March 7/8

"war tourism"

--How some at US Embassy Kabul describe the volume of visitors from all branches of the federal and even state governments; image from

REPORT

United States Department of State and the Broadcasting Board of Governors: Office of Inspector General Report of Inspection - The Bureau of Public Affairs Report Number ISP-I-10-39, February 2010

VIDEO

How To Design A Stop Sign. Courtesy JM

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY IN THE NEWS

US-Politics: Summary - Washington Post:

"Joe Biden will meet Israeli, Palestinian, Egyptian and Jordanian leaders starting on Monday, but a main component of his trip will be public diplomacy -- reassuring anxious Israelis about Obama's commitment to their security while explaining why they should be willing to make concessions for peacemaking." See also (1) (2). Image from

U.S. Public Diplomacy's Flimsy New Framework - Philip Seib, Huffington Post: "The long-awaited 'roadmap' for U.S. public diplomacy has finally emerged from Undersecretary of State Judith McHale's office, and it is a stunning disappointment.

It is so lacking in imagination, so narrow in its scope, and so insufficient in its appraisal of the tasks facing U.S. public diplomats that it is impossible to understand why its preparation took so many months. U.S. public diplomacy has remained in the doldrums even with Barack Obama at the helm. That doesn't appear to be changing. The 'strategic imperatives' laid out in this plan are tired bromides: 'shape the narrative; expand and strengthen people-to-people relationships; combat violent extremism; better inform policy-making; deploy resources in line with current priorities.'" See also John Brown, "Smart Power In, Public Diplomacy Out?" (March 2, 2009). Image from

This week: The Future of US Public Diplomacy – Matt Armstrong, MountainRunner.us: "This week, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hear from Under Secretary of Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Judith McHale, and three of her predecessors: James K. Glassman, Karen P. Hughes, and Evelyn S. Lieberman. Chairing the hearing is Senator Kaufman, former member of the Broadcasting Board of Governors. Testimony should be available on the SFRC website the day of the hearing. Date/time/room: March 10, 2010; 3p; Dirksen 419. The testimony should be worthwhile. This would be a good time for the current Under Secretary to unveil a strategic approach for the 21st century and how her office will strengthen US engagement with the world."

US Report Finds Kabul Embassy Stretched, Morale Challenged - Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: "U.S. government report has cast doubt on the future success of the civilian side of the new U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, with diplomats stretched to the limit and morale challenged at the embassy in Kabul. ... The U.S. government has sought to overhaul its public diplomacy efforts in both Afghanistan and Pakistan and the report said staffing levels were inadequate to deal with this." Report at; pp. 44-55 deal with Public Affairs and Public Diplomacy Public Affairs Section; see also.

Twittering in Pashto: A New US Military Communications Strategy in Afghanistan? - Rahim Kanani, Huffington Post: "This fall will be the 9-year anniversary of the U.S. effort to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan -- we must have learned a few things on the way in garnering local support and pitting the hardworking and hopeful Afghans against the tyrannical and terrorizing Taliban.

But there's still one unanswered question: who exactly is the intended audience of the U.S. military's tweeting efforts? They're all in English. So what exactly have we learned?" Image from

Scanning at US airport: FATA delegation returns home in protest - Pakistani Newspaper: "A six-member delegation of the National Assembly comprised of FATA parliamentarians refused a body scan at the Washington National Airport and returned to Pakistan in protest, Aaj News reported on Saturday night.

According to the details, a delegation led by Senator Abbas Afridi returned home in protest after refusing a body scan at the US airport. The delegation had reached the US on February 28 for a 15-day visit. During their visit they were asked for body scan at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport; however, delegation comprised of Fata parliamentarians including Senator Abbas Afridi, Kamran Khan, hafiz Muhammad Rasheed, Sajid Hussain Turi, Jawwad Khan and Akhunzada Chattan refused a body scan and postponed their visit. Senator Abbas Afridi said that they will never compromise on the sovereignty of the country. Talking to Aaj News US embassy spokesman said, Pakistani parliamentarians were invited during the Hillary Clinton’s visit to Pakistan with regard to public diplomacy on the basis of visitor leadership program." Image from article

Center for Strategic Communication - Paul Rockower, Public Diplomacy Corps:

