April 21

"Public diplomacy could be a conversation over dinner."

--International reporter Mahtab Farid; left image from her blog

"But I've a rendezvous with Death
At midnight in some flaming town,
When Spring trips north again this year,
And I to my pledged word am true,
I shall not fail that rendezvous."

--Alan Seeger (1888-1916), an American poet who fought in World War I; right image from

Public Diplomacy and al-Qaeda - Spencer Ackerman, Washington Independent: "It’s been a bad couple of months for Ayman al-Zawahiri. First he calls Obama a 'house Negro' to widespread ridicule. Then his former allies attacked his dedication to the Cause and his justifications for continuing his terrorist war against America. (That locution was for you, Rudy.) Then Obama visited Ankara and made a high-profile pitch for new relations with the Muslim world based on mutual respect. It’s like the guy can’t catch a break. But it can be even worse for him. Bureaucratically at least, U.S. public diplomacy under Obama has gotten off to a slow start. Now, at least, the Obama administration has a nominee, Judith McHale, to become undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, the quaterback of public-diplo efforts. It’ll be interesting to see whether McHale thinks a component of U.S. public diplomacy should be to discredit American enemies. Zawahiri certainly isn’t stingy about providing opportunities to do so." See also

Judith McHale's Nomination Sent To Senate: Former top Discovery executive up for Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy - John Eggerton, Broadcasting & Cable: "Former top Discovery executive Judith McHale is one step closer to an administration post. The White House said Monday that her nomination has been sent to the Senate. That means only a Senate confirmation hearing and full Senate vote stand between her and Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy. … In announcing the nomination, the White House described Hale as a 'a leading media and communications executive whose career has been devoted to building companies and non-profit organizations dedicated to reaching out to and connecting people around the world.' That included distributing free educadtional materials to students in Africa, Latin America, and Eastern Europe via the Discovery Channel Global Education Partnership. After leaving Discovery in December 2006, she continued that commitment with private equity firm Global Environment Fund, which launched the GEF/Africa Growth Fund to supply capital to small and medium-sized businesses in emerging markets in Africa." Mc Hale image from

Selling America in High Gear at Hillary Clinton's State - Paul Bedard, U.S. News & World Report (April 17): "President Obama has nominated longtime national security expert Philip J. 'P. J.' Crowley as assistant secretary of state for public affairs, a move that suggests that the department's public diplomacy with foreign nations will be stepped up. Crowley, currently a senior fellow and director of homeland security at the Center for American Progress, is expected to play more of a background role, explaining U.S. diplomatic moves to the foreign media and nations rather than handling the daily briefings. He is widely respected in the press and among military and diplomatic officials for his past government service and his steady advocacy while at the progressive think tank. During the Clinton administration, he was the spokesman for the National Security Council and a Defense Department communicator. He is a retired Air Force colonel who has also worked with NATO. If he is confirmed, as expected, it will help Secretary Hillary Clinton build on her public diplomacy program, say State Department officials. As one source put it, the goal is to 'narrow the perception gap between what we say and what we do.'" Image from

Pentagon Told to Take a Back Seat on Public Diplomacy - PR Watch, Center for Media and Democracy - "The Obama administration … eliminated the position of Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Support to Public Diplomacy, previously held by Michael Doran."

Public Diplomacy & Web 2.0 - Joel Davis, U.S. Role in the World: "The World Affairs Blog Network, Foreign policy Association: Perhaps we should launch a digital Web 2.0 version of the Peace Corps which asks Americans to volunteer and take an active role in not only representing the U.S. in international digital fora but also in helping to build the kind of networks in cyberspace that mirror the physical bridges, schools and libraries that Peace Corp workers may have built in the past." Image from

I believe in the Iranian people and the American people - Mahtab Farid - From Washington to Tehran: “For most Americans the image of Iran is the Iranian hardliner president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who wants to 'wipe Israel off the map' and continues to enrich uranium even though the international community had asked him to stop. … In order to overcome the lack of diplomatic relations between the two countries only the citizens of both sides can make a difference. The term 'public diplomacy' may sound fancy but to me the concept is simple; people to people exchange. A diplomacy that is not based on high level government officials. It is based on people reaching out to each other. Public diplomacy can also start from the grass root level. There have been a number of times when I interact with Americans and they tell me, 'Oh my neighbor is Persian and they always send me delicious food and we talk about Iran.' Public diplomacy could be a conversation over dinner, a letter published in a local paper, and reaching out to other people through an email or writing blogs.”

