The Foreign Service Journal, October 2009.Pdf

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WHY NOT THE BEST? ■ THOMAS JEFFERSON’S FRIEND ■ THE PLAY’S THE THING

$3.50 / OCTOBER 2009 OREIGN ERVICE FJ O U R N A L STHE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS

THE STATE OF PUBLIC DIPLOMACY A Decade after USIA’s Demise, What Next? C1-C4_FSJ_1009_COV:proof 9/8/09 3:33 PM Page C2 01-21_FSJ_1009_FRO:first 9/14/09 8:16 PM Page 1 01-21_FSJ_1009_FRO:first 9/14/09 8:16 PM Page 2 01-21_FSJ_1009_FRO:first 9/14/09 8:16 PM Page 3

OREIGN ERVICE FJ O U R N A L S CONTENTS October 2009 Volume 86, No. 10

F OCUS ON Public Diplomacy

THE NEXT GENERATION / 22 Leaders of the old USIA and State have sought to adapt public diplomacy to new public expectations and the revolution in global media. By Joe B. Johnson

PD PRACTITIONERS: STILL SECOND-CLASS CITIZENS / 29 Attitudes within the Foreign Service toward public diplomacy work have not warmed much a decade after State absorbed USIA. By William A. Rugh

A HOLISTIC APPROACH / 35 Cover and inside illustrations Instead of bringing back USIA, we should utilize its best practices by Doug Ross to restore America’s PD capabilities. By Michael McClellan

THE LAST THREE FEET: PD ASACAREER / 42 One reason public diplomacy officers don’t get their fair share of senior jobs PRESIDENT’S VIEWS / 5 is that they don’t compete for them. But that’s far from the whole story. Diplomacy and Patronage Don’t Mix By Monica O’Keefe and Elizabeth Corwin By Susan R. Johnson ADDRESSING THE PUBLIC DIPLOMACY CHALLENGE / 47 SPEAKING OUT / 14 A new agency of the Department of State — the U.S. Public Diplomacy Service Public Diplomacy: — could ensure both creativity and accountability in public diplomacy. A View from the Front Line By William P. Kiehl By the Public Diplomacy Front CHANNELING THE COLD WAR: Line Working Group U.S. OVERSEAS BROADCASTING / 52 The need for a clear mission is as applicable today in reaching NOW OW FS K -H / 18 Muslims around the world as it was with Soviet-bloc audiences. PD: A View from By Robert McMahon the Promotion Panel By Julie Gianelloni Connor REFLECTIONS / 80 FS HERITAGE Throwing in the Towel in Casablanca By Michael Varga THE DIPLOMAT AND THE DUCHESS / 59 One of America’s first (more or less) professional diplomats, a Jefferson protégé, quickly became an effective practitioner of his craft. LETTERS / 7 By James R. Bullington CYBERNOTES / 9 MARKETPLACE / 13 BOOKS / 63 INDEX TO ADVERTISERS / 78

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OREIGN ERVICE CONTENTS FJ O U R N A L S

Editor AFSA NEWS STEVEN ALAN HONLEY Senior Editor AFSA EMBRACES ROLE AS PUBLISHER / 67 SUSAN B. MAITRA Associate Editor FOREIGN CONTACTS REPORTING: AN UPDATE / 67 SHAWN DORMAN AFSA News Editor NEWS BRIEFS, AGGELER / 68 FRANCESCA KELLY Ad & Circulation Manager VP STATE: FILLING IN THE BLANKS / 69 ED MILTENBERGER Art Director VP USAID: WHERE DOES USAID FIT? / 70 CARYN SUKO SMITH Editorial Intern HIGH SCHOOL ESSAY CONTEST WINNER / 71 MARK HAY Advertising Intern VISUAL DIPLOMACY: BRINGING ART TO EMBASSIES / 72 TYSON HALSETH

CLASSIFIEDS / 75 EDITORIAL BOARD TED WILKINSON Chairman MAY G. BAPTISTA JOSEPH BRUNS STEPHEN W. B UCK JULIE GIANELLONI CONNOR JEFF GIAUQUE MARY E. GLANTZ D. IAN HOPPER GEORGE JONES LYNN W. R OCHE RIMA J. VYDMANTAS

QUESTIONS? Not sure whom to contact? THE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS Foreign Service Journal (ISSN 0146-3543), 2101 LETTERS TO MEMBERSHIP E Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 is For changes of address and other published monthly with a combined July-August THE EDITOR issue by the American Foreign Service Associa- Printed letters may be edited for questions about AFSA membership, tion (AFSA), a private, nonprofit organization. space. E-mail to [email protected] or e-mail [email protected]. Material appearing herein represents the opinions of the writers and does not necessarily rep- mail to FSJ, 2101 E Street NW, resent the views of the Journal, the Editorial Washington DC 20037. Board or AFSA. Writer queries and submissions FasTrax ADVERTISING are invited, preferably by e-mail. Journal sub- For details about placing either scription: AFSA members – $13 included in an- a display or classifed ad, nual dues; others – $40. For foreign surface mail, E-CLASSIFIEDS add $18 per year; foreign airmail, $36 per year. www.afsa.org/classifieds e-mail [email protected], Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and [email protected]. at additional mailing offices. Indexed by Public Affairs Information Services (PAIS). The Journal FSJ is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos or illustrations. Advertising inquiries are COPYRIGHTS & invited. The appearance of advertisements REPRINTS herein does not imply the endorsement of the To obtain permission to reproduce services or goods offered. TELEPHONE: (202) 338-4045 FSJ material, e-mail FAX: (202) 338-8244 or (202) 338-6820 [email protected]. E-MAIL: [email protected] WEB: www.afsa.org; www.fsjournal.org © American Foreign Service Association, 2009. ONLINE Printed in the U.S.A. Send address changes to: AFSA www.afsa.org Attn: Address Change www.fsjournal.org 2101 E Street N.W. Washington DC 20037-2990 Printed on 50-percent recycled paper, FSJ is audited by Business of Providing Au- of which 10 percent is post-consumer waste. dits, which had the largest membership of any media-auditing organization in the world.

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PRESIDENT’S VIEWS Diplomacy and Patronage Don’t Mix BY SUSAN R. JOHNSON

The continuing debate over the degraded quality and ca- a number of our traditional allies in Eu- non-career ambassadorial ap- pacity of the State Depart- rope? Should we not aim for a fully pro- pointments should focus on ment and propose remedies. fessional diplomatic service with clear the real issues involved: the They all concur that the For- standards for demonstrating successful pressing need for skillful diplo- eign Service must do a better performance, as is required of the coun- macy in the 21st century; the job of attracting, developing try’s senior military officers? experience and skills required and retaining top talent. But With this in mind, the president’s to be an effective ambassador; and the this goal cannot be met by continuing prerogative to appoint ambassadors, and impact of reserving 85 percent of am- the practice of reserving most of the key the Senate’s responsibility to confirm bassadorial appointments to Group of posts abroad, as well as an increasing them, should both be leveraged to Seven countries, and 58 percent of those number of senior leadership positions in strengthen the State Department. All to G-20 capitals, over the last 40 years the department, for non-career ap- diplomatic appointments must be based for political appointees. pointees who are not accountable for on relevant experience, exceptional The expansion of globalization has their performance. That practice low- qualifications and personal distinction. enhanced rather than diminished the ers professional standards and politicizes In particular, the de facto sale of am- importance of diplomacy as a tool for the culture of the institution, making it bassadorships should stop. To ensure a regulating and promoting beneficial co- more difficult to recognize and reward robust institutional infrastructure capa- operation among nations. With that in merit. ble of developing the highly skilled and mind, President Obama and Secretary To be sure, accomplished non-career motivated diplomatic service that our Clinton have called for strengthening individuals can be assets as chiefs of mis- nation requires, there should be a ceiling the Department of State, which is sup- sion — as long as it is recognized that the on the number of non-career appoint- posed to be our premier foreign policy institution’s strength fundamentally rests ments. (In 1980 the late Senator Char- institution and the only one charged on the quality and motivation of its pro- les Mathias suggested a 15-percent cap.) with institutional responsibility for diplo- fessional cadre. The complexity of con- A new leadership commitment to ap- matic service. But how does this rheto- temporary diplomacy places a premium pointing knowledgeable and experienc- ric square with the reality that the most on knowledgeable people with a long- ed career officers to important posi- senior positions at State, abroad and at term commitment to managing the dif- tions overseas and in Washington, D.C., home, continue to be filled by political ficult foreign policy challenges before us, would be an important step toward im- appointees? Such practices demon- and the knowledge, skills and experience proving the professionalism, institutional strate little regard for how U.S. diplo- to do it adroitly. memory, continuity and credibility of macy works. They also do serious, long- It is worth noting that the diplomatic our diplomatic service. Bipartisan con- term damage to the integrity, morale services of the G-7 and G-20 already sensus on these points would go a long and professionalism of the institution. have structures suggesting that they un- way toward strengthening the State De- A number of recent studies address derstand this. Can we really afford to partment so it can conduct the diplo- have a less strong professional diplomacy needed to better protect and Susan R. Johnson is the president of the matic service than do China, Russia, promote U.S. interests in a complex, American Foreign Service Association. Japan, India and Brazil, not to mention fast-changing global environment. ■

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LETTERS

Real Foreign Service Work of our foreign policy are accused of “not around the world where loyal Foreign I would like to commend outgoing stepping up to the plate” and, by sly in- Service employees — straight, gay or AFSA president John Naland for tak- ference, of being cowardly in avoiding lesbian — represent us. Times are ing issue, in his President’s Views col- dangerous posts. changing. umn in the July-August issue of the Robert H. Miller Jerry Lujan Journal, with Ambassador Ryan Crock- Ambassador, retired FSO, retired er’s comments about “the real work of Bethesda, Md. SaddleBrooke, Ariz. the Foreign Service” and where it is being done. Unacceptable Discrimination Not Quite Equal Yet Naland’s fervent hope that the For- I found the sentiments Richard W. I am very pleased that since the eign Service will not “morph into a Hoover expressed in his letter titled publication of my Speaking Out col- diplomatic Foreign Legion” says it all. “Don’t Encourage Them!” (July-Au- umn, “Hope for Gay and Lesbian For- As he points out, there is plenty of gust FSJ) demeaning toward the gay eign Service Employees” (May), there diplomatic work to be done in many and lesbian members of the Foreign has been significant progress on the ex- capitals around the world to persuade Service. tension of benefits to same-sex Foreign other governments to join our efforts in I cannot state with 100-percent ac- Service families. Secretary of State places like Iraq and Afghanistan. And curacy that gays and lesbians exist in Hillary Rodham Clinton has expanded as history shows, when our efforts are every country in which we have diplo- the definition of Eligible Family Mem- highly controversial, abroad as at home, matic representation, but I can say that ber to include same-sex partners, thus that is no easy task. the U.S. does not have a good record of providing them with various benefits, At the risk of irritating many col- accepting minorities in this country. All such as travel orders, visa support, FSI leagues (and perhaps some friends), I minorities in our country have been training, access to health units and (for believe that much of what the Foreign discriminated against at one time or an- U.S.-citizen partners) overseas hiring Service is being asked to do in Iraq and other, starting with Native Americans, preference and diplomatic passports. Afghanistan today — and was once the first Americans, and continuing on Yet while I am thrilled at the asked to do in Vietnam — is not diplo- to African-Americans and other per- prospect of receiving some of these macy but nationbuilding, provincial re- sons of color, who are still discriminated benefits for my partner, Daniel, I do construction, etc. Assigning such func- against. This history is evident in the want to make it clear that this is not yet tions to the Foreign Service and basing virulent verbal attacks against President the “equal benefits” victory that the the State Department’s requests for in- Barack Obama, the first non-white news headlines seem to portray. As I creased resources on this burgeoning, male to be elected U.S. president. mentioned in my Speaking Out col- yet questionable, role weaken our abil- I remember when black couriers umn, two of the main issues for me are ity to carry out traditional diplomatic were only allowed to travel from the that my partner cannot join me in the responsibilities. This is even more true airport to the U.S. embassy in South U.S. except as a long-term tourist, and when, as Amb. Crocker’s remarks sug- Africa. Happily, that is no longer so. he is discriminated against in our over- gest, our colleagues in many capitals Discrimination against any group is seas missions’ hiring practices. These around the world who are trying to not the face of America that we should two major barriers remain firmly intact, bring friends and allies along in support be showing to the many countries although I understand that the Bureau

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L ETTERS

of Consular Affairs is currently pursuing creative efforts for a workaround on the domestic assignment visa issue. The key issues of health insurance and pension benefits remain unresolved, as well. But the Secretary has done all she can short of additional legislative action, and I commend her for those efforts. I was also quite surprised to see the Journal publish a letter from retired FSO Richard Hoover (July-August) op- posing my call for economic, career and quality-of-life improvements for gay and lesbian Foreign Service employees. His argument apparently is that since our “habits are unacceptable” to most Americans and foreigners alike, it is actually in the department’s interest to provide an unwelcoming work environment for us. According to this view- point, our very presence is under- mining the values that our Foreign Service attempts to project overseas. I don’t know what American values Mr. Hoover attempted to project during his career, but I have been proudly representing my country for the past 18 years because I believe it represents such cherished values as freedom of opportunity, tolerance, and respect for diversity and equality under the law. Gay and lesbian employees in the Foreign Service help reflect these values rather than diminish them. Did the Foreign Service Journal seriously find it beneficial to publish a letter questioning the appropriateness of our very presence within the ranks of the Foreign Service? I’m all for journalistic balance and the expression of al- ternative views, but opinions such as this are demeaning and no longer have a place in polite society. ■ Steven Giegerich Consul Consulate General Hong Kong

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CYBERNOTES

Waiting for Godot at USAID Tool,” in the November-December On Aug. 12, foreign aid guru, Har- ithout a strong administra- 2008 issue of Foreign Affairs (www. vard professor and medical doctor Paul Wtor, USAID’s voice will be aplu.org/NetCommunity/Page.asp Farmer confirmed the expectations of lost in the current interagency x?pid=1075). many observers by bowing out of con- debate. The only way to correct this, say An- sideration for the position of Adminis- drew Natsios, J. Brian Atwood and M. — Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., trator of the U.S. Agency for Inter- Peter McPherson, is to re-establish Letter to the Editor, Aug. 9, national Development. USAID as the vital, autonomous and www.washingtonpost.com An experienced practitioner of for- authoritative leading agency for Amer- eign health and development assis- ican foreign assistance — whether as tance, with extensive on-the-ground an entity within State or as a new fed- experience in Haiti, Rwanda and else- for an unprecedented seven months eral department devoted to develop- where, Dr. Farmer had seemed an im- now, as a sign of the administration’s ment. possibly well-qualified candidate for failure to deliver on its commitment to Sen. Lugar’s Foreign Assistance Re- the position. Now, with his graceful advance foreign aid (www.thedaily vitalization and Accountability Act of exit to become the U.N. deputy special beast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009- 2009, introduced in late July with Sen. envoy to Haiti under former President 08-15/can-usaid-survive-without-a- John F. Kerry, D-Mass., and a group of Bill Clinton, fears for USAID’s pros- leader/?cid=hp:beastoriginalsR2). bipartisan co-sponsors, would give pects in the Obama administration Strong leadership is required to do USAID the lead role in strengthening have grown. this. Without it, as Senator Richard the capacity, transparency and ac- Many blame the White House’s Lugar, R-Ind., ranking Republican on countability of American foreign assis- sluggishness in selecting a nominee for the Senate Foreign Relations Com- tance activities (www.opencongress. Farmer’s exit (http://kristof.blogs.ny mittee, wrote in an Aug. 8 letter to the org/bill/1/111-s1524/show). The leg- times.com/2009/08/10/update-on- Washington Post, “President Obama’s islation is now in committee. paul-farmer-and-usaid/). Even Sec- pledge to double foreign assistance In a related development, at a July retary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton would be like adding a third story to a 10 State Department town hall meet- commented that “the clearance and house that had a crumbling founda- ing Sec. Clinton announced the launch vetting process is a nightmare, and it tion.” of a “Quadrennial Diplomacy and De- takes far longer than any of us would Institutional atrophy and a loss of velopment Review” modeled on the want to see” (http://thecable.foreign expertise at USAID have seriously Department of Defense’s Quadrennial policy.com/posts/2009/07/13/clin compromised the effectiveness of U.S. Defense Review (www.state.gov/sec ton_complains_of_nightmare_ve foreign assistance, as three former ad- retary/rm/2009a/july/125949.htm). tting_process). ministrators acknowledge in their com- Clinton said she hopes, foremost, But that issue is only a lightning rod prehensive review of the agency and that the review will move State away for more deep-seated concerns. Many its mission, “Arrested Development: from year-by-year planning to focus see the inability to fill the post, empty Making Foreign Aid a More Effective on overarching goals, and that this will