"Heritage had an interesting blog post from Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-TX) on a bill to create a Center for Strategic Communication. Similar to Sen. Brownback's bill for a CentStratComm. I personally support a PD/StratComm center in any form or fashion, but not everyone agrees." Image from

Those who politicize history will certainly be judged by history - Cüneyt Yüksel, Today's Zaman: "This week, as the eight members of the Turkish Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee and the Turkey-US Inter-parliamentary Friendship Caucus, we conducted official visits in the US. The so-called Armenian Genocide Resolution, numbered HR.252, was voted on last Thursday in the US House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs. Both our government and the opposition parties closely followed the adoption of the resolution with 23 yes and 22 nay votes with great anxiety and worry. Prior to the voting process, both the Turkish-American nongovernmental organizations in the US and we as politicians exerted great efforts. As an academic and a member of Parliament who has worked in the US as an international lawyer for many years, I can say that Turkey is not the way it used to be; the world's perspective on Turkey is not what it used to be. Turkey is a country that does not make concessions from its principled stance; it performs the requirements of public diplomacy daily, and it acts responsibly in every situation by refraining from reacting emotionally and thinking through every option. The fact that the committee had a hard time adopting the resolution is evidence that we and Turkish-American NGOs and are playing the game by the rules. Committee Chairman Howard Berman, in our discussion during the voting, stated that an issue relating to Turkey will not be put on the agenda without consulting Turkey."

To Armenia and Israel, with Love – Paul Rockower, Levantine:

"My friend Lena (GlobalChaos) has a very good, very candid post on the Armenian Genocide Resolution, its distorted significance and distorted effects. I know full well how hard it is to tell the ones you love that they are bollocksing it up with shortsighted, myopic behavior. Naomi and I tried to do that recently over Israel's recent PD moves. In case it was too much to go through PDiN Monthly, I pulled out the article and I am posting it here [article included in entry]." Image from

Sublime News #3 - Sublime Oblivion: Anatoly Karlin on geopolitics, peak oil, and futurism: "Reality check. Every serious nation spends resources on improving its international image – if anything, Russia was came fecklessly late to this game. No self-respecting nation karps on about its failings, real or imagined, much as their detractors might wish to the contrary. ... Russian Anti-Americanism: A Priority Target for U.S. Public Diplomacy by Ariel Cohen. Love the juxtaposition of the quasi-academic (quackademic?) layout and the litany of contradictions, unsupported assumptions, and meaningless beigeocratic blather in the content. One of Cohen’s suggestions: Use public diplomacy strategically to counter the flood of anti-American propaganda from the highest levels of the Russian government. U.S. public diplomacy should focus on reaching ordinary Russians. These efforts should include international broadcasting, Internet campaigns, the launch of a new Russian satellite channel, Web 2.0 social networking, print media, and revamped academic, student, andbusiness exchange programs. 'Web 2.0 social networking'? Really? Why not full-immersion virtual reality interaction while you’re at it? Cohen assumes that Russian disillusionment with the West came about because of the (mythical) Kremlin clampdown on information and propaganda. In reality, this is very unlikely to be the case since opinion polls show that it is the young, best-educated, and most Internet-savvy Russians – i.e., those who know the West best in Russia – who are also the most dismissive of the West’s superiority complex."

Routledge Handbook of Public Diplomacy: A Review - Patricia H. Kushlis, Whirled View: “[H]ow does Routledge’s Handbook of Public Diplomacy edited by Nancy Snow and Philip M. Taylor and published in 2009 stack up in my overall text book assessment firmament? Frankly, as a former political science professor and also a US Foreign Service Officer from 1970 to 1998 who spent a career as a public diplomacy practitioner in Washington and abroad, I think there are serious editorial, organizational and substantive problems that could and should be addressed in any future volumes that Routledge or another publisher publishes on this critical topic that, in my view, deserves a much wider audience than it currently has.”

