being named the site of the 2022 World Cup. In the run-up to that event, Qatar plans to build air-conditioned stadiums, a 25-mile bridge to Bahrain, a new city, Lusail, which will be home to 300,000 residents, plus a new array of luxury hotels and other amenities. During……
Seib in HuffPo – India
"At a conference in New Delhi," writes Faculty Fellow Phil Seib, "Indian diplomats, media executives, business persons, and others examined their country's "Public Diplomacy in the Information Age" and found that their efforts to reach the global public needs more coherence and imagination." Seib attended the conference in December entitled "Public Diplomacy in the Information Age." His findings of the conference can be found in his blog post on the Huffington Post…….
Schell’s NYT book review
The New York Times featured a book review written by Senior Fellow Orville Schell on December 12. Schell, an expert on US-China relations asks "but with the West's power and confidence now declining, and China's authoritarian form of capitalism ripsawing its way toward an ever more dominant position in the world, a reader may be forgiven for becoming somewhat impatient. Is Morris ever going to answer the 'burning question'? Who will win the next phase of our East-West horse race, the United States or China?"……
Seib to speak at PubD conference in New Delhi
Faculty Fellow Phil Seib will be speaking at a conference on public diplomacy organised by the external affairs ministry of New Delhi on Friday, Dec. 10. Also speaking at the conference will be Nicholas Cull, USC Annenberg professor of Communication. An article about the conference and its speakers can be found on Sify News. [follow-up information from Live-PR]……
Seib in HuffPo – Central Europe
According to Faculty Fellow Phil Seib, "democracy and a free-market economy require careful nurturing (and a generous allotment of good luck)." Seib wrote an article for the Huffington Post about Central Europe's struggle to adapt to democracy and the challenges the region has faced in trying to remove itself from its Soviet and communist roots…….