The paradox of American power : why the world's only superpower can't go it alone / Joseph S. Nye, Jr.

In this book, Nye returns to the business of critically appraising America's role in the present and future. While many contemporary 'realist' scholars view China as America's most likely competitor, or envisage a Russia-China-India coalition, Nye feels that the real challenges to America's power come in the form of the very things that have made the last ten years so prosperous: the information revolution and globalization. In Nye's view, while these phenomena at first helped to increase America's 'soft power' (its ability to influence the world through cultural, political, and other non-military means), they will soon threaten to dilute it. As technology spreads the Internet will become less US-centric, transnational corporations and non-governmental actors will gain power, and 'multiple modernities' will mean that 'being number 1 ain't gonna be what it used to be'. Nye includes chapters on American power, the information revolution, globalization, American culture and politics, and 'defining the national interest', along the way considering what the lessons of history have to tell us about what we should do with out unprecedented power - while we still have it. This book will include a sharp analysis of the terrorist attacks on the US in 2000, and will argue that the US cannot fight terrorism by itself.

Includes bibliographical references and index.