As the Trump trials plunge into political theater, the world is watching

It’s a shame that people around the world are watching a political circus this summer featuring the former U.S. president being indicted multiple times. The most serious charges have been filed in Georgia, where Donald Trump and 18 political advisers face charges of participating in a wide-ranging conspiracy to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

Phrases in the media once reserved for undemocratic countries are popping up regarding American politics, such as “racketeering,” and “corruption,” “rigged elections” and even “coups.” What is particularly frustrating is that America has just entered a public diplomacy honeymoon, after four years of declining views of our nation during Trump’s presidency.

According to the most recent global attitudes polling by the Pew Research Center, there has been a big shift in America’s global image in a positive direction.

The survey, taken in 23 countries of 3,576 respondents, shows that 59 percent have a favorable opinion of the U.S., compared to 30 percent with an unfavorable view.

The good news in the Pew survey is that, although most of those surveyed (over 80 percent) resent American interference in their affairs, they respond well to our “soft power” — a term coined in 1990 by scholar Joseph S. Nye to describe how a nation’s ideas, behavior, culture, institutions and even products can attract others to its value system without coercion or payment.

Many people in the countries surveyed by Pew view aspects of American life as admirable, listing American technological achievements, entertainment and universities “as the best in the world or above average among wealthy nations.” And 44 percent believe the U.S. is “about as democratic” as other wealthy nations — even as we, at home, are so deeply divided.

When it comes to measurements related to “soft power,” Israelis, Nigerians and Poles say at rates greater than 80 percent that the U.S. is “the best” or “above average,” with respondents from Germany having “the least positive ratings of American institutions and products.”

Hollywood has always been a high source of soft power for foreign audiences, but that is not a given. According to the Pew survey, “a median of 19 percent say U.S. popular culture is average and 5% say it is below average or the worst.” The highest share of adults who consider American movies, television, and music to be “below average or the worst” is in India, home to Bollywood, at 20 percent of respondents. Still, American entertainment is well-regarded around the world.

What is ironic, of course, is that right now America is in the middle of a major writers’ strike affecting production of film and television

But sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, as Mark Twain is quoted as saying. People around the world may be tuning in as the saga of Donald Trump continues, and the first Republican presidential debate, coming up later this month, is likely to draw foreign interest at a time of high drama in U.S. politics.

And even more news could unfold with congressional interest in the legal troubles of Hunter Biden, President Biden’s son.

America will be closely watched in the days and weeks ahead.

The late House Speaker Tip” O’Neill (D-Mass.) once said that all politics is local. But today, in an age of artificial intelligence and social media, politics is global. It is hard to contain bad news or to limit its reach, and the notion of good governance is under assault. How America behaves at home will rebound overseas. We must conduct ourselves well to shore up faith in our system.

The trials and tribulations of the Trump years, coupled with another presidential race, will put a giant spotlight on America at a time when we, ourselves, are distracted and disaffected. The best we can do now is to mind our manners, keep our communities safe, debate without violence, and hold dear to our values of tolerance and democracy.

Tara D. Sonenshine is the Edward R. Murrow Professor of Public Diplomacy at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.