The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science recent issues

Introduction: The Diversity of Culture

Binder, A., Blair-Loy, M., Evans, J., Ng, K., Schudson, M. — 2008-08-20

Culture and Organization Theory

Morrill, C. — 2008-08-20

Culture has become a legitimate concern and part of the basic conceptual toolkit in much of contemporary organization theory. This article historically traces the contested place of culture in organization theory—from acultural rationalist theorizing at the turn of the twentieth century; to the accidental "discovery" of shop floor culture by human relations scholars in the 1920s; to mid-twentieth-century explorations of informal and institutionalized relations in organizations; to present-day approaches that blend concepts from organizational culture frameworks, neoinstitutional analysis, sociology of culture, and social movement theory. This historical backdrop provides a context for raising several research questions relevant to organizational change, boundaries, and deviance. In closing, the author suggests that an analytic nexus between culture, power, and agency is emerging in contemporary organization theory that ultimately may yield a theory of society.

Culture and Inequality: Identity, Ideology, and Difference in "Postascriptive Society"

Charles, M. — 2008-08-20

How have conceptualizations of "culture" been incorporated into sociological studies of class, racial/ethnic, and gender inequality? This article first reviews the development of American scholarship on social inequalities during the past half century and the role of cultural analysis in this development. It goes on to consider culture-related responses to three central questions in the subdiscipline and closes with an examination of currently contentious issues. Likely future developments include movement toward more fluid, contextually contingent conceptualizations of class, race, and gender and an increasing prominence of analyses that explore the dynamic interplay between individual, interactional, and institutional processes of inequality.

Culture and Race/Ethnicity: Bolder, Deeper, and Broader

Skrentny, J. D. — 2008-08-20

The role of cultural analysis in the sociology of race, ethnicity, and immigration varies across subject matter. Primarily for political reasons, it has been marginalized in the study of ethnic/racial inequality, though new work is reclaiming culture in this important context. It has an unacknowledged presence in studies of discrimination and domination, but is explicit in macro and historical studies. This article surveys these subfields and makes a call for bolder, deeper, and broader cultural analysis in the field. More work is needed on cultural assimilation, how inequality and discrimination produce racial and ethnic meanings, how ethnic and racial cultures affect interests through variations in conceptions of the meaning of life, how sending state cultures affect immigrant and ethnic cultures in the United States, and how globalization is Americanizing immigrants before they even leave their homelands.

Culture and Movements

Polletta, F. — 2008-08-20

Thirty years ago, social movement scholars treated culture as just so much noise in structuralist theories of mobilization. Since then, they have become highly attuned to cultural processes, probing how people come to interpret their grievances as political, how culture sets the terms of strategic action, and when movements succeed in changing the rules of the institutional game. The result has been better theories of movements' emergence and impacts but also important insights into culture. In particular, movement analyses have shed light on two questions that have long exercised sociologists of culture. How does culture constrain practical action? Under what conditions does culture serve not to reproduce the status quo but to challenge it? After a brief review of movement scholars' evolving perspectives on culture, the article focuses on movement studies that have contributed to theorizing broader dynamics of cultural innovation and constraint.

Culture and Education

Stevens, M. L. — 2008-08-20

The author reviews the primary frameworks through which North American sociologists have conceived of the relation between formal education and culture and explains how sociologists' preponderant conception of formal schooling as an individual-level phenomenon and a metrical quantity has come to constrain intellectual progress in much of the subfield. The author offers two analytic strategies that might help loosen this constraint.

Culture and Markets: How Economic Sociology Conceptualizes Culture

Levin, P. — 2008-08-20

Current ways of addressing culture in the sociology of markets are incomplete. One approach treats culture as constitutive of markets (markets are culture), while the other treats culture as something affecting markets (markets have culture). This division corresponds to markets that are more or less "settled." The author outlines the history and shortcomings of this duality and proposes a more dimensional approach to culture and markets that more fully integrates culture into economic sociology.

Culture and Microsociology: The Anthill and the Veldt

Fine, G. A., Fields, C. D. — 2008-08-20

The authors argue that sociologists must use the investigation of interpersonal situations as a strategy through which "culture" can be understood in practice. Culture includes a broad range of social processes, institutions, and value systems. In contrast to perspectives that treat groups and individuals as units to be shaped by powerful cultural forces, the authors contend that culture is established, manipulated, and promoted by individuals and groups. Microsituations serve as arenas of action in their own right, locations where culture is both produced and experienced. Drawing examples from five areas of microsociology—groups, cognition, identity/ self, performance, and emotion—the authors demonstrate how a distinctively microsociological perspective allows sociologists to examine how culture, across its various conceptions, has an effect on actors and, in turn, is affected by actors. By exposing the workings of culture in situ, microsociology forces us to theorize the connections between meaning, behavior, and structure.

Culture and Law: Beyond a Paradigm of Cause and Effect

Saguy, A. C., Stuart, F. — 2008-08-20

This article examines a variety of ways in which social scientists make cultural argument about the law, including (1) holding culture as the independent variable to explain variations in law, (2) taking law as an independent variable to explain culture, or (3) considering law as culture. The authors explore each general strategy and its advantages and disadvantages in turn and argue that the law as culture perspective is one of the most interesting recent developments in sociolegal thought.

