Abstract

An emerging nation of nearly 210 million people, a free and vibrant democracy, the world’s fifth largest country, and one of its top ten economies, Brazil has an inherently high profile in the international scene. It cannot either be easily ignored or afford itself to ignore any of its resources and potentialities, including, of course, the deployment of its soft power. Converting Brazil’s global attractiveness to leverage multilateral agenda setting and effective development opportunities is a long-standing objective of the Brazilian foreign policy. Its public diplomacy efforts have been mostly led and implemented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (and its associated agencies, especially Apex-Brasil, the country’s trade and investment promotion organization) and the Media Office of the Federal Government. One of their greatest challenges is to tackle the information deficit and distortions that still affect Brazil’s international image. More than ever, this task demands long-term planning, policy consistency, and a robust communication effort capable of engaging global audiences in a complex, competitive, and technologically changing environment.