Who Gets Targeted with Soft Power? Evidence from Kissinger's International Seminar

Many states, non-governmental organizations, and philanthropists use soft power to achieve their political goals. However, only little is known about which countries they target. I argue that given the large number of potential targets and the high costs of conducting influence campaigns abroad, soft power entrepreneurs strategically direct their efforts towards those countries where their campaigns have the best chance of making a difference. I expect that campaigns predominantly target liberal democracies, since the free exchange of ideas and opinions is likely to generate the intended admiration and attraction. To test this argument, I draw on hand-coded attendance data from one of the most prestigious exchange programs during the Cold War: Henry Kissinger's International Seminar (1952-1968). Results from numerous tests reveal that more liberal countries were more heavily targeted by Kissinger's program. Together, the paper shows how (non-)state actors strategically influence foreign intellectuals to forge international alliances.