First published on 17.12.2010 Celebrity activism continues to garner a huge amount of attention. The popular Guardian newspaper’s Development Blog currently features a Podcast on the role of celebrities in development. William Easterly wrote a typically provocative Op Ed in…
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Richard Holbrooke – Combining The Worlds Of Diplomacy And Celebrity
First published on 22.12.2010 The tributes to Richard Holbrooke have concentrated on the core components of his career, highlighted by his diplomatic trouble-shooting in Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan. Although his career as a US official dealing with front line conflicts…
Posted in Celebrity Activism, Diplomacy
Celebrity and Politican Are Not Synonyms, OK Hollywood?
The relationship between celebrities from the entertainment/sports world and politics is fraught with difficulty. Celebrities have been drawn repeatedly into political life on a global basis. Yet an image remains of unpredictability and under-performance. When Clint Eastwood’s cameo performance — addressing an…
Posted in Celebrity Activism, Diplomacy
Does it Even Matter What Celebs Think About Politics?
The intense controversy over the praise accorded to Fidel Castro by Ozzie Guillen, manager of baseball’s Miami Marlins (in an interview with Time magazine) illustrates the wide-spectrum of reactions to the intrusion of figures from the world of entertainment into the world of global…
Posted in Celebrity Activism
The Trouble With Twiplomacy
Publications sometimes hit on an important topic that leaves more questions than answers. A good illustration is the release over the summer of a study from the PR firm Burson-Marsteller on “Twiplomacy.” How diplomats respond to new technology to reach diverse…
Posted in Celebrity Activism, Diplomacy
Mark Carney Appointment: A Victory for Technocrats
This piece first appeared in the Toronto Star. The striking appointment of Mark Carney as the new governor of the Bank of England can be interpreted in a wide number of ways — from a view that highlights the global governance dimension…
