December 10

"After more research, I learned that it was easier to break into USAID’s public diplomacy program than into the more structured hiring system of the US State Department. With my reference librarian drive to help people and my interest in public diplomacy, development seemed like a good match."

--Librarian Heather Ward; image from

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

The New Afghanistan Strategy: The View from the Ground - Jacob J. Lew Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources Testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Washington, DC December 9, 2009, U.S. Department of State: Lew: "As we strenghten our partnership with Pakistan, we are forging trust and cooperation on a broad, government-to-government basis that emphasizes institutions, not individuals.

In addition to the President, Prime Minister, and other ruling party federal officials, we are reaching out to provincial and local officials and have developed strong working relationship with parties and civil society leaders across the political spectrum. Building on the Secretary’s personal and direct engagement with the people of Pakistan during her October trip, our efforts in Pakistan will be supported by a new public diplomacy effort to redefine the U.S.-Pakistan relationship as one that goes beyond our shared security objectives. This communications effort will expand people-to-people contacts and challenge the extremists’ narrative. It will involve greater engagement with Pakistani media, academic and business exchanges, and reaching out to the Pakistani-American community.” Lew image from

Strategic Listening: How to Build Research Capacity Within the US Government - Helle C. Dale, Edwin J. Feulner, Heritage.org: "Winning the war of ideas against a radical Islamist ideology will require an unprecedented use of market research and communications resources. The Administration should make it a priority to create the much-needed listening and analytical capability by establishing a public-private partnership. ... The focus of the new institution ... would be the gathering of information required by the government to advance the U.S.'s position in the war of ideas. Such a 'Corporation for Foreign Opinion Analysis' (CFOA) would engage in long-term cultural research aimed at understanding foreign audiences, their 'national narratives,' their cultures, and their ebb and flow of public opinion. ... Because the U.S. government has so many stakeholders in the fields of public diplomacy and strategic communication, a national communications strategy is urgently needed to coordinate their activities. The CFOA should be part of a national communications strategy as a means of furnishing the relevant U.S. government agencies with a common source of public opinion research and analysis."

Year in Review, Part 1 - James Ketterer, Global Engagement: "Barack Obama’s inauguration in 2009 was a watershed moment in many ways and offers great promise in the reform and restructuring of U.S. diplomacy and foreign assistance - with special emphasis on public diplomacy. As we reach the end of the Obama administration’s first year we still do not have a USAID Administrator in place but Rajiv Shah was nominated last month and his confirmation by the US Senate is likely to come soon. ... The single most noteworthy public diplomacy moment of the year was by President Obama himself - his speech in Cairo.

It was masterful in both tone and substance. One can debate its lasting effects on US relations in the Middle East but it created a sea change in the tenor of US diplomacy in the region and beyond, no mean feat." Image from

From Cairo to Goldstone: U.S. Credibility in the Arab World at Stake - Nadia Bilbassy-Charters, Perpectives, Layalina Productions:

"It is important to look at local reactions to U.S. foreign policy and public diplomacy efforts in the Arab world. One of the most frequently cited complaints I come across, as I gauge reactions across the Arab world towards the United States' policy, is hypocrisy. This is particularly the case when it comes to America's claim of supporting democracy in the Arab world. U.S. support for Israel is understandable if the justification is that Israel is the sole democracy in the Middle East, but by that measure America should be also supporting any democratic efforts, regardless of the politics." Bilbassy-Charters image from article

Blackfive At The State Department, Part Two: The Bad And The Ugly - Grim, blackfive.net: "The second fellow we spoke with [at the State Department] worked with the office of Public Diplomacy. 'Public Diplomacy' is diplomacy aimed at the people of a country, rather than at the government. It is roughly what the military calls Strategic Communications, the overarching discipline that contains Public Affairs, Information Operations, and Psychological Operations. This official from State's office of Public Diplomacy began by explaining that the Bush administration had not really supported them; he mentioned that President Obama's speech on the 'three d's' had brought tears to the eyes of the diplomats attending. He said that his office had been hampered by the fact that they had inherited some people from the old United States Information Agency that hadn't really wanted to play nice with their new bosses, and hadn't worked hard to learn the new systems. Now things would get better, though, he said: The appointment of Undersecretary McHale was 'the change we were waiting for.' ... The State Department's office of Public Diplomacy was given the leadership on the issue of counterpropaganda when it was asked to absorb the remnant of the USIA. This was their duty. I'm sorry if they didn't get the support they wanted. I'm sorry if they didn't like the Bush administration -- a lot of people didn't. That's OK."

Public Diplomacy - James Morrison, Washington Times - ‎"Robert Schadler said he would be brief and blunt, as he addressed the Heritage Foundation on Wednesday in a forum that marked the 10th anniversary of the demise of the U.S. Information Agency. ... Mr. Schadler, a former USIA officer now with the American Foreign Policy Council, called the closure of the agency dedicated to 'telling America's story' for 46 years n 'inexplicable self-inflicted wound' that damaged U.S. public diplomacy. ...