Culture and Science/Technology: Rethinking Knowledge, Power, Materiality, and Nature

Epstein, S. — 2008-08-20

Sociologists of science and technology mostly have not engaged directly with the sociology of culture, and most sociologists of culture have been slow to extract the implications for their own work of studies of scientific authority and technological production. In this article, the author analyzes how sociologists of science and technology in fact have performed cultural analyses. The author argues that recent moves to extend studies of science and technology "outward" beyond formal scientific settings have created new possibilities for interchange with the sociology of culture, particularly around studies of material culture, classification, cultural cartography, scientific citizenship, epistemic cultures, and civic epistemologies. The author concludes that the sociology of science and technology holds important lessons for sociologists of culture because of its focus on a key source of cultural authority, its attention to material objects, and its commitment to rethinking divides between the instrumental and the expressive and between nature and culture.

Culture and the Sociology of Sexuality: It's Only Natural?

Moon, D. — 2008-08-20

This article locates six themes in the overlap between the sociology of culture and the sociology of sexuality, highlighting both institutionalized and discursive forms of power. These themes include (1) works that develop or problematize economic metaphors in the study of sexuality; (2) studies of commercial sex that problematize cultural assumptions about sex, money, and morality; (3) explorations of "nonsexual"-seeming institutions, which can reproduce or challenge hierarchies of race and gender as they transmit sexual norms; (4) considerations of the sexual underpinnings of citizenship and personhood; (5) analyses of mass-mediated discourses of sexual personhood; and (6) critiques of sociology itself, as reproducing discursive power by neglecting to problematize certain assumptions about sexuality. The article ends by considering sociology's relationship to humanities-based queer theory, arguing that sociologists should bring analyses of emotions and feelings rules into our considerations of how people develop a sense of self through social interactions.

Culture and Popular Culture: A Case for Sociology

Grindstaff, L. — 2008-08-20

The study of popular culture has a long and intimate relationship to the field of cultural sociology, being both a subcategory of the field and a separate arena of inquiry taken up by other disciplines. This article examines the intellectual traditions that have shaped the sociology of popular culture, traces the points of connection and difference between sociologists and other scholars studying popular culture, and argues for the continued relevance of cultural sociology for addressing key issues and concerns within the realm of "the popular," broadly conceived. These developments include the rise of new media/communication technologies and the increasing interdependence between popular culture and other arenas of social life.

Culture and the Arts: From Art Worlds to Arts-in-Action

Acord, S. K., DeNora, T. — 2008-08-20

Through its embrace of the "cultural turn" and the "practice turn" in cultural sociology, recent work in the subfield of arts sociology has helped to advance our understanding of the role of culture in social life through its focus on arts-in-action. Empirically, this focus grew out of earlier work in the production and consumption of the arts, while, theoretically, it resonates with traditions within ethnomethodology, cognitive sociology, and the sociology of science and technology. The authors describe how new work in arts sociology unearths and develops our understanding of aesthetic consciousness, the tacit and often embodied bases of action, cognition, and engagement with cultural forms. This recent emphasis on materials and actions in turn permits critique of rule-based and more overtly cognitive models of agency structure. It also leads some of its proponents into areas that would not normally be viewed as topics for the field.

Quick Read Synopsis

2008-08-20

Introduction: Terrorism: The First Portfolio for the Next President

Clarke, R. A., Papadopoulos, E. — 2008-06-12

Al Qaeda, the Organization: A Five-Year Forecast

Bergen, P. — 2008-06-12

Al Qaeda today is a resilient organization, as evidenced by the London attacks of 2005, its resurgence in Pakistan, the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan, and its influence on the war in Iraq. While al Qaeda is not strong enough to launch an attack inside the United States in the next five years, it will continue to train militants for successful attacks in Europe. Al Qaeda's leadership is likely to remain in place for years, and it is unlikely to lose its safe haven on the Afghan-Pakistan border in the near term, although it has suffered real reverses in Iraq. Al Qaeda and its affiliated groups will, in the long term, implode because of their unrestrained violence against fellow Muslims and lack of a real plan for governance, both of which make it difficult for them to transform into a genuine, political mass movement.

Pakistan and Terror: The Eye of the Storm

Riedel, B. — 2008-06-12

Pakistan almost uniquely is both a major victim of terrorism and a major sponsor of terrorism. It has been the scene of horrific acts of terrorist violence, including the murder of Benazir Bhutto, and it has been one of the most prolific state sponsors of terror aimed at advancing its national security interests. Over the course of the past three decades, Pakistan's army has built a complex network of relationships with numerous jihadist terror groups, including the Taliban, and with terrorists like Osama bin Laden. Fear of India is the driving force behind the army's pursuit of these relationships. For the next American president, there is no issue or country more critical to get right, which means developing a policy that will move Pakistan away from being a hothouse of terror. Engaging Kashmir should be part of that new approach.

Using the Mistakes of al Qaeda's Franchises to Undermine Its Strategies

Fishman, B. — 2008-06-12

Since the invasion of Iraq, al Qaeda has used "franchises" to expand its global reach. Al Qaeda offered these franchises very little, except its name, reputation, and ideology. Because of al Qaeda's minimal investment, destroying the franchise groups will accomplish very little against the mother organization. Instead, the United States should use al Qaeda's franchises as a vehicle to attack al Qaeda's name, reputation, and ideas. Al Qaeda's franchises are more prone to strategic mistakes than their namesake; those errors should be used as the cornerstone of a narrative to highlight al Qaeda's ideological failings. Al Qaeda in Iraq has been particularly mistake-prone. Three mistakes in particular offer opportunities to undermine al Qaeda's ideology: attacks against Muslim civilians, the declaration of the Islamic State of Iraq, and infighting with other Iraqi insurgent groups.

