A curated selection of public diplomacy-relevant news from a global cross-section of English-language media outlets, including independent, corporate-owned, and state-sponsored sources. The stories featured don't necessarily represent CPD's views nor have they been verified by CPD.
Beijing Sets High Standard in Hosting Olympics, Says Famed U.S. Businessman
China has set an example too high for future Olympic hosting countries to follow, said John W. Allen, chairman and CEO of the U.S. Greater China Corporation (GCC).
Chinese Games to Start with a Big, Big Bang
Beijing's new national stadium, the steel-latticed 'Bird's Nest', hosts the lavish opening ceremony which will draw on some 10,000 performers and could net a global television audience of more than four billion people. The world got a tantalising glimpse of what is in store when a South Korean television crew slipped past the security cordon last week to film a secret dress rehearsal. Their footage, flashed over the internet, showed aerial artists floating over the track, kung-fu formations and humpbacked whales cavorting around the rim of the Bird's Nest.
Restrictions on Net Access in China Seem Relaxed
The Chinese authorities appear to have lifted some of the restrictions that blocked Web sites for journalists working at the Olympic Village although other politically sensitive sites, including those on Tibet, remained inaccessible on Friday morning.
Report: China Unleashes Clean Revolution
A report published on Friday by the Climate Group hails China as the world's leading renewable energy producer, overtaking more developed economies in exploiting valuable economic opportunities, creating green-collar jobs and leading development of critical low carbon technologies.
Will The Olympics Change China?
A recent poll from the Pew Global Attitudes Project found that 93 percent of Chinese think the Olympics will improve their country's international image. But Bruce Stokes, a columnist with the National Journal who worked on the survey, says national pride is so high in China that any disruption to the games could easily generate resentment against the West.
China’s Dash for Freedom
On balance, the award of the games has done more harm than good to the opening up of China. The big forces driving China's opening are independent of the games. One is the speed with which China globalised in the 1980s and 1990s and then accelerated to a breakneck pace after accession to the World Trade Organisation in 2001. The other is the spread of the internet and mobile telephony that have transformed society. The Olympics, by contrast, have seen the Communist Party reassert an authoritarian grip over Beijing.
Military’s Role Toward Foreign Policy
Additional personnel will allow State and USAID to increase our foreign language, diplomatic, and border security capabilities; augment our public diplomacy, cultural affairs capacity, and POLAD program; increase USAID’s presence overseas and development contributions; and implement the Civilian Stabilization Initiative, including the Civilian Response Corps, to provide additional civilian expertise for rapid crisis response.
China May Expand Industry, Traffic Control for Cleaner Air During Olympics
Beijing and the neighboring areas may impose stricter measures to curb industrial and vehicle emissions in case of serious air pollution during the Olympics, according to China's environmental watchdog.
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