Mr. Schadler appeared on the panel with Joseph Duffey, the last director of the USIA, and Daniel Sreebny, a former USIA officer and now acting director of the Global Strategic Engagement Center at the Office of the Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. Mr. Sreebny, who has served 30 years in public diplomacy, called the dismantling of the agency a 'mistake and terrible disservice' to the American public. ... Mr. Duffey, USIA director from 1993 to 1999, said cost was one of the main factors for transferring the agency to the State Department. The other was the end of the Cold War and the feeling that the USIA was unnecessary." See also. Image from

Send Us Your Tired, Your Poor, But Only if They're 'Culturally Unique': Immigration Caseworker AA0089 Has Some Thoughts About What Is Art – Miriam Jordan, Wall Street Journal: "Artists who wish to visit the U.S. for a performance typically need a P-1 visa; a P-3 visa, issued to entertainers participating in a culturally unique program; or an O-1 visa, for individuals with extraordinary ability in the arts, education or sciences. Once a visa is approved, artists visit a local U.S. consular office to get it stamped in their passport. Immigration authorities say that in weeding out applicants they deem marginal, they are simply carrying out the intent of Congress in creating the visa categories. The P category is meant to promote the exchange of culture and the arts. The O category is sometimes called the 'genius visa.' Each year, more than 20,000 O and P petitions arrive at the offices of Citizenship and Immigration Services in St. Albans, Vt., and in Laguna Niguel, Calif., where 28 adjudicators review them. The artists' requests represent a small fraction of the visa caseload. The California office alone receives more than 1.3 million visa applications each year. … Their decision-making has confounded big-city operas and small-town dance companies alike. Asian, Latin American and European artists have been barred from entering the U.S., at times causing low-grade diplomatic tension.

It’s weird, people feel there are barriers between US and Russia – US diplomat - RT, The Daily Digest: "An initiative has been launched by the US to expand ties with Russia in all spheres of society.

Sophie Shevardnadze talked to Judith McHale, US Under Secretary of State for public diplomacy and public affairs." Image from

Cultural Exchange and the Cold War: How the West Won Yale Richmond. Whirled View. 3 December 2009 - T. Greer, Busy: "A fascinating post on how cultural exchange programs were the catalyst for the Cold War's end. The implications are easy to see: 1) The most effective form of public diplomacy comes from American civil society itself. 2) We should consider increasing current day foreign exchanges. I wonder -- how many Iranians are coming to America today?"

Climate Change On The Move: The Impact Of Up To 200 Million Climate Migrants By 2050 - Michael Werz and Kari Manlove, Climate Progress: "[T]he Center for American Progress is bringing together our energy and national security teams to launch a project focused on the intersections between global warming, human migration, and national security. Our work will focus on better understanding the climate challenges at hand and articulating a set of progressive policy recommendations aimed at addressing these challenges.

Ultimately, the proper response is likely to require new governance and management structures that can deal with the fallout at different levels and combine humanitarian and developmental policies along with public diplomacy and military assets." Image from

Chinese policy and the 'Two-Level Game' - Zhang Lijuan, China.org.cn - "There is no doubt that China's public diplomacy has to be further enhanced, and the media is [a] factor in China's global image building and cultural exchanges. Even American scholars have to recognize that Chinese people, in general, understand the world far better than the rest of the world understands China. For instance, most Americans have a limited understanding of China and Chinese people. Their images of China are far from the reality. Mutual understanding is the key to stronger bilateral and multilateral relations at the international level."

Asim Gorashi Trio In Centrestage - Bru Direct - ‎"As part of its public diplomacy programme, the Australian High Commission, in cooperation with Musica Viva, invited the Asim Gorashi Trio to Brunei Darussalam last week. The trio held three successful musical workshops on December 4 - two at Maktab Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien, and one at Jerudong International School - and the Australian High Commission sponsored a Brunei Music Society (BMS) concert on December 5, according to a press release from the Australian High Commission. The Australian High Commissioner, Mark Sawers,

said the theme for this year's public diplomacy programme was 'Islam in Australia' and the idea was to break down some of the perceptions that some Bruneians might have of Australia as a one Dimensional 'western culture'. Australia is multicultural with many faces and a vast diversity, as he remarked in his opening address at the concert on Saturday night, 'One quarter of all Australians come from `somewhere else'." Sawers image from

Tuncay Babali: Turkey's Middle East Policy Tolerance.ca: “Dr. Tuncay Babali is a fellow at the Harvard Weatherhead Center for International Affairs. He has served as a Turkish diplomat in many countries. ... [Babali: There are challenges ahead. Turkey as the sixth largest economy in Europe and the 17th largest in the world is better equipped today then let say 10 years ago to embark upon a sustainable active policy in the Middle East . However, Turkey needs to clarify her ultimate goal through effective public diplomacy. In terms of resources and personnel equipped with enough language capabilities, Turkey faces serious challenges and needs a systemic review of its foreign policy and its implementation, and its priorities need to be substantiated.”

The Latest Word on NATO Nukes - Martin Butcher, The NATO Monitor:

"This week I traveled to NATO for a a Public Diplomacy Division-sponsored visit to HQ for bloggers. I was favourably impressed that our speakers were open and honest, not at all like previous such PR visits." Image from

Public Diplomacy/ Public Health – Paul Rockower, Levantine: "I just found out I got funding for my public diplomacy road show through Mexico and Central America! The USC Institute for Global Health is funding my trek south so that I can collect material to put on a photography exhibit on public health in the spring for the Global Health Week on campus. I get to incorporate public diplomacy into public health for the photography project. Will write more later, for now back to finals work."

RELATED ITEM

America's Army cost US taxpayers $33 million - Joe Martin, bit-tech.net:

The free-to-play online shooter and recruitment / propaganda tool America's Army has cost US taxpayers a staggering $33 million USD to develop and release, it was revealed today. The budget for the game, which was developed to help engage with young people, was uncovered after a Freedom of Information Act request made by GameSpot. ... A denied request for further information was met with the response that "disclosure of this information is likely to cause substantial harm to the Department of the Army's competitive position in the gaming industry." Image from article