Public Diplomacy

Public diplomacy relates to efforts by state and non-state actors to influence public opinion in other countries. With the growth of soft power and new media and information technologies, public diplomacy is of growing importance in international relations. This course reviews the emerging theoretical literature on public diplomacy and a number of case studies on how different states and multilateral organisations have used public diplomacy in recent years to improve their international image. This is not a distance course. This course includes group work and has a strongly practical focus -- cooperation with diplomats and international relations practitioners -- that requires active in-class engagement. This course teaches a number of the core skills that communicators working in the international context at home and abroad will need. It features diplomats and internationally-recognised leading experts of public diplomacy as our guest speakers.