Iraq's Long-Term Impact on Jihadist Terrorism

Byman, D. L., Pollack, K. M. — 2008-06-12

This article argues that the problems facing Iraq could have tremendous consequences for the broader "war on terror," particularly if they return to or exceed levels seen at the height of the violence in 2006. Salafi militants, followers of an extreme interpretation of Islam who want to use violence to unite Muslims under religious rule, have been fighting in Iraq and may use the country as a base for operations and attacks elsewhere in the region. In addition, refugees from Iraq might spread terrorism, radicalize neighboring populations, and contribute to strife and instability throughout the region. While a U.S. troop withdrawal may inspire fewer young men to take up terrorism against the United States, it would also increase militants' operational freedom in Iraq itself, allowing terrorist groups to recruit, train, and plan with relative impunity. As a result, if the United States withdraws from Iraq without leaving behind a stable Iraqi government, it should still maintain a regional military presence and help bolster other regimes in the Middle East from the threat of terrorism from Iraq.

Briefing for the New President: The Terrorist Threat in Indonesia and Southeast Asia

Jones, S. — 2008-06-12

Counterterrorism capacity in Southeast Asia is improving, reducing the likelihood of a major attack on Western targets in the near term. However, jihadi ideology has taken root in Indonesia, and while the region's largest terrorist organization, Jemaah Islamiyah, appears to be more interested in rebuilding than mounting operations, its members still constitute an important recruitment pool for other groups. Most Indonesian jihadis appear to be more focused on local than foreign targets, but that focus can aid recruitment and facilitate alliances with other organizations. While the Iraq insurgency has not attracted Southeast Asian participation, the resurgence of the Taliban on the Afghan-Pakistan border could. The United States, under the next president, could help develop better information sharing between South and Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia may not be the "second front" that many feared after the first Bali bombs, but the terrorism threat in the region has not gone away.

From Profiles to Pathways and Roots to Routes: Perspectives from Psychology on Radicalization into Terrorism

Horgan, J. — 2008-06-12

Attempts to profile terrorists have failed resoundingly, leaving behind a poor (and unfair) impression of the potential for a sound psychological contribution to understanding the terrorist. However, recent work in the area has delivered promising and exciting starting points for a conceptual development in understanding the psychological process across all levels of terrorist involvement. Involvement in terrorism is a complex psychosocial process that comprises at least three seemingly distinct phases: becoming involved, being involved—synonymous with engaging in unambiguous terrorist activity—and disengaging (which may or may not result in subsequent de-radicalization). A critical implication of these distinctions is the recognition that each of them may contain unique, or phase-specific, implications for counterterrorism. An argument is made for greater consideration of the disengagement phase with a clearer role for psychological research to inform and enhance practical counterterrorism operations.

"Homegrown" Terrorists: Theory and Cases in the War on Terror's Newest Front

Kohlmann, E. F. — 2008-06-12

The realities of a globalized society now allow international terrorist organizations like al Qaeda to dramatically expand their potential reach by courting sympathizers in dark corners around the world and teaching them how they can best serve al Qaeda's interests—without necessarily visiting an actual military training camp or even speaking directly with al Qaeda. In fact, despite their somewhat haphazard outward appearance, homegrown terrorist cells often possess a remarkable shared connection through reliance on particular al Qaeda training manuals, audio and video recordings, and even Internet chat forums. While these young men (and, increasingly, women) may have no formal contact with any terrorist organization, they can become virtual partners of al Qaeda by carefully studying its online knowledge base and executing terrorist attacks against its enemies. Recent law enforcement investigations have uncovered a surprisingly sophisticated network of budding terrorist "entrepreneurs" lurking in a host of major cities across Europe and North America.

Countering Terrorist Finance: A Work, Mostly in Progress

Winer, J. M. — 2008-06-12

Prior to the September 11, 2001, attacks, the United States and the international community had undertaken only limited measures to address terrorist finance. Seven years later, despite vast efforts and stronger counterterrorist finance regimes, major gaps in regulation and enforcement remain. Funds still reach terrorist groups through state sponsors, charities, and criminal activities. In Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Iran, and beyond, terrorist financing remains a huge problem. The next administration must do seven things to address terrorist finance: first, implement country-specific strategies to ensure global cooperation, particularly with state sponsors; second, undermine terrorist-affiliated charities by replacing the social services they provide; third, make U.S. law enforcement a truly global entity; fourth, regulate all domestic financial sectors; fifth, address smuggling of bulk currency and high-value commodities; sixth, reinvigorate the UN's support for counterterrorist finance regimes; and finally, improve U.S. domestic enforcement and communication with the American public and the world.

The Incisive Fight: Recommendations for Improving Counterterrorism Intelligence

Rosenbach, E. — 2008-06-12

The intelligence community has evolved significantly since the failures of 9/11 and the inaccurate assessments on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. Congressional action has resulted in multiple far-reaching reforms and tectonic organizational shifts. On the strategic level, however, counterterrorism intelligence policy has been muddled during the past eight years. The Bush administration, for example, called on the intelligence community to "bolster the growth of democracy." The next president should cast aside political ideology and build on reform efforts to empower top-notch leaders. Strong new leaders in the intelligence community must energize the National Counterterrorism Center and provide the president with comprehensive and policy-relevant intelligence analysis. The United States cannot eliminate the global terrorist threat alone—the next president must boost cooperation with liaison security services. Finally, the intelligence community must bolster its operational capacity to find and detain terrorists around the world.