The Reflection Cafe: Exploring the Future of Islam/Muslim World - Reflection Café:

"[P]ublic diplomacy requires a new paradigm to rebuild America's image and role in the Muslim world. How best can the United States reach out to its target audience, the moderate mainstream, and respond effectively to the fears and concerns of potential radicals? What would a new approach to both America's authoritarian allies and Islamist groups look like?" Image from

Virtual Journalism: Inside the Virtual Newsroom of the American University in Cairo - discoversecondlife.com: - "(You can find more background about this project here: eurekadejavu.blogspot.com) This documentary explores the evolving face of journalism and how virtual worlds are a part of that transformation. In January 2009 a group of eight Egyptian political bloggers including the well-known Wael Abbas, met with James K. Glassman then the US Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, in the virtual newsroom of the American University in Cairo in Second Life. The documentary is part of a broader collaborative project between Dancing Ink Productions and the American University in Cairo exploring how virtual worlds can be used to augment journalistic goals globally, cut costs and enhance and deepen the interview process by providing access to often hard-to-reach subjects."

Top IDF General Leaves for Week-Long Visit in US - Hillel Fendel, Arutz Sheva - ‎"The IDF Chief of the General Staff, Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi,

will leave Israel on Sunday night for a week-long working visit in the United States. He will hold a series of meetings with government, military, security and public diplomacy officials in Washington, D.C. and New York." Image from

The Robbers in Natural Disasters - Habib Siddiqui, Media Monitors Network: "Politics, or more appropriately public diplomacy, is often difficult to be separated from natural disasters. Wherever disasters strike, the local government can become a casualty. Some wealthy nations don’t want to be seen as filthy, heartless, misers that don’t care about the plights of the victims and are, thus, often the first ones to send relief supplies. Some humanitarian gestures are outright hypocritical and insincere though. Consider the case of Israeli relief work during the recent Haiti crisis. There was so much publicity around the 'humanitarian' activities of the Israeli (IDF) Medical Corps, providing first aid services to injured victims of the earthquake that we hardly heard anything about the sincere and noble work of the Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders), let alone the Zakat Foundation of the USA or other relief agencies. Haiti offered a picture perfect venue for Israel’s public diplomacy. Press officers from the Israeli military were flown in, as were photographers and a video team to document the work of Israeli medical and rescue personnel. They distributed daily footage to the press. 'In Europe, Israel’s image is defined by the Goldstone report, so news items like those coming from Haiti can definitely help change that image,' said an Israeli official referring to the United Nations report that accused both Israel and Hamas of committing war crimes."

Pessimism prevails at IBA, J'lem Journalists Association - Fay Cashman, Jerusalem Post:

"The Jerusalem Journalists Association is mounting a protest demonstration outside the Prime Minister’s Office on Sunday in the aftermath of a meeting on Wednesday between representatives of the JJA, Israel Broadcasting Association workers’ unions and Prime Minister’s Office director-general Eyal Gabai, who has temporarily been given responsibility for implementation of the Broadcasting Authority Law, following the resignation of Minister for Diaspora Affairs and Public Diplomacy Yuli Edelstein. JJA chairman Danny Zaken says that this time he finds it difficult to see any light at the end of the tunnel. ... The battle has now intensified from the implementation of reforms and the safeguarding of public broadcasting to actually preserving the existence of the IBA. Despite Gabai’s implied threat to close down the IBA, there is a general realization that there is no other body to take over public broadcasting, with the possible exception of Educational Television, which has enough budgetary problems of its own. To close down the IBA would be tantamount to cultural suicide, not to mention that it could cost Netanyahu many votes in the next elections, because no one associated with the IBA or their immediate relatives would be likely to vote Likud." Image from

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and foreign reporters on the current dialogue on hot spots (Figure) - China Top Search: "Today's press conference lasted nearly 120 minutes, in answering the last question, Yang Jiechi, China this year highlighted the idea of public diplomacy and initiatives. He said that public diplomacy is important to explore the direction of China's diplomacy."

