The Return of Cultural Diplomacy

Cultural diplomacy, or should I say the American version of cultural diplomacy is now being vilified and excoriated by Western European countries, and has been criticized for decades by Middle Eastern countries as well. But, is the critizism justified? In a word-no. While it is true that American culture can be somewhat crass at times, European and Middle Eastern culture leave a lot to be desired too. The caste system in India, the rule of Sharia in Islamic countries, and the denial of European culture and heritage by the Europeans themselves have left a vacuum that will be filled by people searching for an identity they can call their own. The politically correct ideology that Europeans have embraced, denying their own contributions to culture throughout the ages, has eviserated their national identity and corrupted their own sense of self worth. While Americans as a whole are extremely self criticial and judge ourselves rather harshly when it comes to our self image, our national identity is intact and we are extremely proud of who we are as a people and as a nation.

It has been said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The authoritarian rule in the former Soviet Republics, the lack of freedom and denial of human rights in the Middle East where Islam is the rule of law, and abulic attitiude Europeans have embraced to the deference of a dominate immigrant culture, has exacerbated the national identity crisis on the continent and elsewhere. American culture has been emulated in part because of that crisis. If the desire to reclaim national identity is paramount, then Europeans and others need to eschew the trappings of politically correct multiculturism, and instead embrace the unique individuality and heritage that history has bestowed upon those nation states. And recall that is was this individuality and heritage that gave birth to America.

O yeah, we have to listen to the Mullha now,.... I understand , Newsweek is all for Sharia laws these days. Wonderful. And just watch one of those popular Bollywood movies, you will see how blindly Indians are trying to follow western life. About the Islamic views, let me tell you, they are becoming more and more fundementalistic. Good luck. BTW, We used to see a lot of eatern european women selling their bodies in these gulf countries esp when Russia and easttern Europe was in a slump.

I for one would like to see fewer ads during the evening newscasts touting Cialis, Viagra or such! Try answering your nine year old grandchild who asks what is erectile dysfunction? or What is an erection lasting four hours? Also, could we export Billy Mays (preferably to Mars) AKA the Screamer? Or at least muffle him?

oh come on, we also export war, weapons, cigarettes, and financial crisis!

Nobel Prize for Literature refused to consider American authors this year.

This is news? For fifteen years our fashions have been dumpster chic and homeless person chick and we've called males men with "smokey good looks," when in reality they look like a hung over drunk late Saturday morning trying to crawl off the bed and stumble into the john - and they talk like it, too. Why shouldn't we be attracted to gutter film when that's how we dress and talk. It's so deliciously disrespectful of family values!

Though I personally prefer the product from Europe and Brazil, don't forget America's pornography.

living in france in the 80s and 90s I can attest to the fascinaiton attraction for the US culture and character, up through the Clinton years. the optimism, dynamism, the french envy of "les start ups" as well as the model of someone poor becoming a Rhodes Scholar then president, evidence of a very positive image which we regain today w Obama. Also, during my time there, American artists such as Bob Wilson, got culture grants from the French governement, and jazz singers received Legion d Honneur.
BUT French youth and trendies openly mocked the formulas of Hollywood : categories such as "chick flicks" "action movies" "slasher Movies" "women or minority empowerment uplifting movies".. On French tv, comics openly deride and parody the over use of the F word by American tough guys, the limited american vocabulary and violence were seen a a joke, young people there made fun of the swagger / mouth breathing brutes seen in Hollywood movies. Hollywood makes commercial formulaic films, even "Milk" is a film I've seen 50 times, just pllug in the uplifiting downtrodden, be it Julia Roberts as feisty single mom takin' on polluters, to the horribly formulaic Dead Poets Society, American Beautiies, these films are jaw achingly predictable, whether critical/Progressive or square jawed Patriotic. the HOllywood movie goes from gross out slacker comedy formula to action to slasher , because executives think in cynical focus group target audience terms.
the best movie of the year is "waltz with Bashir" which breaks all formulas and is truly astounding and complex. America has junk culturee to export, it balances our junk plastic gadgets import deficit with China !
But let's turn the page on so much low brow importing and exporting.

I lived in France through the 90s and at the time there was a positive image of Clinton era America, the vitality, the optimism. HOwever the formulaic action movies, the grotesque over use of the "F word" especially by macho swaggering psuedo gangsta guys, were cause for derision among the young. Canal Plus television, very close to young people's preoccutions in France, openly mocked the angry mouth breathing American male and the idiocy of "chick flicks". As the France say, "le ridicule tue" ( ridicule kills ) and Hollywood's very commercial target film formulas ( "action" "chick" "empowering women" "empowering minorities" "slasher") are openly derided.

Okay, this is the fourth article I've come across that paints America in a negative light.

I won't delve into things such as normative and positive, but just let me point out that Newsweek is not dealing an objective product here. I read and listen to a variety of things from across the ideological spectrum, and enjoy absorbing it all to get a picture of the influences of our world.

But today's fare is coming across as more of a series of essays by immature college students simply trying to throw mud at "the man."

More to the point of the article; do we really need to direct the cultural impact of our entertainment abroad like some bureaucrat would attempt to regulate utility prices?

Perhaps we need a minister of Media Culture that could actually have veto power over what movies and books would even be allowed to be produced? That would have to be the eventual result, because if some backwater country in Europe or Asia decides they want to buy "Baywatch" how are we to stop them? So we would have to implement a Culture minister with the authority to simply ban such shows/books, etc.

My organization, American Voices, has been taking American artists and our most unique cultural genres - hip hop, Broadway, Jazz and Blues, Country Western and various forms of traditional dance and music to over 100 countries over the past 15 years. I am glad to hear that America is finally waking up to the value of our unique cultural heritage and genres as a tool to communicate the essence of who we are as a nation to other nations. We have taught Hip Hop Dance in Iraq, prepare joint performances of Broadway shows in Vietnam and Kazakhstan, and combined African=American spirituals with Afghan traditional music in Kabul. Its hard work, but it is highly successful locally and receives enormous media attention locally and the message reaches millions. I am hopeful that the new administration may put some pressure on State Department to create a viable, cost-effective, community-oriented, educational, sustainable cultural diplomacy program with a focus on the Middle East, Central Asia, the NIS and other parts of the world where our image is in tatters. If Iraqis love us for bringing hip hop dance and jazz to their young performing artists, it can and should be done everywhere. www.americanvoices.org John Ferguson