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C YBERNOTES

improve resource allocations and QDR, this is not an inconsequential takes shape, watch the State Depart- strengthen future requests to Congress. matter. ment’s blog (at http://blogs.state. She also expects the QDDR to high- Moreover, some observers, such as gov/) and press releases (www.state. light a comprehensive plan for devel- Jim Thomas, vice president for studies gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2009/index.htm). opment — not just foreign assistance at the Center for Strategic and Budg- Meanwhile, at this writing there are — in an effort to further integrate etary Assessments, have voiced con- still no candidates to lead the nation’s USAID into State. cerns that such an exercise may not, in premier development agency. And Although the department intends to any case, be appropriate for State be- whether USAID will be further sub- publish the results of the QDDR by cause the department tends to operate merged into the State Department, 2010, the specifics of the undertaking in a more daily, crisis-management threatening the end of its development — namely its scope, funding and com- mode than the Pentagon (www.gov mission altogether, or become a new, pletion date — remain hazy. Given the exec.com/dailyfed/0709/071509l1. more powerful institution in its own cost in staff and contractors that the htm). right, remains to be seen. Defense Department incurs in its To follow the QDDR process as it Hope from The Hague Two cases coming out of interna- Site of the Month: www.usip.org tional dispute resolution institutions In tandem with the construction of its new headquarters, the United States In- based in The Hague are helping re- stitute of Peace, a nonpartisan institute founded and funded by Congress for the store faith in the conciliatory powers of management and resolution of conflicts and continuation of stability thereafter, has world bodies. been reconstructing its Web site (www.usip.org). The first decision, handed down on Chief among the alterations is the addition of several impressive resources, July 13 by the United Nations Interna- among them an amazing aggregation called “On the Issues” (http://origin.usip.org/ tional Court of Justice, settles a dispute between Nicaragua and Costa Rica on_the_issues/). For instance, all of the resources and research on major hot spots over the San Juan River (http://arti collected by USIP during its 20 years of existence are now available in a subsection cle.wn.com/view/2009/07/14/UN_ titled “Conflict Resources.” International_Court_of_Justice_Af “On the Issues” also offers a set of transcripts discussing the background and firms_Nicaraguan_Soverei/). The stakes for the United States of recent developments in conflict zones. These “Ex- case, brought before the court in 2005 pert Interviews” contain some of the most succinct, reliable and informative ac- by Costa Rica, concerned issues of counts of recent events in Iran, Lebanon and North Korea. Currently, the coverage maritime regulation dating back to an of issues and conflicts extends only as far back as 2007, but the project continues 1858 treaty. Though the court sided in to expand. favor of Nicaraguan claims, San Jose Given the rapid escalation of nearly all the topics covered in these expert inter- has given every indication it accepts views, one might expect them to become obsolete eventually. Instead, USIP has re- that decision, so the 150-year-old con- acted to the pace of events by conducting interactive discussions with its experts flict may finally be laid to rest. on the institute’s Facebook pages (www.facebook.com/pages/United-States- Similarly, a ruling on July 22 by the Institute-of-Peace/75608370019). It has thereby succeeded in creating one of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the most consistent and informative databases on these highly contentious, fluid is- administrative organization for inter- sues available anywhere on the Net. national dispute resolution that is “On the Issues” is just one of the many new resources on the site. Others in- housed with the ICJ in The Hague’s clude records of congressional testimony, peace agreements from around the world, Peace Palace, has settled a dispute over and briefings on events and field work, as well as collections of oral histories (www. the oil-rich Sudanese region of Abyei. usip.org/resources-tools/types). Using these links, one can quickly gain a sound The issue arose in negotiating the 2005 general knowledge of the background and impact of any prominent issue and go Comprehensive Peace Agreement be- into depth on it easily. tween northern and southern Sudanese forces (http://news.xinhuanet.com/

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this issue — has called “one-size-fits- all bunkers”(http://latimesblogs.lati 50 Years Ago... mes.com/culturemonster/2009/ his, then, is the challenge: Are we, the peoples of the eco- 07/). Tnomically advanced free nations, going to persevere in our The State Department has long efforts to help the one billion people in the free world’s less-developed areas been under wide-ranging criticism for place themselves firmly on the road to progress? Or are we going to be failing to fulfill one of the “Guiding found wanting in this supreme test of our free and democratic way of life? Principles for Federal Architecture,” formulated by Senator Daniel Patrick — Under Secretary of State Douglas Dillon, from a talk delivered to the Moynihan and issued by President Harvard University Association in Cambridge, Mass., on June 11, 1959; John F. Kennedy in 1962, that federal FSJ, October 1959. facilities “reflect the dignity, enterprise, vigor and stability of the federal government.” So in July 2008, State’s Bu- english/2009-07/23/content_1175 319ebc3d). reau of Overseas Buildings Operations 6009.htm). The new, independent Interna- commissioned the American Institute Both the Sudan People’s Liberation tional Criminal Court, meanwhile, is of Architects to review embassy archi- Movement and its former foes in the investigating four situations — in the tecture (www.dwell.com/articles/ph National Congress Party have ex- Democratic Republic of the Congo, ilip-kennicott-on-americas-embas pressed satisfaction with the newly de- the Central African Republic, Uganda sies.html). marcated borders and agreed to and Sudan (Darfur) — and began its And on July 9, 2009, the AIA’s 21st- observe them. first trial in January (www.icc-cpi.int/). Century Embassy Task Force released These successes, however, were Established under the Rome Statutes a 40-page report, “Design for Diplo- partially overshadowed by the fifth an- in 1998 and opened for business in macy: New Embassies for the 21st niversary of the ICJ’s ruling against Is- 2002, the ICC is backed by 110 nations Century,” to the public (www.aia.org/ rael’s construction of a separation wall but is still boycotted by the U.S., China, aiaucmp/groups/aia/documents/pd between Israeli and Palestinian terri- Russia and India. f/aiab080400.pdf). It cites the Cen- tories (www.sott.net/articles/show/ To keep up with these contentious ter for Strategic and International 190312-Five-years-after-ICJ-rul cases and other issues surrounding the Studies’ 2007 report, “The Embassy of ing-Israel-expands-its-illegal-Wall- more than 20 functioning international the Future,” as a key source of infor- onto-more-Palestinian-land). De- courts, follow reports issued by the mation for its own findings and recom- spite a decision by the court and a vote Project on International Courts and mendations (http://csis.org/files/med by the U.N. General Assembly declar- Tribunals (www.pict-pcti.org/index. ia/csis/pubs/embassy_of_the_futu ing an obligation for signatories to the html). re.pdf). Geneva Convention to compel Israel Both reports agree that it is possi- to uphold the rulings, there has been The Beautiful Bunker? ble to blend aesthetics and security no action by any party to the dispute. The 1990s witnessed a gradual turn in embassy design. Furthermore, the Still, the list of pending cases vol- away from creative designs for U.S. AIA’s report highlights several ways in untarily brought before the ICJ — embassies. As fear of terrorist attacks which the OBO can achieve this per- among them such monumental dis- rose, the buildings slowly moved from fect harmony while also lowering costs. putes as Kosovo v. Serbia and Peru v. cultural representations of America’s Chile — is a reassuring indication of a unique vitality to fortresses. Some crit- The Road to Damascus willingness to attempt international ar- ics now claim that embassy architec- President Barack Obama made a bitration and other nonviolent conflict ture has reached a nadir, as architects sharp break with George W. Bush–era solutions (www.icjcij.org/docket/in told to value safety above all other con- foreign policy in late June, when he an- dex.php?p1=3&p2=1&PHPSESS siderations churn out what the Los An- nounced his intention to send an am- ID=7721bda04b0456828d608a58 geles Times — a frequent reporter on bassador, as yet unnamed, back to Syria

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(www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/mea dor and resume dialogue, this is only a WWW.FSJOURNAL.ORG st/07/26/us.middle.east/). Former tentative first step in a long and deli- Click on the Marketplace tab on the marquee President George W. Bush had with- cate process. Any major changes in the drawn the last U.S. ambassador from region could jeopardize the precarious, Damascus in 2005 in light of plausible convergent pathways of U.S. and Syr- accusations of Syrian involvement in ian interests (www.mcclatchydc.com/ AFSPA the assassination of Lebanese Prime commentary/story/71793.html). afspa.org Minister Rafik Hariri earlier that year. And in such a fragile environment, it While Pres. Obama’s decision re- behooves pundits and politicians alike AKA flects his longstanding commitment to to closely follow developments in stay-aka.com pursuing dialogue, the move still Damascus (www.cfr.org/region/414/ comes as something of a shock. As re- syria.html). American Public University cently as this spring, pundits believed For now, both sides celebrate a vital amu.apus.edu that such a step was still a way off and constructive change in Middle (www.brookings.edu/articles/2009/ Eastern relations. In July Syrian polit- Clements International 0319_syria_saab.aspx). ical writer Sami Moubayed published clements.com Although Damascus has not come an open letter to the future ambassa- forward with any clear concessions, its dor: “With great pleasure we welcome Cort Furniture responses to recent regional events — you to Damascus, a city of lights, his- for instance, this year’s Lebanese leg- tory, peace and passion. Damascus is a cort1.com islative elections, the destabilization of warm host, and has been good to all Iran, and entreaties from Israel via your predecessors from the days of Diplomatic Auto. Sales Turkey to resume Middle East peace George Wadsworth during World War diplosales.com negotiations — have revealed a possi- II, all the way to your immediate pred- ble unclenching of the Syrian fist ecessor, Margaret Scobey” (www.fw- Hirshorn Company, The (www.usip.org/countries-continen magazine.com/category/5/279). hirshorn.com ts/asia/syria). With any luck, this attitude will en- Such shifts, especially the weaken- dure, whatever lies ahead. SDFCU ing of the Iran-Syria alliance (http:// Syrian Ambassador to the U.S. sdfcu.org blog.oup.com/2009/07/iran_syria/), Imad Moustapha has long voiced his allow Damascus to regain its centrality expectation and eagerness that any Strategic Studies Quarterly to Middle Eastern affairs while open- post-Bush administration would seek au.af.mil/au/ssq ing itself more directly to new path- to re-establish full Syrian diplomatic ways — perhaps even a Washing- relations (http://foreignpolicy.com Tetra Tech ton-led peace process. /story/cms.php?story_id=4544&pa As Pres. Obama has asserted, Syria ge=1). The tech-savvy ambassador tetratech.com will play a vital role in the future of keeps a personal blog that will pre- Iraqi security (its border serves as a sumably express his thoughts on the WJD gateway for international insurgents, current form such reconnections are wjdpm.com among other concerns), Iranian-Amer- taking (http://imad_moustapha.blo ican relations and Arab-Israeli peace gs.com/). discussions. Such a pivotal state cer- For more background on U.S.-Syr- tainly merits ambassadorial contacts to ian relations, see www.usip.org/res facilitate the high-level diplomacy that ources/issues-syria. ■ will be needed. When contacting an advertiser, kindly However, although Washington has This edition of Cybernotes was com- mention the Foreign Service Journal. decided to nominate a new ambassa- piled by Editorial Intern Mark Hay.

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SPEAKING OUT Public Diplomacy: A View from the Front Line

BY THE PUBLIC DIPLOMACY FRONT LINE WORKING GROUP

ver the past decade a new the embedded officers, generally re- generation of public diplo- We hope to start a ferred to as “embeds.” Omacy officers has risen to the conversation about Embeds have gained an under- mid-level ranks of the Foreign Service. standing of the broader policy issues We have no institutional memory of the direction of surrounding their particular countries the U.S. Information Agency; many of public diplomacy and, in turn, bring public diplomacy our careers began with the attacks on among current State expertise to policy discussions from the the World Trade Center and the Pen- Department PD outset. For their part, bureaus can bet- tagon, and the realization that not practitioners. ter achieve their policy objectives everyone loved America or our values. when they have an integrated public We departed for our first tours with the diplomacy strategy. goal of dispelling increasing misper- The following three examples illus- ceptions about America, spread at an trate the strategic importance of PD. alarming rate through the unregulated, When Kosovo declared its inde- and often inaccurate, new world of to our knowledge this is the first time a pendence in 2008, it was the embed- mobile technology. group of active-duty mid-level officers ded PD desk officer who spearheaded It was at that point that our govern- has come together to discuss these is- the outreach plan for gaining public ment realized what many of us learned sues and put pen to paper. We hope support in Europe for formal recogni- through experience: people-to-people our comments and suggestions will add tion. Similarly, during the August 2008 exchanges matter; we need to invest in a new perspective, and start a conver- Russia-Georgia War, the PD desk offi- the long term when it comes to diplo- sation about the direction of public cer coordinated real-time formal mes- macy; and we cannot achieve our pol- diplomacy among current State De- saging to be used by the interagency icy objectives in democracies without partment PD practitioners. community and our embassies to gaining buy-in from foreign publics. counter Russian misinformation. And The new generation of public diplo- Give All Public Diplomacy during interbureau and interagency macy officers is ready to take on these Officers a Seat at the Table discussions of NATO’s mission in challenges in order to promote U.S. In practice, it is up to every single Afghanistan, the PD desk officer has strategic interests. But to do this, PD public diplomacy officer to insert him- consistently emphasized the point that officers need to be empowered, inte- self or herself into policy discussions in a major obstacle to increased Euro- grated and equipped to succeed in the Washington and at post. For the past pean commitment is the low public 21st century. few years, PD officers have been em- support for the mission among the There have been a number of re- bedded in the regional bureaus, specif- populations of Allied countries. ports on public diplomacy from the ically in the Bureau of European and As such examples demonstrate, the U.S. Advisory Commission on Public Eurasian Affairs and the Bureau of PD desk officer adds value by explain- Diplomacy, the RAND Corporation East Asian and Pacific Affairs. This ing the importance of negative public and the Heritage Foundation, and arrangement has been beneficial for opinion as a “drag” on achieving our from members of Congress. However, the bureaus, the regional offices and policy objectives. Moreover, such of-