Obama's Trap in Tehran – Martin Peretz, New Republic:

Comment by reader baxterjones: "One of the previous administration's mistakes was ignoring 'public diplomacy' in its correct sense (communicating with the broader public overseas, not just with officials), while pursuing a dumb version of 'public diplomacy' (i. e., conducting traditional diplomacy in public). If you genuinely want to get a government to back down, the least likely way to accomplish that is to make demands in public, in the media." Image from

Why a Diplomat Became the Garbage Guy – Veby Mega Indah: My Works, Thoughts And Life: “The Sunday morning should be a family time for [US Ambassador to Indonesia, Cameron] Hume. But earth day has made him, as the first US diplomat in Indonesia, turned to be garbage guy instead. He has to clean the last Jakarta’s mangrove forest with lots of youngster from Jakarta Green Monster (JGM), an environment NGO. Lately, US are focusing their interest on Indonesian maritime issues. … A day before he became the garbage guy on Jakarta’s coast line, Hume dived with sharks in Sea World, Jakarta as public diplomacy with kids. This year US also donated 40 millions dollars to conserve Indonesian coral reefs. Having Hume to joint cleaning mangrove forest action was just a part of their mission." Image from

A mothers plea, random google searches, and a long Boehner rant - Kristina’s Weblog: My Own Corner of the World - “Oh man, you just gotta love Jon Boehner…as if the fact that the House Minority leader is from Ohio isn[']t bad enough, he seems to forget quite often that good diplomacy and good US foreign policy actually involves being cordial to people you may not like! Like for example that he is chiding Obama for not ignoring Hugo Chavez…yes let[']s ignore world leaders in a public diplomatic Summit which is meant to unite and not divide those leaders…what a smart move that would be for public diplomacy! What an idiot…I[']m glad he[']s not in charge of our fore[ign] policy, diplomatic efforts beyond his powers within the House!" Image from

Busy Weekend for News on Exchange Students - International Higher Education Consulting Blog™A Source for News on International Education and Public Diplomacy by David Comp: "I receive many Google Alerts in my e-mail inbox every day on a variety of topics related to international education and public diplomacy. When I opened my Google Alert for 'Exchange Student' this past Saturday I was surprised to find the following three rather concerning news alerts: Police: Foreign-exchange student shot in face ... - Houston,TX, ... —A foreign-exchange student studying at Rice was hospitalized Saturday after police say he was shot in the face. It happened around 12:15 am in ... (includes video snippet from KHOU news) Canadian exchange student 'kidnapped' in Nigeria ... Nigeria (AFP) — Nigerian police said Saturday that a Canadian university exchange student had been 'kidnapped', amid reports a ransom had demanded for her release. ...Police: Endicott exchange student groped freshman - salemNews.com ... ... — An exchange student attending Endicott College has been charged with indecent assault and battery after a freshman reported being groped by the 23-year-old earlier this month. Nicholas Baldrich, who is from Marbella, Spain, ...Not much to say about this other than my thoughts are with the three victims of these stories…"

Swiss officials defend Ahmadinejad meeting Haviv Rettig Gur, Amir Mizroch And Abe Selig – Jerusalem Post: "According to Foreign Ministry deputy director-general for public diplomacy Aviv Shir-On, who was once ambassador to Switzerland, the Merz-Ahmadinejad meeting was more troubling than the Calmy-Rey visit to Teheran 'because it's the second time. While Israel understands the consistent Swiss policy of neutrality, we think a country that respects values such as human rights, minority rights and freedom of speech shouldn't meet with Ahmadinejad.'”

International Judges Will Receive Hands-On Training at JF&CS: Program Aims to Facilitate Kazakhstan’s Democratization through Introduction of U.S. Business Practices - jewishinstlouis.org: "On April 24th, the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry – a program of Jewish Family & Children’s Service (JF&CS) – will host a group of ten judges from Kazakhstan. The ten delegates are participants in the Community Connections (CC) program, managed by the Bureau of Europe and Eurasia at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The program is designed to promote public diplomacy through exchanges of cultural ideas and values and create a positive exchange of ideas and business approaches between professionals in Kazakhstan and the U.S." Image from

Celebrity Diplomacy - Ted Johnson, Variety: "On Tuesday, USC's Center for Public Diplomacy holds a workshop on 'Celebrity Diplomacy.' It starts with a 10 a.m. panel discussion on the 'effectiveness and value of celebrity diplomacy,' with Andrew Cooper, visiting Fulbright chair in public diplomacy and author of the book on the subject, and Douglas Kellner, philosophy of education chair at UCLA and author of 'Media Spectacle and the Crisis of Democracy.'