Restoring Moral Authority: Ending Torture, Secret Detention, and the Prison at Guantanamo Bay

Malinowski, T. — 2008-06-12

From Guantanamo Bay to Abu Ghraib, the history of the United States's handling of combatants in the Global War on Terrorism is filled with episodes that have diminished its reputation and influence in the world. Most military and intelligence professionals now agree that presenting a more positive vision of American values is critical to success over terrorist organizations like al Qaeda. Developing a coherent and effective human rights policy raises important questions: about the efficacy and legality of torture and extraordinary rendition, the use of military instead of civilian courts to prosecute suspected terrorists, and whether some prisoners can be held indefinitely without charge or trial. Considering both morality and strategy, the next president should issue an executive order that categorically forbids torture, end the use of secret detention, close the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, and seek to release or transfer to home countries detainees who cannot be prosecuted by the United States.

Mutually Assured Support: A Security Doctrine for Terrorist Nuclear Weapon Threats

Fischhoff, B., Atran, S., Sageman, M. — 2008-06-12

If the United States were subject to a terrorist nuclear attack, its president would face overwhelming political pressure to respond decisively. A well-prepared response could help both to prevent additional attacks and to bring the perpetrators to justice. An instinctive response could be cataclysmically ineffective, inflicting enormous collateral damage without achieving either deterrence or justice. An international security doctrine of Mutually Assured Support can make the response to such attacks more effective as well as less likely—by requiring preparations that reduce the threat. The doctrine requires all subscribing nations to mobilize fully in support of the attacked nation, in return for a promise of nonretaliation. It provides a vehicle for domestic and international leadership, allowing the president to engage the American people, from a position of strength, around an issue that has had little public discussion. The authors describe its rationale, implications, and implementation.

The Conundrum of Iran: Strengthening Moderates without Acquiescing to Belligerence

Brennan, J. — 2008-06-12

After nearly three decades of antagonistic rhetoric and diplomatic estrangement between the United States and Iran, the next president has the opportunity to set a new course for relations between the two countries. When the next president takes up residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Iranian officials will be listening. The president must implement a policy of engagement that encourages moderates in Iran without implying tolerance for Tehran's historic support of terrorist activities. This strategy will require patience and sensitivity to the complex political realities inside Iran. To successfully chart a new course for U.S.-Iranian relations, the next president must (1) tone down rhetoric; (2) establish a direct dialogue with Tehran, including comprehensive, private discussions and deployment of a special envoy; (3) encourage greater assimilation of Hezbollah into Lebanon's political system; and (4) offer carrots in addition to sticks, including consideration of legitimate Iranian concerns on regional security issues.

A Counterradicalization Strategy for a New U.S. Administration

von Hippel, K. — 2008-06-12

The U.S. government needs a new, two-pronged approach to counter radicalization in many parts of the world, particularly when confronting the "enabling environment." Those inhabiting this environment include potential sympathizers in the Arab and Muslim world who may not themselves use violence but either endorse the arguments and platforms of the terrorists or are intimidated into silence. This wider community needs to be won over so that they oppose terrorism in their neighborhoods, cities, and states and, critically, in the virtual world, where many of the battles are taking place. Appealing to the enabling environment may be the only way in the long term to isolate terrorists and end terrorism. This two-part approach includes (1) a prioritized development strategy (with an emphasis on good governance, anticorruption, and social service provision) and (2) innovative tools and new partners to implement and disseminate it.

The Resurgent and Persistent Threat of al Qaeda

Sawyer, R., Foster, M. — 2008-06-12

While the "Global War on Terror" has succeeded in constricting al Qaeda's ability to operate, it has not eliminated the threat. Al Qaeda is stronger and more resilient than at any time since 2001 due to its ability to adapt, innovate, and reconfigure its resources in response to a hostile counterterrorism environment. This article presents a new framework for considering the war against al Qaeda. Policy makers must recognize that the current conflict is not a single conflict, but rather three conflicts: a war of action, a war of networks, and a war of ideas. Viewing al Qaeda in this manner will facilitate the integration of counterterrorism policy and strategy from the tactical to the strategic level. Furthermore, the failure to understand why al Qaeda has survived and prospered precludes the development and deployment of a cogent counterterrorism strategy. Finally, the authors present a set of policy recommendations structured around this framework.

To Win the "War on Terror," We Must First Win the "War of Ideas": Here's How

Amr, H., Singer, P. W. — 2008-06-12

This article addresses the critical role that public diplomacy plays in improving the deteriorating image of the United States in the Muslim world. The authors argue that both public diplomacy and policies, including those on civil liberties, are vital to U.S. success in the war on terrorism and that the next U.S. president must designate this effort as a matter of highest national security importance. Many in the Muslim world believe that the war on terrorism is essentially a war on Islam; this view impedes the success of an effective foreign policy strategy. Previous efforts of public diplomacy have lacked funding, energy, focus, and an integrated strategy. The authors define six principles to improve America's security through winning the war of ideas, including addressing civil liberties concerns, and engaging diverse constituencies in the Muslim world. Finally, the authors describe ten public diplomacy initiatives to improve U.S.–Muslim world relations.