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ficers engage policymakers on how to proximity brings with it the chance for Like the Bureau of Consular Af- best shape public opinion in pursuit of better collaboration. fairs, R and the regional public diplo- U.S. interests. None of these initiatives There is no shortage of talent at macy offices should develop a repu- would have been as successful without ECA and IIP; within both bureaus, tation for taking care of their own the embeds’ thorough understanding there is a large cadre of dedicated and when it comes to career development of U.S. policy in those countries and experienced Civil Service employees. and bidding. We also need to promote their informed PD perspective. Ac- These professionals have created a the PD “brand” at all career levels. cordingly, all bureaus would benefit range of effective programs, but at With a strong sense of shared identity from embedded public diplomacy times the link between programs and and purpose, both new and experi- desk officers in their regional offices. U.S. foreign policy priorities lags or is enced PD officers — and the rest of Today, the success of U.S. diplo- missing entirely. To address this, we the State Department — will know macy relies more heavily than ever on should increase the opportunities for that the R Bureau is a place to build a cooperation from our democratic part- those bureaus’ civil servants to work on successful career and to make a differ- ners and allies, who answer to their State’s policy desks and in overseas mis- ence in U.S. foreign policy. own publics. “Mutual understanding” sions, and simultaneously augment the R has already begun to do this by remains a catch phrase in the public Foreign Service presence in ECA and creating a formal “staff line,” modeling diplomacy portion of Mission Strategic IIP program offices itself like other under secretary offices. Plans, but the work needed to gain One option would be to offer 12- This change is an example of PD in- buy-in for U.S policy from foreign month rotations in ECA or IIP for serting itself into the policy process, in- publics — much of the meaning be- non-PD Foreign Service personnel to tegrating itself into State Department hind the phrase — must be an integral gain in-depth experience either in ex- culture and claiming a seat at the table. part of each MSP. Embassy leadership change and cultural programming, or It would further strengthen the re- should recognize this by encouraging creating traditional and new media gional press and public diplomacy of- political and economic officers to work products. Similarly, Civil Service ECA fices if a PD-cone deputy assistant with public affairs officers to identify and IIP employees should have the op- secretary were assigned to each bu- key audiences and opinion-makers on portunity to do rotations in regional reau, with a mission to keep senior PD issues of strategic importance, and to PD offices and be encouraged to bid officers linked into the policy process cooperate and participate in outreach on hard-to-fill public diplomacy posi- and thus better informed and more designed to influence those audiences. tions overseas. These rotations would relevant. Even the most experienced help all personnel in those bureaus, as public diplomacy officers are at a dis- Create More Opportunities well as the regional PD offices, work advantage when they enter policy dis- for ECA and IIP together more effectively to ensure cussions late — or not at all. The expertise of the Bureaus of Ed- that there is no disconnect in our im- ucational and Cultural Affairs and In- plementation of foreign policy. Smart Technology ternational Information Programs can for Smart Power be more fully utilized if they are more Develop an Esprit de Corps Today’s PD officers need to be tech- engaged in policy discussions. Even As mid-level public diplomacy offi- nologically savvy and fully equipped though ECA and IIP report to the Of- cers, we recognize the need to build a with the most modern tools to promote fice of the Under Secretary for Public strong esprit de corps among all PD- our values and messages. They must Diplomacy and Public Affairs (known cone FSOs, regardless of rank, position master print, radio and television as R), the critical role the programs or career history. Those who lead the media as well as podcasts, webchats, they oversee play in advancing our for- public diplomacy cone, fully aware that blogs and social networking sites. eign policy objectives is not always USIA as it existed is not coming back, Other tools at our disposal that have clear. The two bureaus’ long-overdue need to help PD officers at all levels been in use for some time include move out of SA-44 in Southwest Wash- build a stronger sense of identity, and books, magazines and DVDs. While ington, D.C., has brought them physi- emphasize a unified mission within the still incredibly useful, these do not nec- cally closer to Main State. And that PD family. essarily reflect the communications

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practices of young populations across within the Foreign Service. (This ap- the world. In Africa, Iran, China and plies to other cones as well, of course.) Russia, young people are reaching out Bureaus can better Armed with this skills development as much as they can across borders plan, both the officer and prospective through their laptops, cell phones, achieve their policy supervisor can be confident that bid- Blackberries and iPhones to update ders on FS-3 PD jobs will be prepared their Facebook profiles, follow each objectives when they for the work, whether or not they al- other on Twitter, and far more. The ready have public diplomacy on their State Department’s leadership realizes have an integrated resumé. USIA’s junior officer training we need to be a significant player in program sharpened the skills of entry- this growing space, but the funding for public diplomacy level personnel going into assistant cul- that has not yet materialized. tural affairs officer and assistant Resources need to be provided to strategy. information officer positions, placing every embassy, and throughout the de- them under the supervision of experi- partment, to allow PD officers and staff enced PD officers and including rota- to access these technologies, with a tions in consular, political/economic streamlined process to gain approval to and management sections. add software and hardware to our which media are the best to use to Furthermore, mid-level officers in OpenNet terminals. As the tools communicate effective messages to the field should be encouraged to be change, PD officers will require a more their particular audiences, given the creative and innovative by competing sophisticated approach to ongoing ed- reality of limited staff and budgets. for special funds that R would earmark ucation in order to stay current, en- to develop new programs. hancing their ability to apply these Develop the technologies appropriately. Next Generation Expand Mid-Level Training The Bureau of Information Re- PD officers usually will do at least and Professional Education source Management, IIP’s Information two, and possibly four, years of out-of- Opportunities Resource Officers and Information cone work before bidding on their first The need for a highly professional, Resource Center staff must be trained public diplomacy position. When they well-educated public diplomacy corps in the logistical use of new media and do bid on those jobs, they are often dis- has never been greater. A stronger PD their strategic application for public advantaged in the process because officer corps will have the ability to diplomacy. We also need to reach out they cannot clearly demonstrate their reach new audiences, as well as ne- to information technology private-sec- public diplomacy expertise. The PD glected ones, using a variety of meth- tor giants like Google and Microsoft to leadership can help by establishing ods. create partnerships that enable us to clear guidelines for new officers that A public diplomacy expert com- use these technologies with foreign au- outline necessary skills (program man- bines policy expertise, media savvy, a diences worldwide. agement, budget review, public speak- general understanding of education Finally, we need to empower PD ing, media training, etc.) and how to and the performing arts, and experi- officers overseas to determine how obtain them during entry-level tours, ence with grants administration, budg- best to employ emerging technology in whether in PD positions or not. ets, technology and cultural exchange their specific program environments. This can be accomplished in liaison projects — a daunting repertoire to In some countries, SMS may be the with the Public Diplomacy Training master. Regrettably, mid-level officers most effective way to reach out to au- Division and the Consular Training Di- all too often have been denied the pro- diences with limited Internet connec- vision at the Foreign Service Institute. fessional development opportunities tivity. In others, Web-based technolo- However, this means that embassies necessary to achieve the most effective gies have already replaced print media. will have to balance their needs on the outreach skills. Working with their front offices, public consular line with the need to develop Opportunities should also be given affairs officers must be able to choose a professional public diplomacy corps for officers to earn a master’s degree in

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public diplomacy at the University of Southern California, or to enroll in comparable programs around the U.S. This and other graduate-level opportunities should be offered on the same basis as other long-term training, such as Princeton’s Master’s in Public Policy program. Financial assistance should also be considered for officers who seek de- grees on their own time in fields such as the performing arts, education, jour- nalism or communications, all of which are applicable to PD work. A final note: Many of the suggestions we make regarding the need for better strategic vision, reforms in the current bureaucratic structure, more (and more tailored) training and more resources have not occurred to us alone. Most reports on public diplomacy come to some or all of the same conclusions. There is recognition across the board that to achieve results in public diplomacy requires a motivated, well-equipped team with a common strategic vision and the means to deliver the goods. We hope that this column not only serves to start a conversation about public diplomacy among our ranks, but adds to the greater dialogue on how best to achieve our foreign policy objectives. ■

The Public Diplomacy Front Line Working Group is comprised of the following mid-level PD officers: Stefanie Altman-Winans, Kerri Hannan, Shari Bistransky, Jennifer Rahimi, Jean Dug- gan, Jean Briganti, Ruth Anne Stevens- Klitz, Tristram Perry, Bix Aliu and Jon Berger. The group welcomes comments at [email protected], and invites readers to visit its Facebook page, Pub- lic Diplomacy Officers for Change.

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FS KNOW-HOW PD: A View from the Promotion Panel

BY JULIE GIANELLONI CONNOR

y experience serving on the for public diplomacy officers to give up threshold promotion board Here are some tips trying for the sorts of jobs that result in Mthis summer confirms my to help public classwide promotion and instead stick longstanding belief that the public diplomacy officers closely to in-cone work. And that strat- diplomacy cone requires urgent atten- become truly egy works fine — until the officer gets tion if it is to become truly competitive to be in the Senior Foreign Service and with other FS cones. In hopes of im- competitive with finds that PD jobs at that level are few proving the outlook for my fellow PD other FS cones. and far between, and that just doing officers, I’d like to offer some observa- public diplomacy work does not make tions on how the promotion process an officer competitive for senior jobs works and recommendations for our when compared with other officers cone. management, which also failed to get who have already served as deputy any officer promoted classwide). And chiefs of mission and principal officers Classwide vs. Conal the PD promotion rate was second-to- at smaller posts. First, a little background. All offi- last (ahead of management) at the FE- (One other note: Judging by my ex- cers compete for promotion twice: MC level. Although statistics for this perience on the threshold promotion once by cone and once against all their year (2009) are not yet available, that panel, only masochists are going to do peers at the same rank. In 2005, miserable result is likely to be re- cultural work exclusively. It will not the “multifunctional” competition was peated. suffice to get an officer promoted into changed to a “classwide” review of of- The key to being promoted class- the Senior Foreign Service.) ficers. In that year, PD had the lowest wide, at least at the FS-1 level, is to percentage of officers promoted class- demonstrate leadership and ability not Myth Busting wide to FS-1 and FE-MC, and the only within your own cone but also The articles in the focus section of second-lowest to FE-OC. outside it. Yet PD officers (at least the this issue contain some claims dear to We did better the following year, cohort I saw) generally seem to stick the hearts of all PD officers. Unfortu- placing third at the FS-1 and FE-OC pretty close to their own field of ex- nately, what I saw on the promotion levels (behind the political and eco- pertise. In sharp contrast, lots of offi- panel makes clear that they are now nomic cones) and last at the FE-MC cers from other cones serve in mid- to the equivalent of urban myths. level. But that was the high-water senior-level jobs outside their own Myth No. 1: PD officers are fond mark for PD-cone FSOs in the class- cones or in “leadership” jobs, such as of saying that with the experience ac- wide competitions at the FS-1, FE-OC deputy chief of mission, principal offi- crued from their earliest assignments and FE-MC levels. cer or office director. in managing large staffs and budgets, In 2007, we were last at every level. Though serving out-of-cone is nec- they should be competitive for top po- In 2008, not a single PD officer was essary to be competitive classwide, it is sitions. If this were ever true, it no promoted classwide to the FS-1 level also true that too much of that experi- longer is. Given the disastrous per- (the only cone to suffer this indignity) ence can be detrimental in the conal sonnel cuts of the 1990s, followed by or to FE-OC (sharing the insult with competition. So it makes perfect sense the “Iraq tax” and other downsizing in

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recent years, it is rare to find a public staff and data managers — were trans- State with our values (as some officers diplomacy section anywhere near the ferred to State management sections. claimed would happen at the time of size of other sections in embassies. In short, according to what I saw in the consolidation). It occurred because For example, think about the EERs, any advantage in terms of man- changes in the world have made every- American officers in an overseas post. aging people and resources that PD of- one more aware of the need to fight The consular section is swarming with ficers may have at the FS-3 and FS-2 the battle of ideas in the public arena. entry-level officers. Management, levels disappears by the time they Nor should this shift be surprising, even at smaller posts, still has a sub- reach FS-1 — which means PD offi- given the younger generation’s propen- stantial number of sections headed by cers are operating at a real disadvan- sity to use technology and to embrace an FSO: human resources, financial tage vis-à-vis their counterparts in openness. But old PD hands still act management, information manage- terms of supervisory responsibility, a as if nothing has changed — when it ment, general services, etc. Medium- key factor in making it across the most definitely has. size political and economic staffs threshold. A corollary to this myth is the belief generally number at least four to five Myth No. 2: Many of us are con- that only seasoned PD officers can ad- officers, plus an office management vinced that State’s culture is anti-PD, equately “do PD.” That is not what the specialist and, frequently, an Eligible and that members of other cones have EERs indicate, with many officers Family Member. no interest in public diplomacy. I from other cones getting rave reviews In comparison, American OMS jobs know all too well that this was true in for their stints as PAOs, IOs and CAOs in public diplomacy sections went the the past, having suffered under a and for “new technology” pilot proj- way of dodo birds in the 1990s, as did DCM who regularly admonished the ects. many assistant information and assistant country team that “If you want to ruin cultural affairs officer positions. That your career, speak to the press.” How- What Is to Be Done? means that only the very largest PD sec- ever, based on what I read in the per- If PD officers are not competitive tions, those that still have an AIO or sonnel files, this old axiom is no longer classwide, what will become of them? ACAO, can compare even with true. Indeed, listing PD as a require- One answer to that question comes medium-size political and economic ment for advancement (e.g, including from Bruce Gregory, who was for sections in terms of how many officers it in the promotion precepts) has been many years the staff director of the Ad- section chiefs supervise. Or to put it an- spectacularly successful. visory Commission on Public Diplo- other way, a political counselor at a Every last officer overseas — if one macy and who currently teaches PD. medium-size embassy in Latin America believes what one reads in the EERs Gregory has been saying for quite a is usually supervising at least twice as — is out there talking to the media, while that the PD cone should disap- many American employees as the pub- giving speeches at universities and high pear, with officers being absorbed into lic affairs officer. schools, and meeting with nongovern- the political cone. The logic behind This, in turn, means that all other mental organizations and other com- this is that the skill sets needed to be a section heads are gaining an advantage munity leaders. If they are not doing good PD officer — good writing abil- in managing personnel, which leads to so, that failure is being written up as an ity, superior contact work, excellent po- opportunities to shine in Employee Area for Improvement. (In fact, urg- litical judgment, and a “nose for the Evaluation Reports by working out em- ing officers to do more PD has become news” or for coming trends — are sim- ployee disputes and issues, writing eval- one of the most popular recommenda- ilar in both cones. uations that get commendations, etc. tions for non-PD FSOs. For example, Based on the EERs I read this sum- As for Locally Employed Staff, once an economic or consular officer may mer, I have to say that there may be again the numbers in the consular and be directed to increase his or her pub- something to this idea. Otherwise, management sections dwarf those in lic outreach by giving public speeches how can political officers with no pub- PD. Even political and economic sec- or meeting with the media.) lic diplomacy experience be function- tions seem to be adding LES, while That said, I do not believe this sea ing successfully as public affairs offi- PD’s ranks were chopped in 1999 change has come about because PD cers? Besides reading about officers when support staff — drivers, financial officers have successfully “infected” from other cones successfully serving

