While the rational explanation for motivations concerning public diplomacy holds great
sway in this study, there is a central criticism to the rational perspective. The critique of rational
choice public diplomacy motivations comes from the concept of “credible public diplomacy”.
Murrow argues that for public diplomacy to be effective it must be credible and, necessarily,
truthful. If the motivations behind the practice of public diplomacy are purely rational, selfinterest,
then there is a distinct possibility that the perceived credibility of public diplomacy is
diminished.