From "American Idol" to 'Afghan Star,' art and entertainment can be powerful tools for cultural exchange. That's the argument in the recent report, "A New Way Forward," which calls for the
United States to utilize the arts to build a better relationship with the Muslim world.

Its author is Cynthia Schneider, who served as U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands from 1998 to 2001. She currently heads the Art and Culture Dialogue Initiative at the Brookings Institution and is a professor of diplomacy at Georgetown University.

Editor's note: Cynthia Schneider's report, "A New Way Forward," can be found here. And here's an interview with filmmaker Havana Marking about "Afghan Star," a documentary about the TV show. For a story about the exhibit of Pakistani art at the Asia Society mentioned by Schneider, click here.