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as PAOs, IOs and CAOs, I also read Slots that seem like they should be evaluations for non-PD officers serving “reserved” for PD officers, such as pub- in what should be “plum” PD Wash- PD officers are lic diplomacy positions in PA and at the ington-based jobs. For example, non- National Security Council, frequently PD officers seem to be staffing the operating at a real (dare I say usually) go to officers in National Security Council Press Of- other cones. Moreover, the political fice. And over the past decade, they disadvantage vis-à-vis appointees in the under secretary’s of- have also occupied top staff jobs in the fice and the Bureau of Educational and Office of the Under Secretary for Pub- their counterparts in Cultural Affairs tend to bring in other lic Diplomacy and in the Bureau of political appointees to fill staff jobs. Public Affairs. terms of supervisory They are also willing to take officers While abandoning public diplo- from any cone to serve on their staffs. macy as a cone is one possible ap- responsibility. The remaining PD senior jobs are proach, I would instead recommend few and far between, which results in that we get our act together and be- PD officers at the FS-1 level and above come more competitive with the other being shoehorned into jobs on the cones. So here are some practical sug- • Now that I’ve served on the Board of Examiners, in the Office of gestions for my PD-cone colleagues. threshold panel, there is no question in the Inspector General and similar of- • Get yourself some out-of-cone ex- my mind that PD officers are being fices. Thus, mid- and senior-level PD perience in the mid-grades. You will disadvantaged by a failure of senior officers find it particularly difficult to need it as your career advances. leadership. Of course, with six under get the high-level PD Washington ex- • Despite the discouragements, go secretaries for public diplomacy in 10 perience they need. after those DCM and PO positions. years, including long periods with no Some leadership on the part of sen- • Make sure your Employee Profile one in place, how could it be other- ior FSOs who want to help level the (what we old-timers still call our Per- wise? And even when there is an ef- playing field for PD officers could go a sonnel Audit Report, or PAR) is cor- fective leader in R, he or she is usually long way. First and foremost, more rect and up-to-date, no matter how focused on policy issues, not pursuing senior-level jobs need to be created for much effort it takes. Check it every career enhancement for PD-cone offi- senior PD officers. The cone needs a spring for accuracy. The promotion cers. path that does not crash and burn at the panel uses printouts of the profile for FS-1 level when PD officers begin to everything from jotting down notes Steps for State Leadership be non-competitive for senior jobs. from your EERs, to jogging their Unlike other cones, there are few if Here are some specific suggestions: memories about your career when the any jobs in Washington for PD FSOs • The under secretary should choose board holds discussions, to checking to encumber. The Bureau of Consular PD-cone officers to fill senior- and mid- for hardship postings and language Affairs relies heavily on career consular level staff positions in R. skills. officers to fill senior slots. Manage- • Confer (finally) assistant-secretary • Rating and reviewing officers ment officers are natural fits for the rank on the head of the International should give subordinates strong rec- Office of the Under Secretary for Information Programs Bureau. Then ommendations for promotion. Avoid Management, the Administration Bu- fill the position with a career officer, any ambiguity. Don’t write, “I recom- reau and the executive offices of all re- and make sure the deputy assistant mend this officer for promotion at the gional and functional bureaus. And secretaries are also PD officers. Titles first opportunity,” but “I recommend political and economic officers domi- are important. Board members un- this officer for immediate promotion.” nate the regional bureaus, as well as derstand what a deputy assistant sec- This explicit recommendation was not the offices of the under secretaries for retary does — but a coordinator? necessary when we were USIA offi- political and economic affairs and cer- • If the assistant secretary of the cers, but it is part of State culture and tain functional bureaus. But where do Bureau of Educational and Cultural is essential now. public diplomacy officers go? Affairs really has to remain a political

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appointee, at least make sure that ECA If at least some of these steps are deputy assistant secretary positions are not taken soon, then I predict that reserved for public diplomacy officers. Although the myth savvy Foreign Service officers will get • Give PD officers preference when the message: Doing PD is fine for a filling senior jobs in the Bureau of Pub- persists that only tour, but not for a career — unless one lic Affairs, especially the department is content never to have a shot at sen- spokesman and deputy spokesman po- seasoned public ior State Department leadership posi- sitions. tions. ■ • Do whatever is required to have diplomacy officers can PD officers fill positions in the Na- Julie Gianelloni Connor, a PD-cone tional Security Council press office. adequately “do PD,” Senior Foreign Service officer, served • All top PD officers should do what on the 2009 threshold (FS-1 to SFS) the best assistant secretaries in other the EERs say otherwise. promotion board. Currently an office bureaus are already doing: write extra director in the Bureau of International memos for the EER files of the best Organizations, she has served in many PD officers working for them, whether different regions with USIA and State in the field or in Washington. As I can extra “oomph” to a personnel file. and has been a public affairs officer, in- attest from my time on the threshold • Be generous in writing up PD of- formation officer and cultural affairs panel this summer, a first-person ficers for commendation and nominat- officer at various posts. She is a mem- memo by an assistant secretary adds ing them for departmental awards. ber of the FSJ Editorial Board.

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F OCUS ON P UBLIC D IPLOMACY

THE NEXT GENERATION Doug Ross

LEADERS OF THE OLD USIA AND STATE HAVE SOUGHT TO ADAPT PUBLIC DIPLOMACY TO NEW PUBLIC EXPECTATIONS AND THE REVOLUTION IN GLOBAL MEDIA.

BY JOE B. JOHNSON

still remember the sunny day in 1999 when I stood in the lobby of the U.S. Information Agency headquarters in Southwest Washington, D.C. I was looking through a large window on the courtyard, where the ceremony to commemorate the closing of the agency was in progress. Director Joseph Duffy and scores of dignitaries were speaking of USIA’sI storied history. Across from me, an elevator opened and snapped my mind back to the day’s task. Movers emerged pushing office furniture on trolleys, headed over to Foggy Bottom. USIA’s Western Hemisphere Af-

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fairs Office was already on its way to With social networking, are used. Feeding Web sites and the State Department. sending “targeted” messages was Ten years later, the Office of what’s new is not so much the USIA mantra. That was appro- Public Diplomacy and Public Af- priate for that era; indeed, it is still a fairs for the Western Hemisphere the underlying information basic task for public diplomacy. But Affairs Bureau continues to operate, today the emphasis is on trying to as do the other USIA “area offices” systems and applications as draw people together in online so- in their respective geographic bu- cial networks. reaus. The sixth under secretary for how they are used. Using the Internet to discuss public diplomacy and public affairs, things and transact business has Judith McHale, was sworn in this burgeoned all over the world in the year. The two bureaus established in 1999 (Educational past few years. In the March 3 issue of Business Week and Cultural Affairs and International Information Pro- (“Why Widgets Don’t Work”), Ben Kuntz explains it this grams) stayed in the USIA building on C Street SW until way: “There are three modes, or mindsets, people take on this year. when they use interactive communications: receiving, Because most of USIA’s Washington staff remained in hunting and doing. You receive a phone call. You hunt place when the transfer took place in 1999, a successful for a book at the library. You take an action — say, writing merging of the two agencies’ cultures was impeded. an article such as this. The history of the Web is a transi- Moreover, much of the strategy and tradecraft that marked tion between these phases.” USIA withered. Over the years, many new people have The latest phase has been dubbed Web 2.0, and the de- replaced USIA veterans, and the ranks of trained PD offi- partment is definitely testing the waters, if not swimming cers have suffered ups and downs along with the depart- just yet. It is making its own Web sites more interactive ment’s overall work force. and also setting up pages on commercial Web sites like But by fits and starts, successive leaders of the old USIA YouTube and Facebook. and State have partially rebuilt the foundations and have One of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s adapted public diplomacy, both to new public expectations early speeches was a video appeal to citizens titled “21st- and to the revolution in global media. Century Statecraft,” reminiscent of the 2008 presidential campaign. (Watch it at www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6PF State’s New Web 2.0 Strategy PCTEr3c&feature=channel_page.) Sec. Clinton talked In the mid-1990s, USIA pioneered Web technology about citizens’ direct involvement in building friendship with an overhaul of its Information Bureau. At the time of among nations; touted the department’s pages on Face- the merger, agency personnel felt certain that the State book, YouTube and Twitter; cited State Department Web Department’s antiquated technology would hold them pages like the Dipnote blog and ExchangesConnect back. Their fears were unfounded, however, thanks to (http://connect.state.gov); and urged viewers to send a $5 constant pressure from the new USIA contingent, and also contribution to relief of refugees in the Swat Valley of Pak- thanks to former Secretary of State Colin Powell’s Diplo- istan via text message. matic Readiness Initiative. Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Philip J. (P.J.) The latest and most dramatic change is the State De- Crowley told me: “USIA was a great institution, created partment’s embrace of new media for public outreach. for a particular purpose — the Cold War — and for an in- With social networking, what’s new is not so much the un- formation environment with relatively few media outlets.” derlying information systems and applications as how they The decline of mainstream media is happening faster in the United States than elsewhere, but throughout the Joe B. Johnson carried out every major public diplomacy world new media are on the rise. and public affairs function during a 33-year career in the In 2008, the major public affairs Web pages of the State Foreign Service. He now consults on government commu- Department all changed to more participatory and visual nication programs for the Computer Sciences Corporation styles. And a new social networking site, Exchanges- and conducts training at the Foreign Service Institute. Connect, made its debut.

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• www.state.gov — The Dipnote In 2008, the major public itors to comment, so that “the blog was among the first innovations reader can see his or her own words to be added to State’s flagship Web affairs Web pages of the State published on a U.S. government site. Now it has been joined by Web site. People may feel that videos of senior officials’ speeches Department all changed they’ve been heard.” (PD staffers and other participatory features, like monitor comment pages for spam “Ask the Secretary.” to more participatory and obscenities.) • www.America.gov — On these In order to comply with federal pages aimed at foreign publics, a and visual styles. regulations, the department repre- reader can download the booklet sentatives took part in a U.S. gov- “Being Muslim in America,” partic- ernment team that negotiated ipate in webchats with U.S. experts, read and comment on special terms of use for government pages on several major blogs about current affairs, take a quiz or answer a poll. social networking sites. Internal guidelines for employees’ • www.exchanges.state.gov — This traditional site lists work-related participation on commercial sites appear on exchange program opportunities, publicizes exchange pro- an internal wiki page, where any employee can register grams and hands off the visitor to ExchangesConnect and and add information or propose changes. its Facebook page. It’s important to remember that overseas opinion is • http://connect.state.gov/ — ExchangesConnect is usu- shaped more in Arabic, Russian, Chinese and other for- ally the first site mentioned when observers talk about so- eign languages than in English. IIP and a growing num- cial networking. Launched in October 2008, this page ber of embassies employ writers to monitor foreign-based claimed more than 12,000 members by August 2009. Both blogs and communities of interest to American foreign pol- American and foreigner exchange program participants icy, and to add comment and information. These in-house are invited to sign up, as on Facebook and Twitter. bloggers must identify themselves online as government employees. A dozen members of the Digital Outreach But Will It Work? Team in Washington post comments in Arabic, Persian While these pages’ members are growing rapidly, the and Urdu on selected Web sites to defend against hostile numbers are still small, and everything is experimental. It or misleading material. They also publish reports on the will take a while to figure out which approaches work best. intranet about trends in online comment throughout the Pages tend to be thin on comments, whose number and Muslim world. quality are typical measures of performance. Embassies are also beginning to hire writers experi- One standout venture has been America.gov’s Democ- enced in social networking to advocate online. That’s a racy Video project, which has attracted more than 900 en- new communication model: instead of one broadcasting tries and many more viewers and participants. (You can to many, it’s many to many. The practice expands expo- view the videos at www.youtube.com/user/Democracy- nentially the number of department employees who can Challenge.) On the other hand, an electronic game for comment on behalf of the government, so it’s only a mat- cell phones produced at a cost of $400,000 garnered rather ter of time before a comment, either by a U.S. official or modest usage. by a foreign reader, creates a public affairs flap. “There Bruce Wharton, the office director for public diplo- have to be some rules of the road,” Crowley says, adding, macy in the Africa Bureau and a former IIP deputy coor- “We have to be prepared to back up our FS personnel.” dinator, says that social networking programs are evaluated according to three criteria: reach, engagement and credi- Cultural Exchanges: bility — each of which can be measured through reader- Younger, Broader ship statistics and Web ratings. The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Exchanges As Wharton says, “We’re inviting the world to talk to was part of the State Department until 1978, when USIA us.” He continues: “I know that I will never be able to cre- took it over. The program the agency operated retains ate content that’s of interest to a 15-year-old Brazilian or a the same basic contours today; but, unlike in the past, 17-year-old Pakistani.” State’s pages constantly invite vis- exchanges and cultural programs are targeting high

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school–age individuals, and English- It’s important to remember exchange programs as a tool of pub- teaching programs have become a lic diplomacy this way: medium to reach disadvantaged that overseas opinion is “The problem with exchanges is youth who can’t afford to travel. that they’re relatively expensive — All exchange programs suffered shaped more in Arabic, though, compared to what the gov- a downturn after the terrorist attacks ernment spends in other areas, of Sept. 11, 2001, prompted heavy Russian, Chinese and other maybe not so expensive. So we’d restrictions on foreign travelers. But like to do more, and we have infor the past few years, student num- foreign languages than creased those exchanges dramati- bers have been climbing, both for cally. They’re up 50 percent in the Americans going abroad and for in- in English. last three to four years. It’s a pretty bound foreigners. Concern about dramatic increase. We know they hostility toward the U.S. led Con- work, and it does make sense to put gress to appropriate more funds for State Department ex- resources into things we know work.” changes. New monies have concentrated on the Muslim world, displacing to some degree the former Soviet Union Reduced Budgets, as a regional focus. Wildly Inflated Expectations Nearly one million people from America and around USIA focused tightly on opinion-makers and future the world have already participated in programs conducted leaders, without spending great sums on youth programs by ECA. Last December former Under Secretary for or casting its net widely. But the State Department is now Public Diplomacy James Glassman summarized the role of expected to appeal to untold millions of young people — especially in the Muslim world — through mass outreach. Relatively cheap ventures on the Web will not get the job done. Under Secretary McHale will ask Congress for significant additional funding, probably stressing programs like English Access Microscholarships. Since it started in 2004, this program has allowed some 44,000 teenagers in more than 55 countries to learn English after school and in the summer. The idea is to start a relationship with young persons from poor backgrounds who are seeking a better life, mindful that English opens doors to employment and educational opportunities around the globe. Cultural exchanges have become more youth-ori- ented, as well, and more likely to occur outside the traditional concert hall and museum. For example, the Rhythm Road American Music Abroad program, co- sponsored by Jazz at Lincoln Center, sends 10 U.S. music groups a year abroad to present original American music, including jazz, urban and roots. Because musicians tend to show off on the Web, this program has a vibrant foot- print in social media. Another major idea comes from Capitol Hill. Sena- tor Richard Lugar, R-Ind., wants to expand venues where diplomats can meet the public outside their se-

Joe B. Johnson B. Joe cure but remote embassy buildings. USIA’s network of Reading Room 2009 America Houses, binational centers and libraries was

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downsized and dismantled during the 1990s. But on public diplomacy. May 19, the Senate unanimously passed S. Res. 49, In one of her first appearances after confirmation, which calls on the Secretary of State to consider re-es- Under Secretary Judith McHale said at the Center for a tablishing publicly accessible American Centers and New American Security: “The national security implica- consider more accessible locations for public diplomacy tions of engagement have not been lost on our colleagues facilities worldwide. The Secure Embassy Construction at the Department of Defense, which has become heavily and Counterterrorism Act mandates collocation of all fa- involved in what we call public diplomacy and they call cilities except those run by the Peace Corps. Unless strategic communications.” State can obtain a waiver, this initiative will have to focus The Associated Press reported earlier this year that over on partnerships with local institutions rather than build- the past five years, according to Department of Defense ing programs, in most cases. budgets and other documents, “the [amount of] money the military spends on winning hearts and minds at home PD Force Multiplication ... and abroad has grown by 63 percent, to at least $4.7 billion Or Duplication? this year. That’s almost as much as it spent on body armor Two years after Congress merged USIA into State, ter- for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan between 2004 and 2006. rorists struck the United States, and public expectations This year, the Pentagon will employ 27,000 people just for changed. The ensuing funding increases for government recruitment, advertising and public relations — almost as information and cultural programs were ad hoc and spread many as the total 30,000-person work force in the State across several agencies, while interagency coordination was Department.” weak. As a result, State is laboring to recover leadership in The figures are not comparable, but DOD’s sponsor-

