This episode considers the power implicit in the popularity or otherwise of particular languages on the world stage, beginning with the question of whether the Nation Brands Index is accurate in showing the admiration of English-speaking countries. Simon and Nick not the counter examples of admired countries whose languages are not global in the same way: Germany, Italy, and Japan, suggesting that having a global language is not a guarantee of global admiration, even if governments have often treated it as such. The conversation continues to consider the Chinese government's investment in the Confucius Institutes; France's work to maintain the Francophonie and the importance of language in British and US cultural diplomacy. Simon and Nick consider the likely impact of the Ukraine war on interest in learning Russian and end by considering the value of simply having a recognizable language as an extension of the country-of-origin effect, whether or not people know what the words actually mean. The pair agree that this is a resource for Japan, Italy, and others.
