![]() ![]() Although it is mainly explored in the areas of political sciences and history, interest in researching the phenomenon also appears in other fields, including sociology, art history, musicology, ethnomusicology, etc. The issue is exacerbated by the heterogeneous disciplinary framing of this topic. As these authors observe, the semantic field of this term has “broadened considerably over the years,” making it applicable to “pretty much any practice that is related to purposeful cultural cooperation between nations or group of nations.” This tendency not only contributed to a blurring of the lines between the concept of cultural diplomacy and other concepts that evolved prior to its expansion, including international cultural relations, public diplomacy and soft power, but also undermined the efforts to create a more coherent approach to the research of cultural phenomena in the domain of international relations. ![]() For instance, Ang, Isar Ray and Mar highlight the popularity and, at the same time, the obscurity of the concept of cultural diplomacy, which has been given a dominant place in debates starting from the beginning of the 21st century. Academics active in this area emphasize the need for greater clarity in defining key concepts and classificatory schemes in the analysis of cultural segments of international relations. ![]() ![]() Apart from revealing how diverse cultural actions contributed to the promotion of the countries of both the Western and the Eastern Bloc, along with their dominant values and ideology, a large number of studies published in the recent decades have also served to indirectly point to the necessity of thorough examination of the cultural part of foreign policy making and international relations, to providing it a stronger theoretical foundation and to the importance of including in the analyses different cases from different periods. Therefore, it is no coincidence that researchers of this topic mainly on the last two centuries, particularly the Cold War era as one of the peak moments when it comes to creatively employing cultural products to achieve an array of nationally and internationally oriented political goals. Despite the long history of using culture for different political purposes and interests, particularly in relation to bonding peoples and states or increasing their influence, it was not until the creation of nation-states and, above all, the development of modern mass media such as widespread newspapers and journals, and regional and national radio and TV stations that this practice flourished and gained prominence. Culture and cultural artefacts have been an important instrument of establishing and maintaining political relations between different peoples and states since the emergence of diplomatic practice in the 17th century, and some authors date this practice as far back as the period of ancient civilizations. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |