January 20/21

Image from: Wonkette

“They wanted to make absolutely, positively certain that W. was gone.”

--Columnist Maureen Dowd, regarding the “four million eyes turned heavenward, following the [Bush] helicopter’s path out of town.”

“[L]et's celebrate the obvious: We're still here, more or less, and they're gone.”

--Cultural critic Tom Engelhardt

Helicopter Photo: BagnewsNotes

VIDEO

A Full Minute And Seven Seconds Of Dick Cheney In His Wheelchair, Without Commentary - Wonkette

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

Hillary Clinton, Public Diplomacy, and the Middle East - Jennifer Bryson, Public Discourse: “In her response to ‘Questions for the Record’ in the confirmation process, Secretary of State nominee Senator Hillary Clinton signaled a focus for public diplomacy which is unlikely to bolster national security and other foreign policy interests in the coming years. She seems poised to base her leadership of U.S. public diplomacy on the unexamined assumption that promoting America itself should be the primary, perhaps even sole, objective of U.S. public diplomacy. … Public diplomacy is about us in so far as it serves our security and other national interests, but it is not all about us all the time. To be effective, we need to engage foreign audiences in ways which are relevant and attractive for them. If the lone song our public diplomacy Foreign Service Officers sing is, ‘me, me, me, me, me,’ they will find an ever-shrinking audience.”

Letter to Obama on the Muslim world - By Arsalan Iftikhar Special to CNN, posted at Watandost: “Your unenviable task will be to undo the catastrophic policies of George W. Bush and his fellow neoconservative ideologues, facing the specter of al Qaeda's sinister terrorism while undertaking public diplomacy efforts addressing anti-Americanism around the world.”

Goli Ameri Gives Farewell Speech About Public Diplomacy - Payvand's Iran News – “Ameri [was] the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA), which seeks to foster mutual understanding between peoples across the world through a variety of cultural and educational exchanges. …

In her speech, Ameri spoke about the challenges of U.S. Public Diplomacy in the 21st Century and new opportunities in the digital age. ‘The definition of public diplomacy has been tweaked and modified over the years, but the core meaning has remained constant: the mandate of public diplomacy is to understand, inform, engage, and influence foreign publics,’ said Ameri. ‘No aspect of the U.S. Government's public diplomacy is more of a marketplace, more of an open dialogue and more of an ongoing community-driven interchange than our international educational and cultural programs.’”

CHF International Announces craigslist Founder Craig Newmark Supports Microfinance in the Palestinian Territories – Newswire, Microcapital: “Internet entrepreneur Craig Newmark, founder of that classified advertising website 'craigslist' where you can acquire anything from a nanny to a used guitar, has another passion, supporting peace in the Middle East by backing microfinance in the Palestinian Territories. … ’As an individual, I was encouraged to do this kind of thing by the U.S. State Department, the Palestinian Authority, and the Israeli government, and I was inspired by Madeleine Albright, when she explained to me that I was doing a little public diplomacy, says Newmark, who has long sought peace in the region."

With Liberty and Talent for All - John Hagel, Edge Perspectives : “We will all develop our talent even more rapidly if provided with the opportunity to interact with other equally talented people outside our country. This is not a call for building walls and sheltering our talent from the challenges of others. More substantively, our public diplomacy place more emphasis on assessing talent development trajectories of countries around the world. We might become much more focused on building deeper relationships with the countries that are most successful in developing the talent of their people, so that the talent of our respective countries can get better faster by working with each other. At the same, we might provide a more compelling role model for governments, and perhaps more importantly the populations, of countries that are lagging in talent development.”

Lessons in times of turbulence? - Cultural relations blog: “That’s the deal breaker for me with cultural relations – it knocks down ‘barriers to intercourse’ and works dynamically to connect people immediately, and over the long term, so that relationships can be built, fostered and nourished. With such a clear connection between trust, relationships, trade and prosperity, the need for cultural relations is greater than ever. Cultural relations – unlike other systems - operates best when it’s not subjected to tight regulation, and that’s what marks it as vitally different to Public Diplomacy.”

VOA as domestic news agency - Kim Andrew Elliott Discussing International Broadcasting and Public Diplomacy: “The Greensboro (NC) Telegram reprints a Voice of America story, by Kent Klein, about Barack Obama's train trip on 17 January. ... [Elliott comment:] Full credit was given: ‘This article was written by Kent Klein of the Washington DC bureau of the Voice Of America news organization, which is operated by the US Government.’

Some at VOA may have preferred the wording ‘funded by the US governmen’" rather than 'operated.’ The use of VOA material by U.S. media entities generally does not run afoul of copyright or Smith-Mundt domestic dissemination provisions (see previous post). Usually, however, VOA stories covering international affairs are used.”

2009 Smith-Mundt Symposium: A discourse to shape America's discourse – Matt Armstrong, Mountain Runner: “Posted Symposium Transcripts: (former) Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Mike Doran to 2009 Smith-Mundt Symposium ... . Posted Symposium Transcripts: Under Secretary Glassman keynote and my welcome to 2009 Smith-Mundt Symposium. Transcripts for the January 13, 2009, Smith-Mundt Symposium will begin appearing online as I review them. Federal News Service did a superb job transcribing the 8.5 hours of audio so quickly.”

Social media and the Gaza conflict - Will Ward, Arab Media and Society: “Gaza also intruded into a long-planned press conference held in the virtual world Second Life. During the event, Egyptian bloggers pitched questions about America’s stance on the crisis at outgoing U.S. Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy James Glassman, or rather at his avatar, digitally rendered in an impossibly well-tailored suit and pixilated pocket square.”

More than one million Israelis recruited to monitor blogs: Israel hires army of bloggers to fight image war - Al-Arabiya, United Arab Emirates: “The [Immigrant Absorption] ministry media department directs volunteers to websites that are considered 'problematic' in hopes of focusing attention on the positive aspects of Israeli life and the way Israelis suffer because of being under a constant threat of terrorism, the Jerusalem Post reported Monday. Within 30 minutes of announcing the hasbara, or public diplomacy, program five volunteers had applied, said Halfon." More on the Internet and the Gaza conflict in below "related items."

BrandKenya: The task of Branding Kenya’s exports – Njuguna, “The Brand Kenya Board was formed in March 2008 to develop a national identity and image to market the country internationally as a tourism and conference destination, export leverage, Foreign Direct Investment, internal and external public diplomacy. To this end, the Board is developing a strategy to create a strong and positive image for Kenya as well as foster international confidence in the country.”

RELATED ITEMS

World Reacts to Obama's Inauguration [Photos] – Washington Post

World leaders welcome Barack Obama: But their messages contain hints of the challenges the new U.S. president will face - Paul Richter, Los Angeles Times

Obama to Europe: Ich bin ein listener - John K. Glenn and Kristin M. Lord, Politico: Even if European leaders want to cooperate with the new administration, they must still make the case for why their citizens should shoulder new burdens in difficult times. Their success is more likely if Obama demonstrates that he is willing to listen to allies’ concerns and understands their domestic politics.

The U.S. can reclaim 'smart power': Hard and soft power used together can give the country the tools to lead - By Joseph S. Nye Jr., Los Angeles Times: Smart power is the combination of hard and soft power. Soft power is the ability to get what you want through attraction rather than coercion or payments. America can become a smart America -- a smart power -- by again investing in global public goods, providing things people and governments of the world want but have not been able to get in the absence of leadership by the strongest country. Development, public health and coping with climate change are good examples. By complementing U.S. military and economic might with greater investments in soft power, and focusing on global public goods, the U.S. can rebuild the framework that it needs to tackle tough global challenges.

Russia Must Deploy ‘Soft Force’ Against the West’s ‘Soft Power,’ Moscow Analyst Says - Paul Goble, Window on Eurasia

Israeli Psychological Operation "Spread War to Iran" to Hit Airwaves During Inauguration - Signs of the Times News: A propaganda battle designed to promote the plan to spread war throughout the greater Middle East is now under way and will soon hit the airwaves in the United States. The plan will be presented as a television advertising campaign to promote Israel as the victim of terrorism backed by the government of Iran. The advertising campaign is due to air on television during the inauguration period of President-elect Barack Obama. The organization responsible for this soon to be aired propaganda is "The Israel Project."

The Well-Oiled Arab Propaganda Machine - Aviva Woolf, Arutz Sheva, Israel: Israel Resource News Agency Director David Bedein says that the war in Gaza wasn’t only a war of weapons but also was a war of words. In the video below, Bedein explains that the Arabs have an organized and systematic press campaign to arouse western sympathy.

An "army of bloggers" on both sides of the Gaza conflict - Kim Andrew Elliott Discussing International Broadcasting and Public Diplomacy

Waging the web wars - Riyaad Minty, Al Jazeera: The recent war in Gaza has pushed the boundaries of traditional media as the debate on the conflict opened a new front - online. Though television has continued to provide viewers with in-depth coverage of the conflict, it did not sufficiently allow the average, frustrated person on the street to express their views. Enter the "social" internet -- currently termed "War 2.0" or "War of Words" -- where people from around the world used social networking websites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to express their opinions to a global audience.