A Strategy for Fighting International Islamist Terrorists

Sageman, M. — 2008-06-12

The U.S. strategy for combating international Islamist terrorists must be based on an understanding of the terrorists' behavior and the process of radicalization to violence. This process includes four dimensions: a sense of moral outrage, interpreted in a specific way, which resonates with one's personal experiences, and is channeled through group dynamics, both face-to-face and online. The threat has evolved over the past decade. The process of radicalization continues in a hostile physical environment, but it is enabled by the Internet, resulting in a disconnected, decentralized social structure. The threat of this "leaderless jihad" is self-limiting because of its confining structure and the lack of appeal of its utopian ideal. It will probably fade away for internal reasons, if not sustained by overly aggressive tactics construed as a "war on Islam." The appropriate strategy against this threat is to contain and neutralize the radicalization process along its four dimensions.

Defeating the Attempted Global Jihadist Insurgency: Forty Steps for the Next President to Pursue against al Qaeda, Like-Minded Groups, Unhelpful State Actors, and Radicalized Sympathizers

Bergen, P., Footer, L. — 2008-06-12

Since September 11, 2001, al Qaeda has attempted to morph into a popular movement—what some have called "al Qaeda 2.0." If the United States is fighting against a global campaign of terrorism and classic insurgencies (or an attempted global jihadist insurgency), then it should employ a global counterinsurgency strategy to combat al Qaeda 2.0. This article recommends such a strategy, including the following suggestions: develop the military, intelligence, and language capabilities needed to win the conflict; improve counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan and eliminate safe havens in Pakistan; expand counterinsurgency strategy in Iraq; manage "blowback" and monitor ungoverned regions; develop an Internet-based strategy to attack the jihadis; start fighting the "war of ideas" like we mean it; adopt a more proactive foreign policy; and better secure the U.S. homeland.

Quick Read Synopsis

2008-06-12

Foreword: Historical Remembrance in the Twenty-First Century

Winter, J. — 2008-04-30

Introduction: The Political Currency of the Past: History, Memory, and Identity

Heisler, M. O. — 2008-04-30

The Future of Memory

Lebow, R. N. — 2008-04-30

The author compares and contrasts the public discourse over memory in Western Europe and North America. The greater awareness in continental Europe of memory as a political resource and site of contestation has profound implications for elite behavior and mass responses. It also has the potential to alter the dynamics by which collective and institutional memory is created, recalled, and altered.

The American Past Politicized: Uses and Misuses of History

Kammen, M. — 2008-04-30

This article examines some of the major ways in which American history has been written, revised, and reinterpreted from partisan perspectives and for political purposes. It takes note of the Revolutionary founders' concerns about the ways in which their pivotal era (1765-1789) was likely to be misunderstood or distorted; how several of the most central events in the national narrative, such as the sectional conflict and Civil War, came to be misremembered for politically self-serving reasons; how presidents have misread or misrepresented American and international history to justify their policies; how the Supreme Court (and lower courts) has used history selectively to achieve outcomes (often desirable) that the justices felt were necessary; and finally, how the so-called culture wars of the early 1990s caused innocent words like "interpretation" and "revisionism" to become fighting phrases and the basis for shrill and often small-minded polemics between progressive and conservative agendas.

Blank Spots in Collective Memory: A Case Study of Russia

Wertsch, J. V. — 2008-04-30

The dynamics of collective remembering are examined by analyzing what happens when a "blank spot" in history is filled with information that had previously not been available or publicly acknowledged. Taking Russian accounts of the secret protocols of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939 as a case study, it is argued that "schematic narrative templates" that shape deep collective memory give rise to a tendency to maintain this memory and help it overcome the "narrative rift" that occurs when embarrassing episodes from the past are publicly acknowledged. Schematic narrative templates are set forth as underlying strong conservative forces that resist change in collective memory at a deep level. It is suggested that debates grounded in formal history may help overcome this resistance to change but that such efforts will be limited as long as the forces of deep collective memory are not recognized.

Using the Past in the Nazi Successor States from 1945 to the Present

Wustenberg, J., Art, D. — 2008-04-30

This article examines the political uses of memory in the three successor states of the Third Reich. The focus is on how political elites offered stylized histories of the Nazi past in the service of broader political goals, both domestic and international. After reviewing key junctures in the politics of memory, the authors discuss contemporary debates about history, particularly in Germany, the country often viewed as the model for coming to terms with a traumatic past. Despite the massive and growing literature about confronting the Nazi past, the authors note that there are few studies that link ideas about history to broader political outcomes and suggest that this represents a fertile area for future research. The article concludes by considering whether German memory politics will serve as a model for European memory.

Through a Glass Darkly: Consequences of a Politicized Past in Contemporary Turkey

Gocek, F. M. — 2008-04-30

The resolution of the three major political problems faced by the contemporary Turkish nation-state— namely, the massacres of the Armenians in the past, the treatment of the Kurds at present, and the contested partition of the island of Cyprus—has become increasingly urgent as these problems have started to impede Turkey's chances of joining the European Union and also of becoming more democratic. Yet, since the Turkish nation-state commences its own official historical narrative with either the Independence Struggle in 1919 or the subsequent establishment of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, it subsequently approaches these "Armenian, Kurdish, and Cyprus issues" as totally disparate and mutually independent, and in an ahistorical manner, resulting in increased entrenchment of the conflicts. The article argues that challenging the temporal boundaries of this Turkish official narrative by delving into its "prehistory," namely, the period preceding 1919 or 1923, reveals not only the common origin of all of these issues but also a possible peaceful solution to them all as well as for a more democratic Turkey.

