Joseph S. Nye, Jr.

The world of traditional power politics was typically about whose military or economy would win. In today’s information age, politics is also about whose “story” wins.

National narratives are, indeed, a type of currency. Governments compete with each other and with other organizations to enhance their own credibility and weaken that of their opponents. Witness the contest between the government and protesters after the Iranian elections in June 2009, in which the Internet and Twitter played crucial roles, or the recent controversy between Google and China.