The importance of Public Diplomacy

Decades of interference in and neglect of the global community culminated in the Bush administration’s destructive foreign policy. This approach damaged the public’s image of the US and significantly undermined the country’s reputation in the global community. It ultimately lead to countries, once allied with the US, such as France and Germany, to question and openly oppose US actions.In recognition of this, President Obama has employed public diplomacy to restore America’s benign image worldwide. In the President’s inaugural speech, he decisively moved away from direct threats towards named individual nations to offer dialogue to those who “unclench their fists”. Furthermore, President Obama broke with convention (established by previous American Presidents) of visiting the Department of Defense. Instead, his appearance at the state department marked a shift from US emphasis on hard power to an increase focus on soft power. President Obama’s public campaign continued to the Middle East. In Cairo, Obama addressed the public directly. He emphasized “mutual interest and mutual respect” between the US and the Middle East.Although media and public reaction to the speech was polarized with some claiming it heralded a new era of hope and others holding judgment until tangible actions are taken, in terms of public diplomacy it succeeded by dominating news cycles and sparking debate globally.

The Chinese government is also aware of China’s image worldwide, tainted by the lack of human rights and democracy as well as minorities’ issues such as Tibet. Determined to address its problematic image, China is actively pursuing public diplomacy. Recently, China’s foreign minister Yang Jiechi stated that Chinese diplomats are now encouraged to actively court the public. Furthermore, Chinese culture is promoted through the Confucius Institute’s educational institutional partnerships worldwide. Moreover, in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, China took an unprecedented move. She opened up to foreign assistance and allowed journalists to report with almost no restrictions. These moves successfully served to place China’s image in a positive light. In addition, China used the Beijing Olympics 2008 to launch a massive public diplomacy campaign. As the largest global media event, the Olympics serves as a “platform that connect audiences globally”. China efficiently used the Olympics by loosening restrictions on media coverage and impressing foreign publics with its display of modernity, wealth, organization and maintenance of cultural values. All these different instruments of public diplomacy serve to promote China as a benign world power that is of no threat to other nations. Additionally, it aims to promote Chinese culture as admirable and China as being in the process of reform.

Arguably, it is evident that public diplomacy is important and does matter. Having said that, it is the extent to which the influence and impact of public diplomacy stretches is up for debate.