The Japanese History Textbook Controversy in East Asian Perspective

Schneider, C. — 2008-04-30

Controversy over the inadequate presentation of Japan's colonial and wartime past in the country's history textbooks is one of the most protracted, notorious, and politically relevant "history problems" currently troubling East Asia. This article provides an overview of the controversy's evolution since 1982, situating it in changing domestic and regional contexts, analyzing its particularities and interrelations with other controversial issues, and evaluating its impacts on textbooks and societies at large. It shows how increased domestic and foreign scrutiny and contestation have triggered cycles of greater openness, conservative counterreactions, subsequent backlashes, and renewed debate in the field of textbooks and have overall contributed both to reinforcements and to reconsiderations of foreign relations in the region.

Disputes in Japan over the Japanese Military "Comfort Women" System and Its Perception in History

Hayashi, H. — 2008-04-30

In 2007, then-Japanese Prime Minister Abe stirred up controversy by denying that "comfort women" were coerced by the Japanese military. He was supported by more than a few politicians, and his opinion may be viewed as a reflection of the nationalistic atmosphere of Japanese society. Since the early 1990s, research has been establishing proof that the Japanese government and military were fully and systematically involved in the comfort women system and that the system violated numerous international and domestic laws. Ultrarightist groups have been trying to erase the fruits of such research. The U.S. House of Representatives' resolution in July 2007 (H. Res. 121) and Abe's sudden resignation seem to mean that the ultrarightist movement toward historical revision has come to a deadlock. The comfort women issue and other questions about Japan's war responsibilities may have an important impact on Japan's future.

The Politics of History and Memory in Democratic Spain

Boyd, C. P. — 2008-04-30

This article examines the political uses of history and memory in Spain since the death of General Francisco Franco in 1975. The myth of the war as a collective tragedy facilitated the democratic transition, as did the Amnesty Law of 1977, which applied to the agents of Franquist repression as well as its victims. Once democracy was consolidated, professional historians clarified military responsibility for the civil war and documented the extent of the repression; the right responded by reviving the Franquist myth of the civil war as a crusade against communism. "Memory" replaced history in public discourse with the breakdown of the transition consensus and the maturation of a generation with no recall of the war or the dictatorship. Demands for official condemnation of the dictatorship and public recognition of its victims culminated in the passage of the so-called Law of Historical Memory in October 2007.

Australia's History under Howard, 1996-2007

Bonnell, A., Crotty, M. — 2008-04-30

This article argues that since the election of his Coalition government in 1996, John Howard and his conservative allies in government and the media have waged a long campaign to influence the representation and public understanding of Australian history. They have sought to play down the historical harm done to Indigenous Australians and to emphasize more affirming stories of the rise of a new, democratic nation. The conservatives' waging of the "history wars" has been motivated by neoconservative ideology imported from the United States, the political interests of the Coalition government, and the personal background and convictions of the prime minister. Despite sustained criticism of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation as well as the National Museum of Australia and many academic historians, and despite attempts to institute a national history curriculum, this article concludes that the history wars, for all their smoke and fury, have had only transient effects on the practice of Australian history.

Democracy and Memory: Romania Confronts Its Communist Past

Tismaneanu, V. — 2008-04-30

All postcommunist societies face major dilemmas in confronting their traumatic past. A functional democracy cannot be based on lies, denial, and amnesia. Romania's exit from communism has resulted in a hybrid quasi-democratic regime, with former communists like Ion Iliescu maintaining influential positions and opposing a genuine break with the past. In 2006, President Traian Basescu established a Presidential Commission for the Analysis of the Communist Dictatorship in Romania; the author of this article was selected as its chair. The commission's Final Report was the basis for President Basescu's condemnation of the communist dictatorship as illegitimate and criminal. Offering a comparative perspective, the author focuses on the debates that led to the creation of the commission, the commission's activity and the fierce attacks on it by nostalgic communists and xenophobic nationalists, and the impact of moral justice on Romania's democratic political culture.

Can Truth Be Negotiated? History Textbook Revision as a Means to Reconciliation

Pingel, F. — 2008-04-30

International school textbook revision and research became a professional academic activity after the First World War. It broadened its scope and methodological approaches considerably after the collapse of the bipolar world. Today, a number of different agencies, such as international governmental institutions, NGOs, and academic as well as pedagogical institutions, are involved in projects on the revision of history teaching in postconflict societies. This article examines the pros and cons of different project designs, focusing on the sometimes contradictory aims projects are expected to achieve and on the interplay between the various agencies. Examples highlighting the reconstruction and reconciliation process are taken from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Israel-Palestine, and Rwanda and South Africa.

