#soft-power-propaganda

#soft-power-propaganda

On the morning of the Unite the Right rally, I lumbered down the staircase of a Catskills Airbnb rented for a bachelor party to learn that only hours before, a gang of white nationalists stormed the University of Virginia campus wielding Tiki torches and chanting, 'Jews will not replace us.'

A whole vocabulary of mediaspeak terms applied to real life has gradually emerged. Included here, among others, are: collateral damage, neutralized, canceled, surgical strike, playbook, rules of the game, high-value target, and gamechanger.

What most leaders label as a content problem is actually a presence problem. Leaders often assume credibility rises and falls based on wording alone. In reality, credibility is shaped by executive presence, which reflects the signals leaders send about confidence, clarity, and authority before their ideas are fully heard.

The principle of intellectual charity is fundamental to constructive political conversations. This principle states that, in any discussion, we should accept the best version of an opponent's ideas, not a distorted version or a "straw man." Exaggeration and distortion of opposing opinions (always present, to some degree, in political debates) have become the standard form of political argument in contemporary America.

American diplomats are supposed to represent the nation, advocate for the interests and policies of the U.S. government, and stay on generally good terms with the country to which they're assigned. Even when they are sent to places that have an adversarial relationship with the United States, they are expected to maintain decorum while conveying messages these regimes may not want to hear.

It's human nature to want to act immediately and alleviate pressure when you find yourself in hot water. But sharing news that isn't complete yet or telling the public too much too soon can turn up the temperature even more. Avoid the need for a public retraction later by accurately, concisely and clearly communicating with your audience from the start.

I've interviewed over 200 people for articles, from startup founders to burned-out middle managers, and I've discovered something fascinating: intellectual depth isn't about fancy degrees or knowing obscure facts. It shows up in how we communicate. When certain habits dominate someone's style, it reveals a concerning lack of curiosity and critical thinking that goes beyond just being annoying-it fundamentally limits their ability to engage with the world meaningfully.

There is a persistent anxiety in brand storytelling that runs beneath the surface of nearly every conversation about reaching international audiences: that the closer a story is to its origin, the less likely it is to find purchase somewhere else. This assumption is responsible for many an organization filing down its content's edges in pursuit of a universal appeal that, paradoxically, renders it all the less memorable.