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ship of Web sites in foreign lan- New words like of State. However, these new offi- guages, public opinion and media cial faces won’t turn around our for- research and other “activities of in- “engagement” and “three-D eign policy by themselves. The terest to public diplomacy,” as one president’s June speech in Cairo State Department expert calls it, diplomacy” may begin to drew generally enthusiastic reviews tend to dwarf State’s level of effort. in the region and captured mass- That trend may have peaked, how- replace the old paradigm media attention; by all accounts, he ever. Faced with growing questions broke through Muslim stereotypes about its role, Defense closed the and re-cast press and about Americans with his call for Office of the Deputy Assistant Sec- frank dialogue. Within a few days, retary of Defense for Support to cultural affairs as a truly however, the media focus returned Public Diplomacy in early 2009. to traditional points of dispute: the Both houses of Congress have call- integral part of diplomacy. question of Palestine, American ed for review and clarification of military action in Iraq and Afghani- DOD’s resources and policies on in- stan, and other intractable issues. ternational information programs. As more time passes, more and more issues of contention Meanwhile, the U.S. Agency for International Devel- dissipate the glow of a new administration in Washing- opment has hired media relations staff members at its ton. posts around the world. USAID and other agencies spon- In a way, public diplomacy makes more of a difference sor exchange programs that look a lot like State’s in many today than it did when the U.S. image was in decline. cases. Last year, State’s Interagency Working Group on Ironically, when pundits worried about our “failed public U.S. Government-Sponsored International Exchanges and diplomacy,” there was no way it could address the root Training tallied 249 international exchange training pro- problem: genuinely unpopular policies espoused by top grams, involving about 1.4 million participants and repre- leaders who disregarded world opinion. Now that dia- senting a federal investment of more than $1.5 billion. logue and negotiation are active again, advocacy can make Fourteen federal departments and 48 independent agen- a difference on concrete issues from climate change to nu- cies reported activities for the IAWG’s FY 2008 Annual clear proliferation. Report. Many of these programs are duplicative, but enjoy dedicated staff support. You Can’t Go Back Previous administrations have done little to regulate The collapse of the Soviet Union and ensuing changes and coordinate all these activities. In this administration, in power relations, the disaggregation of news and infor- Denis McDonough seems set to exercise strong intera- mation media and the rise of the Internet, and the chal- gency leadership as the deputy national security adviser lenge of Islamic extremism did more to reshape public for strategic communications, with McHale as the lead diplomacy than the late Senator Jesse Helms and former agency representative. Coordination is at least off to a Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, the major authors faster start than before. of the consolidation of USIA and State. Looking back, it is clear that a new landscape has Brand Obama emerged over the past decade to reshape diplomacy itself. Last June, Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Crow- In 1999, the State Department approached USIA as an ley pointed to two “bookend” events since last year’s presi- add-on, indicated by the shorthand “public diplomacy.” dential election. “On one end, there’s President George W. Now terms like “engagement” and “three-D diplomacy” Bush’s final press conference in Iraq, where he has to dodge may begin to replace the old paradigm and recast press shoes thrown at him,” says Crowley. “On the other end, and cultural affairs as a truly integral part of diplomacy. there’s President Barack Obama’s speech about U.S.-Mus- But whatever the buzzwords used a decade from now, the lim relations in Cairo.” disciplines of communication strategy, media relations and Since that time, Sec. Clinton has also incorporated pub- cultural diplomacy will remain indispensable to the State lic outreach into her travels more than any other Secretary Department’s mission. ■

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PD PRACTITIONERS: STILL SECOND-CLASS CITIZENS

ATTITUDES WITHIN THE FOREIGN SERVICE TOWARD PUBLIC DIPLOMACY WORK HAVE NOT WARMED MUCH A DECADE AFTER STATE ABSORBED USIA.

BY WILLIAM A. RUGH

hroughout the existence of sues were also considered the U.S. Information Agency (1953-1999), the status of to have a chance to be- its Foreign Service employees was always somewhat am- come ambassador, but it biguous.T They were first referred to officially as “For- was rare that anyone in the eign Service reserve officers” to distinguish them from consular or administrative the State Department’s Foreign Service officers. Even (now management) cone when they were given the formal title of FSO, an unspo- would make it that far. ken but clear distinction remained in the minds of every- It was even rarer for a one in the Foreign Service. USIA officer to make it to We assumed that those who were in the political cone DCM or ambassador, and would have by far the best chance to reach the highest the tiny number who did Doug Ross levels of the career Foreign Service, serving as deputy were usually considered to chief of mission or ambassador. Some economic-cone of- be tokens. It was assumed that before the Deputy Sec- ficers who showed special understanding of political is- retary of State sent the list of nominees for ambassadorships over to the White House for approval, he had asked William A. Rugh was a Foreign Service officer with USIA the assistant secretaries if they could think of a USIA of- from 1964 to 1995, serving as ambassador to Yemen from ficer to include in the list as a candidate for a small post 1984 to 1987 and to the United Arab Emirates from 1992 because he wanted to have some “balance.” to 1995, among many other assignments. Following his USIA officers were quite aware that virtually all the retirement from the Foreign Service, he served until 2003 State Department FSOs they worked with side by side as president of America-Mideast Educational and Train- at embassies around the world thought that the work they ing Services, a private, nonprofit organization promoting themselves were doing was more important than any- cooperation between America and the region through ed- thing a USIA officer might contribute. Traditional diplo- ucation, information and development programs. He macy — representing the United States officially to the teaches public diplomacy and writes books and articles host government by making formal presentations to offi- about it and other subjects. cials and reporting to Washington on official relations —

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was, they were convinced, the The principal argument sponsibilities. Moreover, even “real” work of any embassy. The those State officers who were in- State Department employees who for merging the two agencies terested in what their colleagues did administrative or consular work from other agencies did had their were merely performing support was to bring public hands full trying to excel at their functions, as were the representa- own jobs so they could be pro- tives of other agencies such as diplomacy closer to moted. (The competitive environ- USIA or the departments of Com- ment for all Foreign Service merce and Defense. policymaking. personnel was, and is, rather in- No one ever publicly discussed tense, because it is an up-or-out this hierarchy, but everyone sensed system with a certain percentage it. In Washington, the physical separation of USIA from of each grade level being “selected out” each year.) So State (in buildings on opposite sides of town) helped to the typical State Department officer was simply not in- make this distinction even more apparent to the people terested in USIA work because it was not career-en- involved. USIA directors from Edward Murrow to Bruce hancing to understand it or do it. Gelb often felt their agency was not being given the re- When the idea arose in the 1990s to merge USIA into spect it deserved. State, the principal argument advanced in its favor was Many USIA Foreign Service officers were, however, that it would bring public diplomacy (what USIA did) perfectly happy with careers that gave them increasing closer to policymaking (what State does). Although many responsibility, and they did not regret the fact that they career officers at USIA were apprehensive — rightly, as had little chance to become an ambassador one day. This it turned out — that public diplomacy would be swal- was especially true of those who preferred cultural or ed- lowed up in the much-larger State bureaucracy, some of ucational jobs, because they believed very much in the them were also attracted by the idea that the merger importance of that work. These FSOs were content to be might indeed make State officers more aware of the value assigned to the cultural side of the USIA operation in in- public diplomacy officers add to the process. Once it was creasingly large posts, or to be a public affairs officer at inside State instead of outside it, the PD function would almost any post. Even many USIA officers who pre- perhaps gain more respect and its practitioners would ferred the information side of the work only aspired to have more input into policymaking. (Also, those USIA be assigned to information officer positions or as a pub- officers who really did want to become ambassador some lic affairs officer in important or interesting posts. day thought they might have a better chance as part of Whatever their motivations, these officers had all State.) joined USIA because they wanted to perform public But soon after the 1999 merger, it became apparent service, they were fascinated by the challenges of cross- that nearly all of these hopes would be disappointed. A cultural understanding, and they were convinced that 2008 survey of more than 200 former senior USIA offi- they were doing useful work for their country and the cials, many of whom had worked at State after the con- world. They were proud of what they were doing, even solidation, found that 79 percent rated the merger into though they were aware that some of their State De- State as a “disaster,” and 91 percent said the merger did partment colleagues tended not to appreciate its impor- not increase the role of public diplomacy professionals in tance. As long as they continued to get periodic the policymaking process. promotions and advanced into increasingly responsible Some of the officers transferred to State from USIA USIA assignments, that was enough. ended up in one of the six regional bureaus. The assistant secretaries who headed those bureaus tended to regard No Longer Separate, but Still Unequal these new arrivals primarily as additional bodies to be Because the career paths of USIA Foreign Service of- used wherever they were needed, often filling in as reg- ficers were quite separate and distinct from those of their ular desk officers, just like other State Department per- State Department counterparts, the latter had little di- sonnel. Some did PD work, but it was rare that they were rect exposure to the details of USIA programs and re- consulted in policymaking sessions about the public

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diplomacy aspects of various options. The dispersal of career transferred USIA officers now had Murrow famously complained that to work through layers of State De- public diplomacy personnel were PD officers around State has partment bureaucracy to support not “in on the takeoffs,” but only public affairs officers and other brought in afterward for the “crash destroyed the cohesion and public diplomacy professionals at landings.” This seems not to have embassies and consulates around changed with the merger. efficiency of support the world. Other USIA officers were trans- Moreover, the new under sec- ferred to new State bureaus, such for public diplomacy retary of State for public diplomacy as International Information Pro- and public affairs, while nominally grams or Educational and Cultural field offices. the successor to the director of Affairs. The latter bureau was USIA, in fact had none of that po- headed by an assistant secretary, sition’s authority over personnel but both IIP and ECA stayed put across town in the old and budgets, and was therefore unable to provide cohe- USIA headquarters at 301 4th Street SW — out of sight sion and unified direction to PD officers at State or at and mind of the policy people at Main State. embassies abroad. And overseas, each PAO reported This dispersal of career PD officers around the State only to the ambassador, and through the ambassador to Department destroyed the cohesion and efficiency of the an assistant secretary — no longer to a public diplomacy public diplomacy field support function in Washington agency in Washington. that had worked very well when USIA existed. All of the While USIA existed, its regional area offices deter-

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mined the budgets of field offices To protect and nurture under USIA. And at the same and wrote performance evaluations time it failed to create what was in- on PAOs (the ambassador wrote a the profession of public tended to be a compensating ben- second one). But after the merger efit: more respect at State for each ambassador, who almost al- diplomacy, the Foreign public diplomacy and its practi- ways came from a non-PD cone, tioners. So, by and large, the old had a major say in the PAO’s Service should stop trying State Department attitude toward budget, and he or she wrote the public diplomacy as a second-class only performance evaluation that to make everyone a function remains intact, although counted. still unspoken. PD practitioner. Adding insult to injury, State is Still Second-Class Citizens filling many overseas public diplo- This unfortunate situation has macy positions with FSOs who are been made worse by a notion that has become a mantra not in the PD cone and have never done that kind of at State: “Every FSO should be a public diplomacy offi- work before. (Regrettably, the under secretary for pub- cer.” That appealing idea would have great merit if it lic diplomacy is not involved in those assignments.) An meant that every Foreign Service member truly under- analysis by veteran public diplomacy professional Mike stood and appreciated the value of PD work. Canning found that as of January 2008, 127 of the nearly Unfortunately, attitudes within State toward public 600 public diplomacy positions at our embassies and con- diplomacy have not changed much in the decade since sulates had gone to non-PD officers. At the same time, the merger. Regional assistant secretaries back in Wash- 226 of the PD-cone officers serving abroad were not in ington still see PD-cone officers as pegs to fill slots rather PD positions. than as public diplomacy experts, while chiefs of mission In addition, the merger was supposed to open senior and their deputies typically regard the PAO and other diplomatic positions to public diplomacy officers. A few PD-cone officers at their embassy as utility shortstops more of them have become DCMs or ambassadors, but available to do almost anything, whether it requires PD as the Public Diplomacy Advisory Commission’s 2008 re- skills or not. port noted, public diplomacy officers are still “signifi- Former Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy Karen cantly under-represented in the seniormost ranks of Hughes asked all embassy officers to speak to the press department management.” more often, and many have done so. That is good, but public diplomacy involves much more than media inter- PD Skills Are Different views. It encompasses long-term educational and cul- The main point that has been missed in all of this is tural programming, and a mindset that is focused on that the effective PD practitioner has a very different creative ways to conduct a dialogue with foreign publics mindset from other diplomats and an entirely different as an important tool serving American interests. That as- approach to the career. True, the skills of each type of pect is not well understood. diplomat in each cone are learned mostly on the job, PAOs have a new problem, as well. Rather than head- working under more experienced senior officers who ing an independent agency’s team, with a consolidated serve as role models. But PD work requires an interest Washington office dedicated to backing them up, now in, and an understanding of, dealing with the general they are just another staff position reporting only to the public, the media, universities and others in the local so- ambassador. And they have no defense against inappro- ciety — and doing so in the open. It also requires man- priate assignments that divert them from PD work, be- agement skills and the effective use of a large team of cause the under secretary for public diplomacy has no local employees, as well as good interpersonal skills. influence over PAO assignments Political officers, by contrast, deal mostly with classi- To sum up, then: The 1999 merger destroyed what fied matters, work with local officials and have little use had been an efficient relationship in public diplomacy for local employees or skills in management or public management between Washington and embassies abroad communication. To put it bluntly, most non-PD officers,

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even senior ones, really do not In fact most non-PD officers, because it seems to be a sidetrack- know much about public diplo- ing of his or her career. Similarly, macy, although many think they do. even senior ones, if a political-cone officer who has Fortunately, just as a PD-cone of- never done PD work is assigned as ficer does not need to know how to really do not know a PAO, his or her subordinates will issue a visa or write a report on the be in the awkward position of hav- local military or economy, a politi- much about public ing to teach the boss the basics of cal or economic officer or a defense the job. attaché does not need to know how diplomacy, although What has been lost, then, be- to process a Fulbright grant. These cause of the merger, and because are all separate functions, and the many think they do. of the notion that “every FSO must PD officer can seek collegial sup- do PD,” are the professionalism port without being able to do their and efficiency that came with the work. specialization of PD work. It is simply a mistake to as- Whenever a non-PD–cone officer is assigned to the sume that every Foreign Service employee needs to be public diplomacy section of an embassy as a cultural af- interchangeable with every other one. The best PD of- fairs officer, however, his or her supervisor, the PAO, ficers are those who have come up through the ranks, must devote time and effort to training and mentoring carrying out increasingly responsible assignments. To an individual who is not really interested in public diplo- protect and nurture the profession, the State Depart- macy work — or, worse, is unhappy with the assignment ment should recognize that fact and cease trying to make

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everyone a PD practitioner. The under secretary for are given rotational assignments at What about the argument that their first embassy — for example, senior officials, including ambassa- public diplomacy and public a stint as a consular officer at the dors and DCMs, need to under- entry level — non-PD officers stand public diplomacy to do their affairs has little actual should be assigned to public diplo- jobs well, so they should have PD macy sections only at the lowest assignments during their careers? authority over personnel levels in larger embassies, where Certainly every senior diplomat they can learn about the work but should have a few skills that PD- and budgets. not have major responsibilities for cone officers have already devel- doing it. oped, such as how to deal with the In short, public diplomacy press, but those can be learned in a specialized training practitioners need to be recognized and appreciated for course. And while it is not necessary for a senior diplo- their unique expertise, best learned via multiple on-the- mat to acquire all the other PD skills, such as how to job training opportunities — just like consular, political manage a Fulbright program, he or she should appreci- or other functions. Young PD-cone officers should be ate the purpose of such programs so they can cooperate encouraged to work their way up the ladder in increas- with the PD professionals to carry them out. ingly responsible positions, where they will learn to do For all these reasons, it is a mistake to insist on as- the job well. American diplomacy will benefit greatly signing non-PD officers to most overseas public diplo- once the State Department revises its personnel policies macy jobs. Just as many political and economic officers to take these essential facts into account. ■

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A HOLISTIC APPROACH

INSTEAD OF BRINGING BACK USIA, WE SHOULD UTILIZE ITS BEST PRACTICES TO RESTORE AMERICA’S PD CAPABILITIES.

