
It's the only thing that there's just too little of"
--Burt Bacharach and the Posies; song also sung by the Supremes (above image)
PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
Judith McHale on Public Diplomacy’s Role in National Security - Spencer Ackerman, Washington Independent: "What does [Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs] McHale believe? Her first speech in office is delivered to CNAS’ [Center for a New American Security] conference, and it’s about public diplomacy’s place within the national security pantheon. (CNAS’s Kristin Lord notes that no undersecretary for public diplomacy has ever delivered an inaugural speech to a national-security audience.) …
Odd Definitions and Promising Themes in McHale’s Speech - Steven R. Corman, COMOPS Journal: "The missing element in the speech was the emphasis that McHale’s predecessor Jim Glassman placed on communicating about the Bad Guys. Glassman declared that–in contrast to previous Under Secretaries–he was going to make public diplomacy less about selling brand America and more about de-branding our extremist opponents. If anything McHale’s speech moves back in the other direction, placing emphasis on winning friends and influencing people. This is undoubtedly important, but so is capitalizing on the growing ill sentiment toward extremists in places like Afghanistan and Pakistan. It would have been nice to have this affirmed."
Enter McHale – John Brown, Notes and Essays: "On June 11, Ms. McHale gave her first major address as Under Secretary of State, at the Center for a New American Security. Early on in her remarks, she sought to demonstrate that PD is an integral part of two concepts highly favored by the new administration -- engagement and smart power."
U.S. Trying To Buy Good Will With Jihadists - Laer, Cheat-Seeking Missiles:

Just Words? - William Kiehl, My PD Blog: "It has become fashionable to say 'global engagement' when one means 'public diplomacy' or 'strategic communications' or perhaps half a dozen other buzz words. But saying global engagement doesn't mean doing global engagement any more than saying public diplomacy means doing public diplomacy. The time for words joined with action is upon us. And, so far at least, it is the Congress and not the Administration that is putting action behind words."
Thoughts on Lebanon, Iran -

Updates on the Presidential Election in Iran - Robert Mackey, The Lede, New York Times: “In an e-mail message today Ari Fleischer, a former spokesman for President George W. Bush, writes that … [at] the State Department under Bush, we did direct outreach to the people of Iran – we restarted people-to-people exchange programs for the first time since 1979 (under public diplomacy’s international visitor program – we brought groups of Iranian artists, medical professionals, film producers etc) and did extensive broadcasting to Iran through Radio and TV Farda as part of our USG int’l broadcasting – so I think you can accurately say we made the most extensive efforts since the 1979 revolution to speak directly to the PEOPLE of Iran."
“Democracy is like a box of chocolates, which is inside another box made of rabid hamsters, inside a room made of lava and expired cottage cheese” - Citizen Espo:

Birds of a Feather - Jennifer Rubin, Contentions, Commentary: [Reader] Dickens Says: June 12th, 2009 at 9:43 AM #4 It must have been Bush’s public diplomacy that “convinced” Qaddafi to give up his nukes, right?"
Officially In: Richard J. Schmierer to Muscat – Diplopundit: "On June 11, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate Richard J. Schmierer to be Ambassador to the Sultanate of Oman. Official bio released by the WH below: ... His first Foreign Service tour was in Germany from 1980 through 1984. Mr. Schmierer then served a three-year assignment as the Public Affairs Officer at the American Consulate General in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia (1985-88).

London Day 2 - Katie Muenks, When in Europe...Summer 2009: “Most other Embassy's [sic] in London were your average buildings. The US Embassy was completely fenced in and we had to go through a security screening just like [sic] you would at the airport. Very cool. Once inside we were taken to a meeting room where we met with Ms. Anjana J. Modi, economic officer and Mr. John Coronado, Commercial Attache. Here we discussed how the Embassy is run and what their individual role is for the Embassy. … Ms. Modi belongs to the department of state which is broken down into five areas: economics, political relations, public diplomacy, management, and consulant [sic] services."
Bolton: Attack Now, Negotiate Later - Charles Lemos, MyDD: "Ambassador Bolton

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