NEWS ABOUT: cultural diplomacy
cultural diplomacy stories: 6 news briefs
Lakers star makes inroads with new Chinese foundation
Wall Street Journal Jun 30, 09 6:00 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Yao Ming may be an NBA star, but the most popular basketball player in China is Kobe Bryant—he's plastered on billboards and even once had his own reality show on Chinese TV. The Lakers guard has made a deliberate push in the world's largest nation, and he's now establishing the Kobe Bryant China Fund to benefit education and health. "I think he can be a one-man State Department," a financier working with Bryant told the Wall Street Journal .
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OPINION
Cool-headed 'cultural translator' appeals to Star Trek generation
Salon May 7, 09 11:40 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
With the release of Star Trek tomorrow, we’ll be seeing a lot of Spock again—but we’ve been watching his earthly counterpart all year. President Obama is our own version of the charismatic half-Vulcan, writes Jeff Greenwald for Salon. His cool head and appealing intellect tie him to Spock; so does his diplomatic role as “cultural translator,” notes a media expert.
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Tabloid offers how-to guide for provoking international incidents
Daily Mirror (UK) Dec 17, 08 6:56 PM CST
(Newser Summary) -
Taking its cue from the infamous shoe-toss of an Iraqi journalist—a sign of high contempt in his culture—the Daily Mirror presents a how-to guide for provoking international incidents: Buddhist countries: Nothing raises eyebrows or ire more than a pat on the head, as that's where locals believe the seat of the soul is located.
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Fran Drescher offers
to take over Hillary Clinton's Senate seat
New York Dec 8, 08 11:35 AM CST
(Newser Summary) -
Fran Drescher has a great idea for a well-known woman to inherit Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, and it's not Caroline Kennedy, reports New York . The face—and, even more memorably, the voice—of the 1990s sitcom The Nanny proposes herself. OK, so she's never run for public office, but she was recently named a diplomatic envoy for the US, traveling to developing nations to speak about women's health issues.
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North Korea invites
old Slowhand for
landmark concert
E! Online Feb 27, 08 11:41 AM CST
(Newser Summary) -
Kim Jong Il is a diehard Elvis fan, but the Great Leader's son is seriously into Eric Clapton, which could be why North Korea has invited Old Slowhand to play a concert in Pyongyang. Though the New York Philharmonic performed there yesterday, a Clapton appearance would mark the first time a Western pop music star had been involved in a cultural exchange with the regime that more often treats rock 'n' roll as "pollution."
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New York orchestra wins ovation after landmark performance
AFP Feb 26, 08 7:16 AM CST
(Newser Summary) -
The New York Philharmonic received a huge ovation in Pyongyang tonight after a concert that marked the first thaw in cultural relations between the US and North Korea in 50 years. The performance—which included the countries' national anthems, a Korean folk song, and works by Gershwin, Dvorak, Wagner, and Leonard Bernstein—was broadcast on state media and around the world, reports AFP.
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