BY MICHAEL MCCLELLAN

oth in the pages of the For- past, or an embassy public eign Service Journal and elsewhere, many writers have be- affairs section in the pres- moaned the decline of public diplomacy since the demise ent, may engage in the most of the BUnited States Information Agency a decade ago. visible form of such out- They generally argue that resurrecting USIA, or creating a reach, that mission should new entity, would do much to reinvigorate that crucial be carried out across all function. areas of U.S. engagement While bringing back USIA (or an equivalent agency) abroad. would very likely enhance our cultural and informational Public diplomacy in this programming, the problem goes much deeper. Contrary sense is not just about using to what many Foreign Service members seem to believe, cultural, educational and in- Doug Ross public diplomacy has never been the sole purview of one formational programming to government agency or one embassy section. Rather, it is promote a positive image of the United States (important as the cumulative result of programs and outreach conducted those missions are). In an article published by the Vienna across all areas of the bilateral relationship — not just press Diplomatic Academy (“Public Diplomacy in the Context contacts and cultural programming, but the full range of of Traditional Diplomacy,” October 2004) and on the Web military and civilian assistance. Thus, while USIA in the site of the United States Information Agency Alumni As- sociation (www.publicdiplomacy.org/45.htm), I proposed Michael McClellan, a Senior Foreign Service officer, is the following definition of public diplomacy that focuses diplomat-in-residence at the University of Michigan, fol- on policy outcomes and not on processes: “The strategic lowing two years as counselor for public affairs in Addis planning and execution of informational, cultural and ed- Ababa. Prior to that, he served as public affairs officer for ucational programming by an advocate country to create a the Baghdad Provincial Reconstruction Team, as well as in public opinion environment in a target country or coun- Dublin, Pristina (twice) and Hamburg. His other overseas tries that will enable target-country political leaders to public diplomacy assignments include Moscow, Cairo and make decisions that are supportive of the advocate coun- Sanaa. try’s foreign policy objectives.”

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Such coordinated engagement Public diplomacy has sity and the alma mater of almost all becomes even more effective and of the nation’s leaders for decades, enduring when manifested in terms never been the sole purview the John F. Kennedy Library stands of what I like to call “monuments” proudly in the center of the cam- and “people on the ground.” Let me of one government agency pus. Its American “look” and use my recent experiences as a pub- 1960s-style architecture mark it as lic affairs officer in Ethiopia and or one embassy section. a unique structure, reminding Kosovo to highlight the impact of every student that it was a gift from such an approach. the American people. After nearly 50 years, the library continues to be one of the most at- A Tale of Three Universities tractive buildings on campus. Earlier this year I visited Haramaya University, located Likewise, while I was PAO in Pristina we took the lead near the historic Muslim city of Harar in northeastern in establishing the American University of Kosovo as a Ethiopia. USAID established it in 1954 as an agricultural public-private partnership that received no U.S. funding in college to train Ethiopian agronomists and other agricul- its startup phase. It has since been able to obtain USAID tural experts. funding and benefits from USAID scholarships, but that As I entered the administration building’s lobby, I saw was not true in the beginning. Since opening its doors in a series of almost two dozen portraits of the university’s 2003, the AUK is now considered the most prestigious uni- presidents. The first six were all Americans; in fact, it was versity in Kosovo, and its impact as an American institution not until 1963 that an Ethiopian was appointed to head with American administrators and faculty can hardly be the school. Since then, all presidents have been Ethiopi- overestimated. It has already educated more than a thou- ans. sand students, and its graduates are starting businesses, The current holder of that office, Dr. Belay Kassa, working throughout the government and making a differ- proudly declared that his university was “built by the ence across all areas of society. Americans” and all the students and faculty know it as the As an English-language institution, the American Uni- “American university.” On the wall outside the main door versity of Kosovo is also beginning to attract Serbian stu- is a large marble plaque that details the founding of the dents. Studying alongside Albanian peers, they are making school, and explains how the U.S. government built it and friends across the ethnic divide and building relationships Oklahoma State University ran it for several years until the that will have a long-term impact on Kosovo’s society. Ethiopians could take it over. Soon after the communist Derg regime overthrew Em- Rethinking Foreign Assistance peror Haile Selassie’s government in 1974, however, the These kinds of “monuments” would seem to be an ex- marble sign was plastered over with cement and the por- tremely cost-effective way of achieving public diplomacy traits of the presidents removed, to deny the United States benefits in support of U.S. foreign policy objectives. Each any credit for the university. For almost 20 years, students project is usually a one-off expense that does not require a in this predominantly Muslim region of Ethiopia came and long-term financial commitment or ongoing support, yet went without any mention of the founding role of the U.S. can generate decades of positive publicity. Sadly, though, That all changed in 1991, when the regime was over- they are no longer the stuff of our foreign aid. thrown. Once it became clear that communism would not Current U.S. assistance to Ethiopia is heavily focused return and it was politically safe to acknowledge America’s on food security and health (HIV/AIDS and malaria). contributions, an older member of the faculty told the new While these needs are certainly important, in both cases president about the marble sign. The university quickly our commitment is unending, with little chance of the as- uncovered, cleaned and restored it, and it now speaks sistance program ever becoming self-sustaining. Both proudly to the many visitors who come and go every day. types of aid cost vastly more than either the university or Likewise, the portraits of the presidents were pulled out of the library in today’s dollars, and ending either program storage and restored to their rightful place. will generate negative publicity for the U.S. Further, as is At Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia’s flagship univer- usually the case with humanitarian assistance, the mem-

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ory of the assistance dies soon after Investments in libraries, by Information Resource Centers the program stops, with little if any inside embassies and American long-term PD benefit to the United universities and other Corners in outside institutions run States. by partners. However, actual con- Here is an example of how im- “monuments” are a cost- tact in these places between Amer- portant it is to put “people on the icans and local audiences is oc- ground.” Responding to President effective way to achieve our casional and short-term. John F. Kennedy’s call to volunteer In addition, the emphasis in ex- overseas, thousands of young Amer- foreign policy objectives. changes has shifted away from icans joined the Peace Corps and sending Americans abroad to bring- came to Ethiopia. They taught Eng- ing foreign participants to the lish in cities, towns and villages across the country, each United States. While such programs are certainly a great one reaching hundreds of impressionable teenagers and and often life-changing experience for the participants young adults. Several decades later, the ripple effects con- themselves, far fewer people benefit from them than when tinue. As I can attest, it is quite common for older Ethiopi- an American Fulbright professor, musician, speaker or ans (many now in positions of leadership) to talk about other participant goes abroad and interacts with foreign “Miss Mary from Iowa” or another favored teacher who audiences. One Fulbright professor teaching in a univer- made such a profound, lifelong impression on them dur- sity in Ethiopia for one academic year will influence far ing their high school years. more people than an Ethiopian professor who spends a By contrast, today’s Peace Corps Volunteers mainly year in the U.S. Yet the cost is not significantly greater. work in health care supporting HIV/AIDS programs. While that serves a critical role, no doubt saving lives, will Person-to-Person Diplomacy Ethiopians 30 or 40 years from now be talking about “Miss As these examples show, the diplomatic side of assis- Mary from Iowa” and how she taught them to use con- tance programs has largely shifted away from putting doms?! Surely the PD value to the United States is not Americans overseas in direct contact with foreign audi- the same, even though important work is being done. ences. Such contact still occurs, of course, but not nearly Here is another aspect to consider. In the past, USAID on the scale of the past. officials were personally engaged with the population in In terms of building long-term relationships and posi- rural areas as they worked in agricultural assistance, water tive attitudes toward the United States, our focus should supplies, electrification and other areas of developmental not be on “quality time,” but on the quantity of time that assistance. Those officers did the bulk of the work them- comes from Americans living in foreign countries and de- selves, spending much of their time in the field. veloping personal relationships. Now, however, it is common for contractors to run aid The U.S. military understands this, practicing the kind projects. Because these individuals are often third-coun- of person-to-person diplomacy that the civilian side of gov- try nationals, the local population does not always make ernment seems to have lost. In Ethiopia, for example, civil the connection to the idea that we are helping them. affairs teams work directly with people in the most far- Moreover, no matter how diligently USAID works to flung areas of the country, digging wells, building and re- brand every outreach effort so the American people get furbishing schools, and carrying out other projects that credit for what is being done, recipients often think that it affect local communities. Whether they work with con- is Catholic Relief Services or some other nongovernmen- tractors or do the work themselves, the units rack up “face tal organization that is helping them, not the U.S. govern- time” that can pay dividends. ment. Military doctors and veterinarians also take part in the At the same time that USAID and the Peace Corps Medical Civil Assistance Program and the Veterinary Civil were changing their focus, USIA began shutting down cul- Assistance Program. MEDCAP and VETCAP provide tural centers around the world, thus removing yet another vaccinations, checkups and medical care in conjunction level of person-to-person interaction between Americans with local medical providers in villages and rural areas. In and foreign audiences. Those facilities have been replaced addition, U.S. Navy port calls often bring thousands of for-

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eign citizens into direct contact with At the same time that USAID ground.” And that obviously will the military through ship tours, not happen overnight. However, band performances and other pub- and the Peace Corps were we should begin devoting a certain lic outreach. percentage of U.S. assistance to the These examples demonstrate changing their focus, USIA establishment of universities and li- that the U.S. military understands braries in the developing world. the value of having its personnel en- began shutting down cultural Spending just 5 or 10 percent of our gage local populations directly to current aid budget this way would show the “softer side” of American centers around the world. have a lasting impact on education military power and to cultivate pos- there — and on bilateral relations. itive attitudes toward military per- Second, public diplomacy prac- sonnel. The public diplomacy value that accrues to the titioners must have more autonomy in decision-making military, and by extension to the U.S. and the American and planning programs. As with development assistance, people, is much more significant as a result of having this PD has increasingly become a matter of administration people-to-people interaction. and contract management, rather than having Americans With that model in mind, how can the Foreign Service do the work directly on the ground. Under USIA, pro- practice public diplomacy more effectively? Clearly, there gramming was much more field-centered; it was under- must be deep structural changes in the way foreign aid is stood that Washington supported overseas posts, not vice administered before we can go back to the USIA-era best versa. Now the reverse is increasingly the case. To practices of focusing on “monuments” and “people on the change this, more decision-making should devolve to the

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embassy level and become decen- In conducting exchanges, we bring more Americans to Ethiopia tralized, with each PAO having or to pursue other cultural or edu- greater leeway to design and imple- should put more emphasis on cational programs there. ment programs in consultation with Likewise, political developments the country team. sending Americans abroad in a country might well argue for In support of this approach, pub- putting all E-Bucks into a large In- lic affairs officers should be able to than on bringing foreign ternational Visitors program in one direct resources from the Bureau of year, while a year later the embassy Educational and Cultural Affairs in participants here. may want to respond to the estab- much the same way that they al- lishment of a new university by ar- ready direct some International In- ranging for a team of American formation Programs Bureau funding. Just as IIP gives experts and professors who can kick-start curriculum de- PAOs “I-Bucks” to spend on a variety of programs, it velopment. With a combination of significant I-Bucks and would be highly useful if PAOs had access to “E-Bucks” E-Bucks, the PAO could design a country-specific strat- that would allow them to allocate resources across all ex- egy that would effectively utilize all available resources in change and cultural programs in the way they wish. For support of our foreign policy objectives there. example, in Ethiopia two exchange programs had to be cancelled in 2008 and 2009 because of the low return rate Spend Wisely, Not More of participants (at least half of the participants stayed in We can all agree that many people around the world are the U.S.). Yet those resources could not be redirected to helped every year through the generosity of the American

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taxpayer via programs ably adminis- Restoring America’s PD We do, however, have to spend tered by USAID, the Peace Corps that money more effectively in each and other institutions. But the pub- capabilities will not be easy, country where we have a presence lic diplomacy impact of that assis- in order to effect real change in for- tance has, I would argue, noticeably but it can be done if we look eign perceptions of America and declined over the past several the American people. We must decades as our focus has shifted hard at existing programs also put more faith in our own peo- from monuments to programs, and ple by decentralizing decision-mak- from direct assistance to contract ad- and redesign them for the ing to the embassy level, putting ministration. more “people on the gound” in di- Moreover, “helping people” can- challenges that lie ahead. rect contact with local populations. not be the sole objective of our as- Finally, we should allocate a por- sistance. In the final analysis, aid — tion of our assistance dollars for like PD — must serve the objectives “monuments” that will have long- of U.S. foreign policy. term, lasting impact in each country. Restoring America’s public diplomacy capabilities will By taking these steps, we may once again begin to see not be easy, but it can be done if we look hard at existing public diplomacy successes across the full range of over- programs and redesign them for the challenges that lie seas programs, both military and diplomatic — thereby ahead. Fortunately, changing our approach does not have making it easier for foreign leaders to support America’s to cost any more than we are already spending. foreign policy objectives. ■

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THE LAST THREE FEET: PD ASACAREER

ONE REASON PD OFFICERS DON’T GET THEIR FAIR SHARE OF SENIOR JOBS IS THAT THEY DON’T COMPETE FOR THEM. BUT THAT’S FAR FROM THE WHOLE STORY.

BY MONICA O’KEEFE AND ELIZABETH CORWIN

dward R. Murrow fa- The Way It Was mously observed that “The really crucial link in the inter- At that time, it is impor- national communication chain is the last three feet, which tant to recall, USIA FSOs is bridgedE by personal contact, one person talking to an- entered the Foreign Serv- other.” ice by passing the same But a decade ago, in preparation for the Oct. 1, 1999, written and oral exams as absorption of the U.S. Information Agency into the State State officers. Once hired, Department, public diplomacy officers were preoccu- however, we had our own pied with making sure our phones would be answered nine-week orientation cour- and our lights would stay on. We were busy thanking se, a separate assignment our drivers and information technology folks, writing process and distinct career Doug Ross new job descriptions for Foreign Service Nationals, ob- paths — and we spent most taining grant authority, memorizing new acronyms and of our time in the field. much more. Our administrative, educational and policy bureaus While most were also mourning the passing of our were staffed by civil servants, political appointees and a home agency and predicting difficulties for the practice handful of FSOs. Even our “under secretary” for man- of public diplomacy, some of us hoped that consolida- agement, the executive secretary to the director and the tion would bode well for PD practitioners as individu- chief of Foreign Service personnel were all Civil Service als, at least in terms of expanding the range of positions employees. This division of labor freed up Foreign Serv- open to us. But it didn’t exactly work out that way. ice officers “to close that last three feet,” something they couldn’t do in Washington. Monica O’Keefe and Elizabeth Corwin both joined the U.S. Our first tours usually lasted between three and 12 Information Agency in 1985. Now Senior Foreign Service months, during which we rotated through several sections officers at State, Monica currently serves as a member of of an embassy. On our second, and sometimes third, tours the Board of Examiners, while Elizabeth is counselor for we served as assistant cultural affairs officers, assistant in- cultural affairs in Berlin. formation officers and assistant public affairs officers, get-