The (Now Silent) Guns of January - Editorial, New York Times: The Gaza cease-fire gives President Obama some breathing room to consider how the Gaza war affects prospects for a new peace initiative -- but not a lot. The new president has said he will work for a peace deal from Day 1 and we hope he means it.

Perfect timing: Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire fits the schedule of incoming U.S. president – Our View, Baltimore Sun: Mr. Obama needs to appoint a strong but imaginative negotiator as Mideast envoy, someone who will prod but also guide the two parties toward a resumption of peace talks. Mr. Obama was reportedly considering George J. Mitchell, the respected former senator from Maine, for that job. He would be an astute interlocutor.

Obama and the Middle East, Part V - Robert Dreyfuss, Nation: The first thing that Barack Obama has to understand about Iran: there is no hurry.

The Other Quagmire - Judith Miller, Daily Beast: Gen. Petraeus has said in interviews that while a “surge” of forces and some of the counterinsurgency tactics he pioneered in Iraq may be effective in Afghanistan, too, the two countries are very different, and Aghanistan will require a different overall approach.

Those familiar with the general’s thinking say he agrees with the Obama team about pursuing a regional solution, better-coordinated NATO support, and more effective, less corrupt local governments. Richard Holbrooke, tipped as special envoy to the region, has called the US foreign aid program in Afghanistan “the single worst” he’s seen since Vietnam. “It is a recruiting tool for the Taliban.”

Should the US Pull the Plug on Israel? Hosing Obama Israeli Style - Chuck Spinney, Counterpunch: It does not matter that the Israelis have slaughtered over 1300 people in the Gaza Ghetto against a loss of of only 13 Israelis, because Congress is cheering, having passed a resolution of overwhelming support (390 to 5) in the House. And it does not matter that Obama is hosed and will probably be humiliated into toeing the line from the git go, because he has pledged to preserve the special relationship.

Kosovo's quiet victory over violent ethnic nationalism -- Conflict-ridden world take note: Soft power and elections can work - Elizabeth Pond, Christian Science Monitor

Taking the Demons Out of the Relationship - Fyodor Lukyanov, Moscow Times: Many observers have written that the change in leadership in the United States will open up new opportunities for U.S.-Russian relations. It is hard to argue with this for the simple reason that bilateral relations could hardly get worse than they are now

Greater Than the Great Depression? The Day the Earth Still Stood What Will Obama Inherit? - Tom Engelhardt, TomDispatch: If you watched Secretary of State designate Hillary Clinton breeze through her confirmation hearings, she seemed like the wonky picture of confidence, mixing the usual things you say in Washington ("We are not taking any option off the table at all") with promises of new policies. Looking at her, or our other new and recycled custodians of empire, it's easy enough to avoid the obvious thought: that they are about to face a world -- from Latvia to Somalia, Gaza to Afghanistan -- which may be in far greater disarray than we imagine.

False Dawn: Obama's election doesn't mean peace is breaking out all over – far from it - Justin Raimondo, Antiwar.com: Whereas the Bushies were obsessed with the Middle East, and pretty much confined their wars to a single region while exercising "soft" power and covert actions on a global scale, the Obama-ites have broader concerns. Which means a wider range of opportunities for foreign meddling.

Obama Offers Internationalist Vision - Jim Lobe, Antiwar.com: Obama devoted in his inauguration speech more attention to foreign affairs than to the economy in a series of implicit rebukes to the unilateralist and militarist tendencies of the Bush administration.

The Bush legacy - Thomas Sowell, Washington Times: The irresponsible charge that in the case of Iraq "Bush lied"

for some nefarious purpose -- to trade "blood for oil" or to generate business for Halliburton, for example -- is more than a slander against him. It undermines our whole nation and gives comfort to our enemies around the world.

Military Propaganda: Now In A Theatre Near You! - Mande Wilkes, FITSNews: Anyway, previews are the reason we’re perennially late to the movies. Finishing the Twizzlers during the previews leaves us food-bored during the movie, and that’s just a downer. But this time we weren’t just early enough for the previews, we were actually there before the previews … which is when they play the commercials. Yeah, there are commercials in theaters now. Who knew? You really do learn something new every day … Anyway, among the spots were ads for, of all things, the U.S. military. That the American government has the money -- not to mention the need -- to advertise military service is even more inexplicable to us than even the existence of theater commercials.

State Department Web Site Wants to Pretend Condi Never Happened - Princess Sparkle Pony's Photo Blog: I STILL keep track of Condoleezza's hairdo so you don't have to

VIDEO

The Only Way To See Barack & Michelle Obama’s First Dance, Wonkette.

See also John Brown, "Barack Obama and Fred Astaire: What a pair!" Notes and Essays

IMAGE


--From The Nation