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Public Diplomacy and Soft Power

Author

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  • Joseph S. Nye Jr.

    (Harvard University)

Abstract

Soft power is the ability to affect others to obtain the outcomes one wants through attraction rather than coercion or payment. A country's soft power rests on its resources of culture, values, and policies. A smart power strategy combines hard and soft power resources. Public diplomacy has a long history as a means of promoting a country's soft power and was essential in winning the cold war. The current struggle against transnational terrorism is a struggle to win hearts and minds, and the current overreliance on hard power alone is not the path to success. Public diplomacy is an important tool in the arsenal of smart power, but smart public diplomacy requires an understanding of the roles of credibility, self-criticism, and civil society in generating soft power.

Suggested Citation

  • Joseph S. Nye Jr., 2008. "Public Diplomacy and Soft Power," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 616(1), pages 94-109, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:616:y:2008:i:1:p:94-109
    DOI: 10.1177/0002716207311699
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Bachrach, Peter & Baratz, Morton S., 1963. "Decisions and Nondecisions: An Analytical Framework," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 57(3), pages 632-642, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Yoav Dubinsky, 2023. "Country image, cultural diplomacy, and sports during the COVID19 pandemic: Brand America and Super Bowl LV," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(3), pages 249-265, September.
    2. Sameera Durrani, 2023. "What happens when a country bleeds soft power? Conceptualising ‘Negative Watch’: towards an epistemology for negative and adversarial place branding," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(4), pages 456-475, December.
    3. Steven L. Pike, 2023. "What diplomats do: US citizen perspectives on the work of public diplomacy," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(4), pages 442-455, December.
    4. Seow Ting Lee, 2023. "Vaccine diplomacy: nation branding and China’s COVID-19 soft power play," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(1), pages 64-78, March.
    5. Lesego Alicia Keimetswe, 2023. "The impact of the Chinese Government Scholarship Program and Confucius Institute on China’s national image in Botswana: a soft power perspective," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(4), pages 488-499, December.
    6. Nyam Elisha Yakubu, 2022. "An Appraisal of Hard Power in Contemporary Practice of Diplomacy," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 6(02), pages 342-351, February.
    7. Yanling Zhu, 2023. "The Greater Bay Area: film festivals as platforms for cultural diplomacy," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(3), pages 335-344, September.
    8. Seow Ting Lee, 2023. "A battle for foreign perceptions: Ukraine’s country image in the 2022 war with Russia," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(3), pages 345-358, September.
    9. Yazeed Abdullah Almahraj, 2023. "British press coverage of international sports events hosted by Saudi Arabia: content analysis study in light of country concept model," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-9, December.
    10. Muhammad Ittefaq & Zahid Shahab Ahmed & Yadira Ixchel Martínez Pantoja, 2023. "China’s Belt and Road Initiative and soft power in Pakistan: an examination of the local English-language press," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(1), pages 1-14, March.
    11. Seow Ting Lee, 2022. "Film as cultural diplomacy: South Korea’s nation branding through Parasite (2019)," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 18(2), pages 93-104, June.
    12. Matthew T. Palmer & Eugene Bempong Nyantakyi & Jami A. Fullerton, 2023. "The US Peace Corps as a public diplomacy strategy," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(1), pages 15-29, March.
    13. Michał Marcin Kobierecki, 2023. "Sport at the World Expo. Analysis of sports diplomacy at the non-sporting event," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(4), pages 413-425, December.
    14. Nisha Garud-Patkar, 2022. "Mediated Public Diplomacy: Frame-building Contest Between the United States and Pakistan During a Conflict," International Studies, , vol. 59(1), pages 58-75, January.
    15. Nadia Kaneva & Cecilia Cassinger, 2022. "Centering gender in public diplomacy and nation branding: an invitation to reimagine the future of the field," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 18(4), pages 305-313, December.
    16. Hendrik W. Ohnesorge, 2022. "The method of comparative-historical analysis: a tailor-made approach to public diplomacy research," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 18(3), pages 261-271, September.
    17. Raquel Quevedo-Redondo & Marta Rebolledo & Nuria Navarro-Sierra, 2023. "Music as Soft Power: The Electoral Use of Spotify," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 11(2), pages 241-254.
    18. Yoav Dubinsky, 2023. "Sports, Brand America and U.S. public diplomacy during the presidency of Donald Trump," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(1), pages 167-180, March.
    19. B. Theo Mazumdar, 2024. "Digital diplomacy: Internet-based public diplomacy activities or novel forms of public engagement?," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 20(1), pages 24-43, March.
    20. Hannah Moscovitz, 2022. "Projecting the Nation(s) in Multinational Federal Systems: International Education and Nation Branding in Canada/Quebec," Publius: The Journal of Federalism, CSF Associates Inc., vol. 52(1), pages 82-106.
    21. Yafei Lyu, 2023. "Positive Shift of the Image of China in Recent Hollywood Blockbusters," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-16, November.
    22. Steven L. Pike & Dennis F. Kinsey, 2024. "Diplomatic identity and communication: using Q methodology to assess subjective perceptions of diplomatic practitioners," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 20(1), pages 66-75, March.
    23. Remco Johan Leonard Dijk & Catherine Yuk-ping Lo, 2023. "The effect of Chinese vaccine diplomacy during COVID-19 in the Philippines and Vietnam: a multiple case study from a soft power perspective," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-12, December.
    24. Zhang, Anlan & Xu, Yue & Robson, Matthew J., 2023. "The legitimacy defeat of Huawei in the media: Cause, context, and process," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(6).
    25. Jacklyne Achieng' Aput & Anita Ndoti Kiamba & Peter Kagwanja, 2023. "Public Diplomacy in Regional Integration: Strategizing Policy Goals," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 7(10), pages 368-384, October.

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