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ting practical training. We’d then The public diplomacy Today’s Senior PD Officers become full-fledged CAOs, IOs For this article, we interviewed and PAOs. function had the lowest about a dozen public diplomacy– At the senior levels, we filled cone Foreign Service officers, in- those three job categories in Cairo, percentage of appropriately cluding some serving at the highest Beijing, Mexico City, Moscow, levels of the Service, some who Bonn, New Delhi and other large, ranked employees filling failed to get there and others who important missions. At any given have insights into the way the as- time, perhaps four or five USIA DAS and DCM positions signment process works. There is, FSOs would be serving as ambas- of course, some subjectivity in these sadors, while others staffed the as of January. accounts, but they track with statis- Public Affairs Bureau and regional tics we garnered from two divisions bureau press offices back at State. of the Human Resources Bureau: The rest of us spent our careers in USIA managing the Office of Resource Management and Organization our own budgets, buildings, equipment and U.S. and Analysis, and the Office of Career Development and As- Foreign Service National staffs, ranging from media and signments. (We acknowledge, however, that many other educational advisers to cleaning crews. Most of us knew bureaus weigh in on personnel decisions.) we could do no more than aspire to an assignment as One of the main reasons PD officers don’t get a pro- public affairs officer in one of the major embassies some- portionate number of jobs as chiefs and deputy chiefs of where in the world. mission and as deputy assistant secretaries of State is that Once we were part of State, many public diplomacy we don’t compete for them. In part, this is a self-fulfilling FSOs anticipated that our management experience, com- prophesy — we don’t get the jobs, so we stop trying for bined with the opportunity to serve in other cones, would them. But beyond that, here are several possible explana- make us shoo-ins to become consuls general, deputy tions: chiefs of mission, principal officers and ambassadors. • Many public diplomacy officers sense that our work Immediately after consolidation, there was definitely is undervalued by the political appointees and the political, an increase in the number of public diplomacy–cone of- economic and management officers who make the assign- ficers serving as deputy chiefs and chiefs of mission. ment decisions. And several senior PD officers tell us that USIA had a number of senior officers with broad policy the Foreign Service is still seen through the prism of po- jobs, and they smoothly moved into similar jobs in the litical and economic reporting and “traditional” Foreign State Department. But since then, the number of PD Service policy roles. FSOs serving as COMs and DCMs has declined. While • Chiefs of mission and their deputies work with for- there are currently 50 political officers serving as ambas- eign governments, while public diplomacy practitioners sadors and 17 economic, 14 consular and 11 manage- are seen as working with the public. ment, there are just seven PD ambassadors. • Most people understand what an information officer As of January 2009, the public diplomacy function or a cultural attaché does, but not as many know what a also had the lowest percentage of appropriately ranked public affairs officer does. employees filling deputy assistant secretary and deputy • Many senior PD officers have never done an out-of- chief of mission positions. Only 3.8 percent of DAS po- cone assignment, which weakens their attractiveness as sitions are held by PD officers, compared with manage- candidates. ment (4.9 percent), consular (5.1 percent), economic • There are few Foreign Service public diplomacy po- (8.3 percent) and political (9.4 percent). The percentage sitions in Washington, so most senior PD officers spend of PD officers in DCM positions is only slightly better: the bulk of their time overseas. That, in turn, means that 4.8 percent of PD officers hold DCM positions, com- they don’t know “the building” — and people in Washing- pared with management (7.4 percent), consular (9.1 per- ton don’t know them. Nor do they know how to lobby for cent), economic (10.9 percent), and political (13.6 senior-level jobs. percent). • Current senior PD officers don’t have the range of

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policy experiences that they would Encouragingly, bureaus, but other bureaus still have had in a separate agency. maintain a separation. • Senior PD officers may not be newer public diplomacy One senior PD officer com- bidding as strategically as traditional ments, “I have been extremely im- State officers. officers have learned pressed with those [PD officers] One senior PD officer relates with whom I interact in my current the following experience: “Having to seek out-of-cone and position. They now quite routinely been out of Washington since the engage fellow FSOs from other Warren Christopher years [1993- Washington assignments. cones, including the most senior of- 1997], I didn’t have a clue as to how ficers in the department, and in my the senior assignment process experience do so with as much skill worked. So I bid on a few DCM positions based entirely and confidence as FSOs from any other cone. They clearly on family concerns. Much to my surprise and delight, I see themselves as fully integrated into the bureau’s opera- was short-listed for the only position that met all the cri- tion, and see that their talents are very much recognized teria for my family. I wouldn’t have known what to do at and appreciated. In general, they have moved well be- that point if ‘Executive Women @ State’ hadn’t put to- yond any sense that they are ‘outsiders’ or in any way not gether a session on getting senior-level jobs. I then threw full members of the team. myself into lobbying, and guess what? The two people I “My sense is that PD officers, especially to the extent was told to lobby didn’t answer my e-mails or return my that they are prepared to delve into and commit them- phone calls. The lack of feedback and transparency will selves to working extensively on hard issues under chal- probably keep me from bidding on DCM jobs the next lenging circumstances, will be able to demonstrate the time around.” kinds of skills and experience needed to gain such senior PD officers who are serving as ambassadors generally policy assignments.” agree that the following characteristics or experiences One thing that might hurt mid-level officers is that they helped them: Being a team player, working hard, making are not managing the large staffs and facilities that PD of- tough decisions to promote U.S. national interests, acting ficers were a decade ago. But the lack of our own staffs independently and showing good judgment, being able to and facilities means that we work more closely with gen- communicate complex issues to the public and within the eral services officers and other embassy sections, honing department, managing staffs and using foreign languages. our negotiating, persuasion and teamwork talents. Entry-level public diplomacy officers have the same Prospects for Mid-Level Practitioners problem as their peers in other tracks: they must wait a We asked these same senior individuals to comment on tour or two before working in their chosen career track. how they view career prospects for the next generation of ELOs are impatient to do the work they joined the Serv- public diplomacy officers. Based on their comments, and ice to do. But assuming the new hires persevere and fol- extrapolating from HR/RMA’s statistics, we foresee a siz- low the path set by current mid-level officers, they should able crop of PD deputy chiefs and chiefs of mission in the be able to rise to unprecedented heights and in unprece- coming years. dented numbers — if they can gain the necessary Wash- First of all, newer PD officers have learned to seek ington work experience. out-of-cone and Washington assignments. Already, half the staff in the Operations Center are PD-cone, and pub- Clouds on the Horizon? lic diplomacy officers are landing other good interfunc- Even as we predict a rosy future for mid-level and tional jobs, although not yet in proportion with our entry-level PD officers, we have some concerns. numbers. • There is still the issue of PD work being undervalued. Embedding PD operations within the larger geographic This is evident in the promotion statistics, where few pub- bureaus has helped those officers become part of the pol- lic diplomacy officers are promoted in the classwide pool. icy team. Some public diplomacy officers have gained pol- It is also evident in how frequently political and economic icy experience and visibility within the larger geographic officers get PD assignments as consolation prizes.

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• A key reason we don’t do well on classwide promo- round of the assignment process. This has set up a vi- tions is because our accomplishments are long-term or in- cious cycle in which there are fewer and fewer opportu- tangible. We can’t write in our Employee Evaluation nities for mid-level officers to hone their skills and Report that the new prime minister credits his Interna- knowledge. tional Visitor trip 15 years earlier with changing his atti- • Instead, many of those jobs are going to entry-level tude toward capitalism. Nor can we prove that the officers. This means that mid-level PD jobs are being seminar we organized last year on the Freedom of In- filled with people who don’t have any experience, de- formation Act just led the host country to pass its own priving those already in the Foreign Service of the chance Freedom of Information Act. On the press side, it’s hard to sharpen their skills. This disconnect will only become to write that the absence of an anti-American demon- worse once the current hiring surge kicks in. stration or editorial is due to our efforts. We understand that very recently, the Bureau of • With PD officers serving less time in those jobs and Human Resources, in consultation with the Office of people from other tracks doing a public diplomacy tour the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy (known as or two, there is less opportunity for hands-on training R), created some 20 new entry-level PD positions, for PD officers. PAOs, IOs and CAOs all need previous which R and HR will work together to staff. This is a experience to be effective as press and cultural officers. promising development, but not nearly enough consid- • Whether it’s because of the severity of the deficit of ering the number of new PD officers expected to enter mid-level PD officers or because public diplomacy work the Foreign Service in the next couple of years. Already is undervalued, a disproportionate number of those po- public diplomacy is one of the most popular career sitions were “frozen” — that is, not filled in this last tracks chosen by entry-level officers.

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The Big Question We should make resented in deputy chief of mis- With all this in mind, how can sion, chief of mission and deputy State keep PD officers committed to Washington-based PD assistant secretary positions, as a their cone and make sure they get way of encouraging PD officers to the experience and training they assignments more attractive bid on such jobs. need? • Give R more control over PD One thing we can do is make and career-enhancing by assignments, much as CA controls Washington-based public diplo- consular positions. macy assignments more attractive connecting them to the • Acknowledge that PD officers and career-enhancing by connect- don’t easily fit in the political/eco- ing them to the policy process. To- policy process. nomic box and develop a more ward that end, here are some ideas: flexible and creative way of making • Fill more office director and assignments. senior human resources positions with public diplomacy While for public diplomacy it’s important to go the last officers, so that we are present at the policy table — and three feet, for career advancement the department must so someone keeps us in mind during the assignment go the first three feet by providing the training and career process. path that will keep PD officers motivated. The big ques- • Convert the PD office director positions into deputy tion that PD officers should be discussing with their State assistant secretary positions. Department colleagues is this: How can we develop a sys- • Make sure that PD officers are proportionally rep- tem where we do both effectively? ■

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ADDRESSING THE PUBLIC DIPLOMACY CHALLENGE

A NEW AGENCY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE — THE U.S. PUBLIC DIPLOMACY SERVICE — COULD ENSURE BOTH CREATIVITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY IN PD OPERATIONS.

BY WILLIAM P. K IEHL

ver since the amalgama- decade at least 40 govern- tion of the U.S. Information Agency into the Department mental and nongovernmen- of State on Oct. 1, 1999, there have been calls for a serious tal reports have examined re-examinationE of that reorganization. In the aftermath of the problem through many the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the clamor for rethinking the prisms and with many public diplomacy “challenge” became more urgent and lenses. All of these studies more frequent. But except for some minor tinkering, noth- agree on one thing: As cur- ing has been done. rently organized and prac- While the quality and cohesiveness of our public diplo- ticed, public diplomacy has macy efforts have continued to deteriorate, over the past become the weakest link in our national security. Doug Ross William P. Kiehl is founding president and CEO of PD This is neither the time Worldwide International Consultants. He has taught diplo- nor the place to re-argue the merits of the various propos- macy at the Foreign Service Institute and was a diplomat- als contained in the many reports. Nor is it practical sim- in-residence at the U.S. Army War College’s Center for ply to return to the status quo ante with a resurrected, “back Strategic Leadership and a senior fellow of the U.S. Army to the future” United States Information Agency. Peacekeeping Institute. Today, in contrast to the 1950s when USIA was created, During a Foreign Service career of 33 years, Kiehl served there are many government and nongovernmental actors as principal deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of Ed- on the public diplomacy stage. Thus, we must look at what ucational and Cultural Affairs and in numerous public is missing in our public diplomacy and identify practical diplomacy positions at home and abroad. He is the author steps that can be taken to address those gaps. of Global Intentions Local Results: How Colleges Can Cre- ate International Communities (CreateSpace, 2008), edited The Current State of PD America’s Dialogue with the World (The Public Diplomacy The flaws in the present configuration of public diplo- Council, 2006), and has published many articles on public macy’s “lead agency,” the Department of State, are not dif- diplomacy. ficult to discern. To put it bluntly, Foggy Bottom prides

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itself on its commitment to diplomacy, but it does not un- their ambassador. There is no chain of command from R derstand well or appreciate public diplomacy. to the public affairs officers in the field who implement The clash of cultures continues. The traditional State public diplomacy every day. Equally important, there is no Department mode of operations is Washington-centered, feedback loop from the field to the PD leadership in Wash- elitist, cautious and secretive — all qualities perfectly suited ington. to the conduct of traditional diplomacy. But they are anti- Responsibility without authority spells trouble. Within thetical to public diplomacy, which is field-driven and en- the State Department, there is no central budgeting, man- courages egalitarianism, risk-taking and transparency. agement and personnel authority over public diplomacy. Similarly, when State looks to public diplomacy, it sees pub- Instead, each regional bureau has its own pot of money and lic affairs and focuses on immediate gains when it should be set of personnel to deploy as it wishes, without any means looking at long-term engagement, measuring “success” in to coordinate its actions with other regions. Even the two decades, not hours. The scale and intensity of this clash of PD bureaus in State (International Information Programs cultures are extreme: to use an oft-cited analogy, “tradi- and Education and Cultural Affairs) and the overseas PD tional diplomacy is from Mars and PD is from Venus.” operations in the regional bureaus operate in parallel uni- Who is in charge? The overseas practice of public diplo- verses, with scarcely any coordination. macy is lodged within each of the department’s regional bu- Despite some tinkering with the original PD structure reaus, with a scattering of PD officers placed in functional within State a couple of years ago, the under secretary still bureaus, almost as an afterthought. Public diplomacy offi- commands a relatively small “front office” staff and a tiny cers abroad report through deputy chiefs of mission to re- fraction of the overall PD budget. It is simply unacceptable gional assistant secretaries in Washington, D.C. — not to that a position responsible for the success or failure of the Office of the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy America’s public diplomacy utterly lacks the authority to af- (known as “R”), as one might expect. fect the outcome. Compounding the problem, there is no global view or The Voice of America suffers from laryngitis. The oversight. Instead, embassy public affairs officers often find Broadcasting Board of Governors that inherited the civilian themselves pursuing conflicting and contradictory goals, U.S. government international radio networks with the sometimes becoming nothing more than press agents for breakup of USIA in 1999 has had its own twisted, tortuous decade-long journey. With- out going into the details, PROPOSED suffice it to say that as trou- U.S. DEPARTMENT bled as public diplomacy is OF STATE SENIOR today, its problems pale LEADERSHIP when compared to the mas- sive and costly dysfunction- ality of the U.S. government’s civilian international broadcasting as conducted by the BBG. Permitting international broadcasting to “go its own way” since 1999 has led nowhere but down- hill. A lead agency for public diplomacy is missing in action. Recognizing that not only State but also the De- partment of Defense, the

Source: William P. Kiehl P. Source: William U.S. Agency for Interna-

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tional Development and other agencies play an important stitutes one of the legislative foundations for official U.S. in- role in America’s engagement with the world, there have ternational information and cultural exchanges. been attempts in the past decade to empower the under The new agency’s own structure makes clear its open- secretary for public diplomacy, or some entity within the ness to the private sector and raises research, evaluation White House or Defense, to take the lead in public diplo- and measurement to a central position (see Figure 2, p. 50). macy. The National Security Council has been proposed The miracle, however, is not that the USPDS can come for this role, as well. The White House announcement in to life, but that it can do so in a budget-neutral way. In May of the creation of a Global Engagement Directorate is these perilous times, with growing budget deficits as far as just the most recent example. the eye can see, it is essential that even something as im- None of these solutions has worked because R was too portant as America’s engagement with the rest of the world under-resourced and powerless, even within the State De- be measured according to the strictest fiduciary standards. partment. The White House Office of Global Communi- That is why this institutional framework is both lean and cation (created in 2002 and allowed to die unheralded in horizontal. The $1.7 billion a year currently expended for 2005), the Defense Department’s Office of Strategic In- public diplomacy within the Department of State and the formation (created after 9/11 and closed under fire in 2002) BBG is essentially identical to the budget carried over to and the Pentagon’s Office of Support for Public Diplomacy the newly proposed structure. In time, this figure should (shut down in 2009) were seen variously as ineffective, too grow to be commensurate with the importance of Ameri- propagandistic or sinister. The NSC has had no operational can global engagement; but initially, no additional funds responsibility (at least since the Iran-Contra affair), and would be needed. thus would be out of its lane, as well. Because the structure superficially resembles the old USIA, critics may claim this is nothing more than an old A United States Public Diplomacy Agency agency’s recreation, even as they acknowledge that it may An agency with a unity of command and clear lines of have been a mistake to merge it into State. But the USPDS authority in public diplomacy does not now exist. Should is not USIA with a new name: it is public diplomacy with a one be created, however, it would be the natural lead new face. The new agency within the State Department agency for PD and could function effectively in that role. will be “plugged into” State not only at the top and in the In the narrative that follows, such a new specialized field, but at every level within the department to ensure agency of the Department of State — which for conven- seamless policy access and guidance. At the same time, it ience we may call the United States Public Diplomacy will have the cohesiveness and chain of command now Service — comes to life (see Figure 1, p. 48). Modeled in missing from public diplomacy and, as a more agile and part on USAID’s relationship with the Department of State flexible entity, the ability to bring more creativity to our and in part on the best of the structure of public diplomacy global engagement. that worked so well from 1953 to 1999, the organization outlined here also incorporates new technological elements A Closer Look such as new media and the Internet, engagement with the In such a new agency, eight offices would report to the private and NGO sectors, clear interagency coordination, director, including the Office for Research, Program Eval- and a culture of creativity and constant evaluation of pro- uation and Measurement (including Media Reaction). grams and outcomes. Implicit, of course, is the fact that Based on the successful approach ECA has undertaken in PD input into the policy process at home and abroad from the past, all U. S. Public Diplomacy Service programs and the beginning is an absolute necessity. activities will have ongoing evaluation and measurement of In the proposed new setup, the Bureau of Public Affairs, their effectiveness. The Office of Private Sector Coopera- headed by the department spokesman, is removed from the tion and Public Liaison, as the name implies, would be the public diplomacy configuration and placed directly with the central point of contact for engagement with the private Secretary of State, whom it traditionally serves and where it sector and the NGO community. The Office of Policy & rightly belongs. This change also eliminates potential con- Coordination would serve as a direct link between State’s flicts on domestic dissemination of public diplomacy mate- Policy Planning, senior leadership and the new agency, as rials, prohibited by the 1948 Smith-Mundt Act that con- well as being a point of contact for Defense, USAID and

