Do-It-Yourself Diplomacy

I'll confess to being a fan of the YouTube channel for Howcast, which offers its viewers a heterogeneous range of do-it-yourself tips, how-to guides, and life hacking basics. (One of its most watched videos is a checklist called "How to Have Sex in the Office") Now they have a line-up of videos about participating in the 5th Summit of Americas, where President Obama has been making historic diplomatic overtures to the absent Cuban government. Despite snazzy graphics and attention to information aesthetics, online comments seem to indicate that the regular Howcast audience doesn't appreciate the wonky new offerings from the group.