Power in East Asia - A FPRI report - posted at Shanghai Express: "Foreign Policy Research Institute: On January 25, 2010, FPRI held a conference, co-sponsored with the Reserve Officers Association, examining power in East Asia and shifts in its distribution and meaning. This report summarizes that conference. ... David Kang (University of Southern California) Alan Wachman (Fletcher School, Tufts University) and commentators Nancy Bernkopf Tucker (Georgetown University) and Katy Kondgan Oh (Institute for Defense Analyses) addressed the constraints, opportunities and strategies of smaller states in East Asia. Participants generally agreed the use of military force was unlikely, even in long-standing potential flashpoints such as the Taiwan Strait and the Korean Peninsula, but that traditional forms of power remained important features in East Asian international relations. ... South Korea has been strikingly focused on its international social status,

as is reflected in near-obsessive discussions of its 'national brand,' zeal for public diplomacy and cultural ambassadors, and concern over image-damaging embarrassments (such as globally televised fistfights erupting in the legislature). Such concerns are superficial reflections of South Korea’s more diffuse anxiety about its international social status and where it fits in East Asia’s frustratingly unsettled status hierarchy." Image from

Both 'Rudd and SBY should fight distrust among people' - Jakarta Post: "A poll by the Lowy Institute think-tank shows more than half of the Australian population do not trust Indonesia to act responsibly in the world, and polling in Indonesia suggests the lukewarm feelings are mutual. Fergus Hanson, research fellow at the Lowy Institute, wrote in The Australian newspaper that Australia does more trade with New Zealand, which has less than 2 percent of Indonesia’s population and an economy one-fifth its size. 'While government relations are better, there’s a tendency to focus on negative issues such as terrorism, people-smuggling and illegal fishing,' Hanson wrote. He said that the relationship presented a serious challenge because Indonesia mattered to Australia, and its importance would probably increase. 'It’s time for a rethink of our approach and some major leadership gestures,' Hanson said. He said Australia and Indonesia should seek to agree on a new approach to public diplomacy." See also.

NATO Secretary General pays first official visit to Jordan - Trend News Agency: "On 7 March 2010 the Secretary General of NATO Anders Fog Rasmussen will pay an official visit to Jordan, in the framework of the Mediterranean Dialogue,

Alliance's official website reported. ... The Secretary General of NATO will also deliver a speech jointly organized by the Jordanian Institute of Diplomacy and the NATO Public Diplomacy Division, at 11:00 o'clock on 7 March 2010, at the Hotel Le Royal in Amman." Image from

Students hear the path from here to there starts now - Lincoln Journal Star : "He [Jameson DeBose] was drawn to the foreign service because of the allure of seeing new places, he said. He stayed because of his interest in public diplomacy, of being able to be a part of U.S. policy at one of the highest levels of government, of facilitating cultural exchanges between the U.S. and other countries. "

CULTURAL DIPLOMACY

Cultural Diplomacy - Christine Parrish - The Free Press (press release): ‎ "'I'm going to tell you, 'American Idol' is changing the world,' said former American ambassador Cynthia Schneider,

a foreign service expert on cultural diplomacy. Schneider was an informal guest speaker at the February 2010 Camden Conference, which focused on Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. ... Cultural diplomacy, a feature of American foreign policy from the end of WW II until the Clinton administration, has been essentially unfunded since the early 1990s, according to former Ambassador Nicholas Burns, who moderated the Camden Conference." Schneider image from

Beijing's moneyed advance on Southeast Asia - Brendan Brady, CBC.ca: "To feed its booming economy, China has expanded its presence in many Southeast Asian countries with projects for roads, dams, mines, oil, irrigation and telecommunications. ... The groundwork for many of these initiatives was laid years ago, particularly during the Asian financial crisis in 1996-97, when Beijing stepped up its presence in the region to fill the void left by slumping domestic economies and the flight of foreign investment, notably Japan's. Beijing's primary tools have been aid disbursements, new trade agreements, cultural diplomacy and military ties."

Taiwan on quiet mission to win friends - Ralph Jennings, Reuters India: "Taiwan

is hoping 'cultural diplomacy' will win it a higher global profile and give its $390 billion economy a boost without upsetting growing business ties with arch-rival China. The push consists mainly in promoting Taiwanese arts overseas and subsidising higher education in Taiwan for foreigners, areas unlikely to draw the ire of China. The plan will cost some T$1 billion ($30 million) this year." Image from

UK training Pak officials in anti-terrorism communication - Daily Times: "After training a select group of combat troops in counter-terrorism operations, the UK has started training Pakistani civilian and military officials in effective counter-terrorism communication strategies. Senior government sources said the first three training workshops on ‘Strategic Communication on Public-Cultural Diplomacy: A Pakistan UK Collaborative Training Initiative’ with the focus on counter-terrorism communication would conclude today (Thursday)."