The Annenberg School's Chris Smith moderates. The other panel, starting at 11:20, is called 'How Insiders View the Issues Facing Celebrity Diplomacy.' It features Donna Bojarsky, director of the Foreign Policy Roundtable; Eric Falt, director of the outreach division of the UN Department of Public Information; Rene Jones, director of the UTA Foundation; and writer and producer Rob Long. Martin Kaplan of the Norman Lear Center moderates." Image from

Charlotte Beers and Dennis Encarnation to Speak at College of Charleston Graduation Ceremonies - Caolina Newswire: "Beers was the first female vice-president at the J. Walter Thompson advertising firm. She was later named CEO of Tatham-Laird & Kudner, and several years later accepted the post of CEO at Ogilvy & Mather until 1996. In 1997, Fortune magazine named her 'the most powerful woman in America,' based on her achievements in the advertising industry. In 1999, Beers received the 'Legend in Leadership Award' from the Chief Executive Leadership Institute of the Yale School of Management. In 2001, she joined Secretary of State Colin Powell as Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, a post she held until March 2003." Beers image from

"Ominous" Otto Reich emerging as key player in attempt to replace Chavez - Tom Turnipseed Counterpunch, posted at VHeadline.com: “Alarmingly, the ominous Otto Reich is emerging as a key player in the administration's role in the failed coup attempt to replace Chavez with an oligarchy of business, military and wealthy elites. … Reich is a right-wing Cuban-American obsessed with overthrowing Fidel Castro's regime … . On September 30, 1987 a Republican appointed comptroller general of the US found that Reich had done things as director of the OPD [the State Department's Office of Public Diplomacy] that were 'prohibited, covert propaganda activities, beyond the range of acceptable agency public information activities...' The same report said Mr. Reich's operation violated "a restriction on the State Department's annual appropriations prohibiting the use of federal funds for publicity or propaganda purposes not authorized by Congress."

Handshake With Obama Belies Chavez's Contempt for America: Hugo Chavez was greeted warmly by President Obama this weekend despite his long history of anti-American speeches that have targeted Obama as well - FoxNews. Com: “Otto Reich, who was ambassador to Venezuela under President Reagan … said Chavez is already using the handshake as propaganda and called the summit a missed opportunity by the Obama administration.” Reich image from

Administration Criticizes America Rather Than Selling America Herb Denenberg, The Bulletin, Philadelphia: "The Obama administration bows, scrapes and sweet talks to America’s worst enemies and slaps around America’s heroes and America’s allies."

Pentagon Pundit Expose Gets the Pulitzer - Diane Farsetta, PR Watch, Center for Media and Democracy: "It was a shocking revelation. Exactly one year ago today, the New York Times published an in-depth account of the Pentagon military analyst program, a covert effort to cultivate pundits who are retired military officers as the Bush administration's 'message force multipliers.' The elaborate -- and presumably costly -- program flourished at the nexus of government war propaganda; the private interests of the officer-pundits, many of whom also worked as lobbyists or consultants for military contractors; and major news organizations that didn't ask tough questions about U.S. military operations while failing to screen their paid commentators for even the most glaring conflicts of interest. The story was huge, but it wasn't easy to break. It took two years for reporter David Barstow and others at the Times to pry the relevant documents from the Pentagon. Seven months later, Barstow helped us further understand how the U.S. "military-industrial-media complex" works, with another front-page exposé on one spectacularly conflicted Pentagon pundit, Barry McCaffrey. April 20, David Barstow received the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting, for his work on the Pentagon pundit story." Image from

Pentagon official blames U.S. for al-Qaida attacks; Worked for George Soros, argued for government control of media - Aaron Klein, WorldNetDaily: "Rosa Brooks[.] She believes al-Qaida was an 'obscure group' turned into a massive threat due to U.S. policies. She's referred to former President Bush as 'our torturer in chief' and a 'psychotic who need(s) treatment' while comparing Bush's arguments for waging a war on terrorism to Adolf Hitler's use of political propaganda. She's worked on behalf of George Soros' philanthropic foundation. Meet Rosa Brooks, the Obama administration's new adviser to Michelle Fluornoy, the undersecretary of defense for policy, a position described as one of the most influential in the Pentagon. 'I prefer to think of (my new position) as my personal government bailout,' Brooks wrote in a departing piece at the Los Angeles Times, where she served as a regular columnist." Image from

War, Media and Propaganda: Five Years Later – Nancy Snow, Huffington Post

AMERICANA: WITH MOST REFERENCES INCOMPREHENSIBLE TO THE REST OF THE WORLD?

David Letterman: Top Ten Things Overheard In The Meeting Between Barack Obama And Hugo Chavez: "10. 'Dónde está 'el Presidente dumb-a#@?'9. 'Sorry, Mr. President, they don't sell Marlboros here.'8. 'Let's get a picture of you shaking hands with Hugo Chavez to really piss off Rush Limbaugh.

'7. 'Mr. Chavez, I have a book for you too – Artie Lange's 'Too Fat To Fish."6. 'Does this breakup mean Lindsay Lohan is back to dating guys?'5. 'Remember, you can't spell Hugo without "hug."'4. 'I can't believe they killed Edie on "Desperate Housewives."'3. 'Does Biden really think he's fooling anybody with those plugs?'2. 'I think there's one thing we can both agree on – there's a new star in the Hollywood galaxy by the name of Zac Efron.'1. 'Is it too late for me to buy your Senate seat?'"

--From US World & New report BulletinNews; image from