Challenged Histories and Collective Self-Concepts: Politics in History, Memory, and Time

Heisler, M. O. — 2008-04-30

Societies, like individuals, strive to have positive self-concepts. They endow stories of their origin and associate their course through history with ethical principles that attest to who they are and how they want to be seen. Such principles define the society for its members and for the world at large. But all societies must at some time confront evidence of actions undertaken in their name that violate their fundamental principles and conflict with their desired self-image. Following a glance at the basic elements of the politics of history and identity, the author suggests two sources of the tensions between "bad acts" and positive self-concepts. Both relate to shifts in developmental time. First, actions not considered wrong when they were undertaken in the past are inconsistent with current expectation. Second, transsocietal differences in normative frameworks lead to cross-boundary criticisms of behavior in which the critics' societies likely engaged at an earlier time. Accusations or criticisms generally meet with defensive, often hostile responses. Hypocrisy tends to rule in most cases, with little or no normative learning.

Quick Read Synopsis

2008-04-30

Public Diplomacy in a Changing World

Cowan, G., Cull, N. J. — 2008-02-13

Moving from Monologue to Dialogue to Collaboration: The Three Layers of Public Diplomacy

Cowan, G., Arsenault, A. — 2008-02-13

For a number of years, commentators and professionals have noted that effective public diplomacy requires that state and private actors communicate with the people of other nations by moving from monologue to dialogue. This article argues that both monologue and dialogue are essential public diplomacy tools and that collaboration is a third layer of public diplomacy that should also be examined. Collaboration, defined in this article as initiatives that feature cross-national participation in a joint venture or project with a clearly defined goal, may in certain instances be a more effective public diplomacy technique than either monologue or dialogue. By examining related social science research, this article seeks to start a systematic examination of the circumstances in which each of these three layers of public diplomacy—monologue, dialogue, and collaboration—is most appropriate.

Public Diplomacy: Taxonomies and Histories

Cull, N. J. — 2008-02-13

Public diplomacy is a term much used but seldom subjected to rigorous analysis. This article—which draws heavily on a report commissioned by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the spring of 2007—sets out a simple taxonomy of public diplomacy's components and their interrelationships. These components are (1) listening, (2) advocacy, (3) cultural diplomacy, (4) exchange, and (5) international broadcasting. It examines five successful and five unsuccessful uses of each individual component drawing from the history of U.S., Franco-German, Swiss, and British diplomatic practice. The failures arise chiefly from a discrepancy between rhetoric and reality. The final section applies the author's taxonomy to the challenges of contemporary public diplomacy and places special emphasis on the need to conceptualize the task of the public diplomat as that of the creator and disseminator of "memes" (ideas capable of being spread from one person to another across a social network) and as a creator and facilitator of networks and relationships.

Searching for a Theory of Public Diplomacy

Gilboa, E. — 2008-02-13

This work presents and critically evaluates attempts to theorize and conceptualize public diplomacy within several disciplines, including international relations, strategic studies, diplomatic studies, public relations, and communication. It also examines research methods used to investigate public diplomacy, including models, paradigms, case studies, and comparative analysis. The work identifies promising directions as well as weaknesses and gaps in existing knowledge and methodology and outlines a new research agenda. The presented analysis and examples suggest that only a systematic multidisciplinary effort and close collaboration between researchers and practitioners can lead to a coherent theory of public diplomacy.

The New Public Sphere: Global Civil Society, Communication Networks, and Global Governance

Castells, M. — 2008-02-13

The public sphere is the space of communication of ideas and projects that emerge from society and are addressed to the decision makers in the institutions of society. The global civil society is the organized expression of the values and interests of society. The relationships between government and civil society and their interaction via the public sphere define the polity of society. The process of globalization has shifted the debate from the national domain to the global debate, prompting the emergence of a global civil society and of ad hoc forms of global governance. Accordingly, the public sphere as the space of debate on public affairs has also shifted from the national to the global and is increasingly constructed around global communication networks. Public diplomacy, as the diplomacy of the public, not of the government, intervenes in this global public sphere, laying the ground for traditional forms of diplomacy to act beyond the strict negotiation of power relationships by building on shared cultural meaning, the essence of communication.

Public Diplomacy and Soft Power

Nye, J. S. — 2008-02-13

Soft power is the ability to affect others to obtain the outcomes one wants through attraction rather than coercion or payment. A country's soft power rests on its resources of culture, values, and policies. A smart power strategy combines hard and soft power resources. Public diplomacy has a long history as a means of promoting a country's soft power and was essential in winning the cold war. The current struggle against transnational terrorism is a struggle to win hearts and minds, and the current overreliance on hard power alone is not the path to success. Public diplomacy is an important tool in the arsenal of smart power, but smart public diplomacy requires an understanding of the roles of credibility, self-criticism, and civil society in generating soft power.

Hard Power, Soft Power, Smart Power

Wilson, E. J. — 2008-02-13

This article pushes beyond hard power and soft power to insist on smart power, defined as the capacity of an actor to combine elements of hard power and soft power in ways that are mutually reinforcing such that the actor's purposes are advanced effectively and efficiently. It argues that advancing smart power has become a national security imperative, driven both by long-term structural changes in international conditions and by short-term failures of the current administration. The current debates over public diplomacy and soft power suffer from failures to address conceptual, institutional, and political dimensions of the challenge, three dimensions the author addresses in this article.