Reforms committee will complete its work soon: Kaira - DAWN.com: "Minister for Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira

said that constitutional reforms committee will complete its work before 23rd of this month. ... Earlier, addressing participants of a three day training workshop on strategic communication, public and cultural diplomacy organised by Benazir Bhutto Media University Project Kaira said that religious extremism, economic instability, social discriminations, poverty and illiteracy are among the root causes of the menace of terrorism." Kaira image from

Ukrainian experts offer recommendations to Yanukovych on foreign policy - Kyiv Post: "Ukrainian experts have put forward recommendations in a paper entitled 'Ukraine's new foreign policy: four strategic priorities' for Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych. ... Head of Foreign Policy Program at the International Center for Policy Studies Sacha Tessier-Stall said that a coordinated and single position of everyone who represents the country is needed in order to restore the confidence of Ukraine's partners.The leadership of the country also should build understanding that politicians in Ukraine are pro-Ukrainian, but not 'pro-western' or 'pro-Russian.' Tessier-Stall also proposed to affirm positive image of Ukraine via bilateral and multilateral relations, assist in developing cultural diplomacy, and host the Euro 2012 European Football Championship at a worthy level."

Album Review: Joanna Newsom, Have One on Me - Howard Wyman, Crawdaddy! The Magazine of Rock: "It’s been a week since Joanna Newsom’s latest was officially released, and most of the major outlets have already scrambled to deliver their best reckoning. ...

If the fact that Newsom’s music is just as pleasing to the elite as it can be to anyone with ears is a sticking point, or if, in the wake of other flopped groundswells of recent years, its just too disappointing that she fails to wield her celebrity as a tool for anything other than creative or financial gain, well then let this be an exercise in cultural diplomacy." Image from article

RELATED ITEMS

Iraqi Election – Music Videos and Propaganda - Tim Arango, New York Times: Saddam Hussein may be long gone, but echoes of his propaganda live on during campaigning for Iraq’s parliament elections, which starts in earnest on Sunday. At political rallies, where candidate supporters break out in song and dance, and in the songs and videos produced, in particular, by the two main challengers to become Iraq’s next prime minister, the music of the campaign has Iraqis reminiscent of the Hussein era. With public campaigning kept at a minimum because of the risk of suicide attacks, candidates are stretching out along the media spectrum for any way to connect with voters.

Taliban Propaganda Watch (RC South) – 071255UTC Mar 10 - milnewsca.wordpress.com

Where are Obama's foreign confidants? - Jackson Diehl, Washington Post: The paradox here is that Obama remains hugely popular abroad -- from Germany and France to countries where anti-Americanism has recently been a problem, such as Turkey and Indonesia.

His following means that, in democratic countries at least, leaders have a strong incentive to befriend him. And yet this president appears, so far, to have no genuine foreign friends. Image from

Song-and-dance Bollywood makes room for 9/11-inspired films - Rama Lakshmi, Washington Post: The movies -- three in the past eight months -- are in Hindi, run about 150 minutes each, use Indian actors and include several songs as well as a large dose of romance in the Bollywood tradition. But the action takes place in U.S. cities, with cameras panning sprawling green college campuses, cookie-cutter suburban homes and Greyhound buses rolling along open interstates. "These Indian films set in America show two mirrors: how the two great democracies of India and America play out what it means to be a Muslim, and democracies are presumed to have all the answers," said Shiv Visvanathan, an anthropologist at the Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology. "They may be Indian stories, but today America is a canvas that belongs to everybody."

MORE QUOTATIONS FOR THE DAY

“[T]he state is too weak to be predictable, but strong enough to be arbitrary.”

--The fundamental question in Ukraine, as Gogol identified the problem in his comic play The Government Inspector, according to Timothy Snyder

"In his final On Language column last September, William Safire noted the trend: “‘Optics’ is hot, rivaling content.'

When politicians fret about the public perception of a decision more than the substance of the decision itself, we’re living in a world of optics. Of course, elected officials have worried about outward appearances since time immemorial, but optics puts a new spin on things, giving a scientific-sounding gloss to P.R. and image-making."

--Ben Zimmer, "Optics," New York Times; image from