The importance of soft power is one of the most striking features of contemporary international relations. The concept of soft power has a strong appeal outside the Western world, most countries now make serious business of developing their public diplomacy, and the challenge of engaging with overseas audiences is under close scrutiny in foreign ministries everywhere. Soft power possesses an almost magical attractive quality in East Asia, to a degree that it never attained in the United States or Europe. This study shows the continuing importance of empirical measurement and critical examination of this analytical concept. The awareness of public diplomacy's centrality in international relations is also shared in East Asia and recent experience has something to offer to current thinking. Public Diplomacy and Soft Power in East Asia helps to fill in empirical gaps and informs broader conceptual and theoretical debates.