Place Branding: The State of the Art

van Ham, P. — 2008-02-13

This article examines the relevance of place branding as a political phenomenon in international politics. After setting place branding in a historical and conceptual context, it maps out the connections between branding and international politics by looking at three examples. First, it examines the challenges facing the European Union to strengthen its image as a global player. Second, it analyzes the efforts of the United States to deal with its collapsing image in the aftermath of its failing "war on terror" and military intervention in Iraq. Third, it examines negative place branding by focusing on the Borat movie that upset Kazakhstan in 2006 and the cartoon crisis that erupted in Denmark in September 2005. This article also aims to situate the practice of place branding in a broader analytical context. It argues that place branding is part of a wider spectrum of postmodern power, where soft power and public diplomacy also have their place.

New Technologies and International Broadcasting: Reflections on Adaptations and Transformations

Price, M. E., Haas, S., Margolin, D. — 2008-02-13

International broadcasters, like all media institutions, adjust to reflect the existence of new distribution technologies. Technological change is part of a new media landscape that has rendered older definitions and contexts of international broadcasting insufficient. The pace and extent of adjustment differs among the players. Adaptations range from the superficial to the highly integrative and, on the other hand, from the merely adaptive to the pervasively transformative. Can one compare, among institutions, how this process takes place and what factors influence the patterns of accommodation? Theories of organizational structure shed light on which factors lead international broadcasters to which path. This article considers U.S. international broadcasting as a model to tease out some of these factors, among them organizational complexity, political influence, and control and contradictions embedded in institutional purpose. In this scenario, technological adaptation can mask a critical need to address institutional transformation.

Mapping the Undefinable: Some Thoughts on the Relevance of Exchange Programs within International Relations Theory

Scott-Smith, G. — 2008-02-13

This article examines the importance of exchange programs as channels of political influence and the value that can be gained from examining their impact via various theoretical positions in international relations (IR). Although there are clear possibilities for linking the study of public diplomacy with IR theory, so far this has not occurred to any real extent. Following World War II, a whole swathe of social scientific and behavioralist research, mainly in the fields of communications and psychology, laid the basis for understanding the political implications of public diplomacy and exchanges. Using these studies as a springboard, the article moves on first to consider their continuing relevance and then to insert exchanges within reflections on IR fields such as regime theory, Gramscian-based critical theory, constructivism, epistemic communities, and transnational networks. The article concludes with some observations on the relevance of exchanges as forms of cultural–political interchange and the use of case studies for confirming their importance as an object of study for IR.

International Exchanges and the U.S. Image

Snow, N. — 2008-02-13

This article reviews four special issues of The Annals devoted to international exchange programs and the U.S. image. These volumes offer four decades of insight into personal contact across national borders through international exchange programs during the cold war era. The article concludes that cold war accounts of international face-to-face contact reveal important public diplomacy lessons for the twenty-first century, particularly for the U.S.-led war on terror. Methods of public diplomacy developed then are applicable now, including the importance of dialogue in overcoming stereotypes, building relationships, and enhancing the national reputation of the United States during ideological contests. The article includes a reassessment of the international exchange of persons in light of this historical review.

Buena Vista Solidarity and the Axis of Aid: Cuban and Venezuelan Public Diplomacy

Bustamante, M. J., Sweig, J. E. — 2008-02-13

Eager to capitalize on the sensationalist appeal of a new anti-U.S. "axis," the international press often perpetuates a perception that Cuba and Venezuela are, in spirit and in deed, inseparable. Such depictions diminish the significant differences in the ways and the success with which each country promotes its image abroad. Although Cuba and Venezuela employ many of the same public diplomacy tactics to advance their related anti-U.S. worldviews, the Cuban regime has proven much more successful at playing the role of the victim and using this position as a way to increase its international legitimacy. Likewise, Cuba is far more sophisticated at employing cultural products to support diverse political, diplomatic, and economic ends—many of which arguably serve a market-oriented purpose rather than a strictly anti-imperialist or antiglobalization agenda.

Public Diplomacy and the Rise of Chinese Soft Power

Wang, Y. — 2008-02-13

In recent years, China has sought to supplement its traditional use of hard power with soft power, and thus the Chinese government has paid more and more attention to public diplomacy. Chinese governments have previously demonstrated a limited understanding of public diplomacy, seeing it either as external propaganda or a form of internal public affairs, but this has not prevented China from becoming a skilled public diplomacy player. Key aspects of traditional Chinese culture and politics have presented major obstacles for Chinese public diplomacy. In comparison to the United States, China needs an enduring and effective public diplomacy strategy and needs to improve its skills to make full use of the modern media. The peaceful rise/peaceful development policy in Chinese grand strategy has sought to integrate Chinese hard power and soft power to create a soft rise for China.

Public Diplomacy: Sunrise of an Academic Field

Gregory, B. — 2008-02-13

Public diplomacy is a political instrument with analytical boundaries and distinguishing characteristics, but is it an academic field? It is used by states, associations of states, and nonstate actors to understand cultures, attitudes, and behavior; build and manage relationships; and influence opinions and actions to advance interests and values. This article examines scholarship with relevance, usually unintended, to the study of public diplomacy and a body of analytical and policy-related literature derived from the practice of public diplomacy. Ideas, wars, globalism, technologies, political pressures, and professional norms shaped the conduct of public diplomacy and the literature of scholars and practitioners during the hot and cold wars of the twentieth century. In the twenty-first century, thick globalism, network structures, and new technologies are transforming scholarship, governance, and state-based public diplomacy. An achievable consensus on an analytical framework and a substantial scholarly and practical literature hold promise for an emerging academic field.

Public Diplomacy in a Changing World

2008-02-13