The following remarks were made at the 2021 Namaste Conference on Indian Soft Power In his renowned article from 1990, Joseph Nye sought to imagine how America would exercise power in the post- Cold War era. Power, asserted Nye, rests on the ability to change the behavior of other states. This can be achieved through... Continue Reading →
ISA/ICA Soft Power Debate
NOTE: On March 30, 2021 the International Communication Section of ISA, and the ICA's Public Diplomacy Interest Group held a joint debate on the merits of the term Soft Power. I was asked to argue against the proposition. Below are my comments, which should be regarded as both an assessment of the term Soft Power,... Continue Reading →
The Banality of Soft Power
In the autumn of 1990, Joseph Nye sought to re-imagine what American power would like in the 21st century. Writing near the end of the Cold War, Nye offered scholars and policy makers a new conceptual framework through which they could understand power dynamics in a changing world. The Cold War would soon be over,... Continue Reading →