Might is hard to get right

24 October 2019 By Richard Beales Follow @richardbeales1

The latest index of countries’ persuasiveness ranks Trump’s America fifth, down from top three years ago and pipped for fourth by Sweden. Washington’s image is so poor it outweighs the halo around U.S. tech, education and the like. Military might and economic heft only go so far.

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The United States has tumbled to fifth from first three years ago and fourth last year in the world ranking for soft power, according to the 2019 Soft Power 30 report released on Oct. 24 by communications consultancy Portland and the University of Southern California’s Center on Public Diplomacy.

The study assesses 30 countries around the world through a composite index that combines objective metrics and international polling data. France jumped to the top of the rankings, while the United Kingdom dropped to second place. Germany and Sweden rank third and fourth respectively – the first appearance in the top five for Sweden.

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