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PROPOSED U.S. PUBLIC DIPLOMACY SERVICE ORGANIZATION CHART Source: William P. Kiehl P. Source: William

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other government agencies at the oper- The USPDS is not USIA tegrated radio, TV and new media. ational level. It is expected that senior The fourth bureau, Public Diplo- State FSOs and representatives of the with a new name: macy Operations, would bring together uniformed military, as well as PD offi- all overseas PD operations and Wash- cers, would staff this office. it is public diplomacy ington support at a single location, with A policy officer would be an integral six regional offices and an office con- part of each of the geographic offices in with a new face. centrating on international and multi- the Bureau of Public Diplomacy Oper- lateral organizations. It is this bureau ations. These positions, along with the that would connect public diplomacy’s Public Affairs Bureau offices in the State Department’s ge- worldwide vision to individual regional and country-spe- ographic bureaus and in the Office of the Spokesman, cific programs. Overseas PD officers would have a direct would be the main opportunities for constant engagement link through this bureau with USPDS leadership. These between USPDS officers and State’s non-PD officers. As officers would also provide the necessary field perspective a matter of agency policy, USPDS officers would be ex- to make worldwide public diplomacy programming effec- pected to serve at least one tour within State or another native at the local level. tional security or foreign affairs agency, at home or abroad, as a junior officer, again as a mid-level officer and, finally, as If Not This, What? If Not Now, When? a Senior Foreign Service officer (that is, for as much as 25 Aside from the obvious objections to creating a new percent of the career). State FSOs would be encouraged entity by those vested interests who may feel that in a to serve in USPDS positions, as well. zero-sum game of resources, one agency’s gain will result Administration and management layering are deliber- in their loss, some may simply object to how this agency ately kept to a minimum in this proposal. Rather than ex- is structured. Some critics may find the inclusion of in- ecutive offices in each bureau, there is a central Office of ternational broadcasting an unnecessary complication be- Resources and Management reporting to the director, and cause of its sheer size or its dysfunctional record. a satellite Division for Administration and Manage- Others will see in any new PD agency the re-creation ment in the Bureau of International Broadcasting that in- of USIA in another form. Still others may fear that unless herits the relatively larger staff and budget of the BBG. public diplomacy is totally integrated into the Department Completing the director’s front office constellation are a of State, PD officers will not have a seat at the policy table Legal Adviser, a Chief of Staff’s office that also functions as and will have fewer opportunities for ambassadorships and the agency’s executive secretariat, and an office for security other senior policy positions. liaison with State’s Diplomatic Security Bureau (to ensure Then there will be those who object to the very idea of smart security and accessibility for overseas USPDS facili- creating a new structure, claiming that it’s not organization ties and cultural centers). The Office of Personnel and but policy that is important. Others may believe that an ar- Training would have the responsibility of providing all ticulate and charismatic national leader and a foreign pol- human resources, whether they are Foreign Service, Civil icy more in conformity with American ideals are all that is Service or Locally Engaged Staff. The U.S. Advisory Com- necessary to carry public diplomacy forward. There are, of mission on Public Diplomacy, a presidentially appointed course, reasonable replies to every one of these objections, board with the duty to report annually to Congress, would though perhaps there is no perfect answer to the PD chal- also have immediate access to the director. lenge. The bulk of the new agency’s Washington, D.C.-based Surely, however, the great mistake would be to do noth- personnel, however, would reside in just four bureaus, two ing and allow America’s public diplomacy to continue to of which already exist in the Department of State (IIP and drift. It is time for Congress and the Obama administration ECA). These two bureaus remain largely as they are cur- to put aside all the arguments and build a structure for our rently constituted, adding only the Foreign Press Centers public diplomacy mission before this opportunity is lost. that are now a part of Public Affairs. The third and largest While creating a functional organization is not poetry bureau, International Broadcasting, would be based on the or high policy, it is a necessary precondition for getting the current BBG, streamlined and reconfigured to include in- job done. ■

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CHANNELING THE COLD WAR: U.S. OVERSEAS BROADCASTING

THE NEED FOR A CLEAR MISSION IS AS APPLICABLE TODAY IN REACHING MUSLIMS AROUND THE WORLD AS IT WAS WITH SOVIET-BLOC AUDIENCES.

BY ROBERT MCMAHON

he democratic revolutions significantly, and the Clin- that swept Eastern Europe in 1989 came to a stunning and ton administration and Con- violent end on Christmas Day in Romania with the execu- gress agreed on broader tion ofT President Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena. cutbacks to the U.S. public One of the first to learn was Gerd Kallhardt, a translator of diplomacy apparatus. the dictator’s speeches for Munich-based Radio Free Eu- Yet two decades after the rope/Radio Liberty. As the broadcasts streamed in from Berlin Wall came down, Bucharest, Kallhardt and a colleague tried to come to grips RFE/RL is thriving in a with the news. “We looked at each other and said: ‘What sparkling new headquart- happens now? Communism is dead. There is no more ers in the Czech capital of use for the radio,’” Kallhardt recalled several years later. Prague, broadcasting around Doug Ross That sentiment reverberated more loudly at the end of the clock to new “target” 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. A triumphal countries such as Iran and Afghanistan. Another post–Cold period for the U.S.-funded stations like RFE/RL and the War entity, Radio Free Asia, was set up in the late 1990s Voice of America soon gave way to uncertainty and what according to RFE/RL’s “surrogate” model and broadcasts to looked like the death knell for a number of language serv- nine authoritarian states, including China. Prompted by ices. Barely one year after the Soviet disintegration, the surging interest in reaching Muslim audiences after the U.S. government moved to cut RFE/RL’s roughly $220 9/11 attacks, Congress approved the creation of Arabic-lan- million budget by two-thirds. By the end of the decade, guage satellite television station Alhurra and substantially overall funding for international broadcasting had dropped increased funding for initiatives like television broadcasts to Iran and radio transmissions to tribal areas of Pakistan. Robert McMahon is editor of CFR.org, the Web site of the Expanded funding for Persian-language television Council on Foreign Relations. He worked for Radio Free (VOA’s Persian News Network) and radio (RFE/RL’s Europe/Radio Liberty from 1992 to 2005 in a range of sen- Radio Farda) was credited by a number of media experts ior editorial jobs, including terms as director of central with placing U.S. broadcasters in the forefront of interna- news and United Nations correspondent. tional media efforts to inform Iranians when mass protests

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erupted following the June 12 presidential elections. As opinions toward the United States. “Whether they’re mov- this article went to press, Congress was considering a ing the needle is not clear,” said one congressional staffer budget of between $717 million (Senate) and $745.5 mil- in late June, speaking on condition of anonymity. lion (House) for U.S. civilian international broadcasting, nearly double the level of a decade ago. Broadcasting and Public Diplomacy U.S. broadcasting officials claim their 60 language serv- U.S. government-funded radio broadcasting has its ices reach a weekly audience of 175 million listeners, over- roots in World War II, when the Voice of America was cre- all, second only to the BBC among international broad- ated at least partly to counter fascist propaganda. Such casters. But experts disagree about the value of these new broadcasting efforts were to become a key part of the services. Some critics consider them window dressing for broader U.S. foreign policy initiative known as “public an incoherent public diplomacy strategy, while others ac- diplomacy.” That initiative’s overarching goal is to advance cuse those directing U.S. international broadcasting efforts U.S. policies and values through the use of “soft diplo- of failing to learn the lessons of the Cold War stations. macy” — the dissemination of information, educational Chief among these lessons is the need for a clearly defined and cultural exchanges, and so on. mission, which is as applicable today in trying to reach During the early years of the Cold War, U.S. policy- Muslims in authoritarian states as it was in connecting with makers debated the form of public diplomacy most suit- captive Soviet-bloc audiences. able to connect with peoples living in closed totalitarian Citing a need to inform as well as transform, some an- societies in the Soviet bloc. Some believed that an em- alysts also point to a lack of rigor in the way some of the phasis on culture, such as the display of American art broadcasts are organized and carried out. In particular, abroad, would be most preferable. Others argued that tar- concerns about a lack of quality control have arisen in con- geting information to opinion-makers and influential citi- nection with stations like Alhurra (“The Free One”). zens should be the priority. In the end, the government Media reports in 2007 about Alhurra’s airing of speeches adopted both approaches, and radio has played a promi- and interviews of leaders of Hezbollah and Hamas nent role ever since, currently garnering about half of all prompted questions about the journalistic mission of the U.S. funding for public diplomacy. station. The controversy revealed a lack of knowledge The Voice of America’s mandate, enshrined in the char- about broadcasting content within the non-Arabic- ter signed into law in 1976, centers on three main points, speaking management. And, among other things, a 2008 excerpted here: report by the University of Southern California Center on • To “serve as a consistently reliable and authoritative Public Diplomacy found that Alhurra failed to meet basic source of news.” journalistic standards. • To “present a balanced and comprehensive projec- Soon after taking office, President Barack Obama set tion of significant American thought and institutions.” out to engage global publics, especially in the Muslim • To “present the policies of the United States clearly world. The president’s June 4 speech in Cairo called for a and effectively” and “present responsible discussions and “sustained effort to listen to each other and trust each opinion on these policies.” other.” Many experts believe that a well-functioning U.S. During the Cold War, VOA broadcast to the former So- international broadcasting system is essential to such dia- viet bloc as well as to Africa, Asia, the Middle East and logue, and have expressed hopes the Obama administra- Latin America. It is worth recalling that its purveyance of tion and Congress will give fresh scrutiny to the com- culture could be subversive. Willis Conover’s legendary plicated U.S. broadcasting apparatus. jazz broadcasts over 40 years attracted an avid following in “We still have a rather fragmented collection of inter- the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, helping to bolster national broadcasting entities, and that’s holding back their the image of American culture at a time when official effectiveness,” says Kim Andrew Elliott, an audience re- media portrayed it as debased. search analyst in the U.S. International Broadcasting Bu- Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, on the other hand, reau who writes a blog on PD issues. There also continue was set up to serve as a substitute news source for the coun- to be questions about the impact of the new broadcasting tries of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, where gov- efforts on Muslim audiences in terms of attitudes and ernments controlled the flow of information. The surrogate

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broadcasters were independent of Soon after taking office, ing the tightly controlled official direct U.S. government control and speeches and news reports of total- operated under a requirement to President Barack Obama set itarian states, but instead sorting provide accurate and objective in- through a dizzying array of new formation to ensure credibility. out to engage global publics, media, much of it unreliable. “A Many of them functioned in ways chaos developed,” says Kallhardt, similar to those of an opposition especially in the who continued to monitor media press, scrutinizing everything from from Eastern Europe and the for- government harvest reports and Muslim world. mer Soviet Union in the post-com- communist party purges to incidents munist period. of religious persecution or human The U.S. broadcasting infra- rights violations. Writings smuggled out of the Soviet structure itself had become increasingly unwieldy. By the Union — known as samizdat — and important works such end of the 1990s it included a cluster of separate broadcast as The Gulag Archipelago, Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s tow- entities and federal agency and grantee organizations, in- ering account of life in the Soviet prison system, were se- cluding RFE/RL and RFA. Each had its own manage- rialized on RFE/RL broadcasts. The aim of such coverage ment and, in some cases, what appeared to be duplicative was to reveal the weaknesses of the communist system, ap- staff and functions. Meanwhile, the budget for such peal to national identity and promote the emergence of broadcasting was on a steady decline, from $573 million other centers of power. in 1994 to about $420 million by the end of the decade. From the beginning, Radio Free Europe and Radio Mission drift was also a problem. With the end of the Liberty set up research and evaluation sections within in- Cold War, U.S. international broadcasters were operating dividual broadcast services. By the early 1980s they had under a variety of mandates, some coping with increas- evolved into more formal research entities that issued reg- ingly outmoded transmission methods and questionable ular situation reports on countries in the region and came program formats. Audience surveys showed alarming to be regarded by both American and international audi- drops in listeners in some key areas. A review of VOA’s ences as the finest of their kind. The prodigious research Arabic service found it was registering barely a whisper, its and monitoring effort utilized translators like RFE’s Kall- audience mired at about the 2-percent level for years. hardt to gather clips of more than 1,000 newspapers and Congress revamped the administrative structure of U.S. periodicals from communist states, as well as enormous international broadcasting in 1994, creating the Board of reference libraries on personalities and institutions from Broadcasting Governors to oversee all non-military U.S. Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. international broadcasting. The 1994 act also set up the The last vestige of RFE/RL’s research and analysis di- International Broadcasting Bureau to consolidate some vision was discontinued in 2008 due to funding constraints, broadcast operations within the BBG. IBB provides trans- just after producing a series of widely lauded reports on ji- mission services to all broadcast operations and has a direct hadi information sources, but its example remains rele- role in support services and audience research for VOA vant. A. Ross Johnson, RFE’s director from 1988 to 1991, and Radio/TV Marti, directed at Cuba. In addition, for says the research unit underpinned the credibility of the the first time the Voice of America and Radio Free Eu- broadcasters. “The point that’s relevant today is if you’re rope/Radio Liberty were brought under the same organi- going to do in-depth broadcasting focused primarily on so- zational heading. called target countries, you’ve got to be terribly well in- The bipartisan BBG consists of eight members from formed on the situation there,” Johnson says. “You can’t do the fields of mass communications and foreign affairs, ap- that on the fly. You’ve got to have people with the cultural, pointed by the president but reporting to Congress. The linguistic and area expertise, as well.” Secretary of State is an ex officio, non-voting member. Sit- ting board members serve part-time and may continue in “A Chaos Developed” their regular occupations. The collapse of the Soviet bloc turned the concept of The previous entity overseeing the activities of RFE/ monitoring on its head. The challenge was no longer pars- RL, the Board for International Broadcasting, had been

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set up as a firewall between the broadcast services and the a result of the breakdown in U.S. public diplomacy. government funding them, to prevent tampering. The Dozens of think-tank reports over the next few years pro- new entity retains this firewall function, but individual gov- posed new ways to engage Arabs and Muslims and under- ernors now have more authority to micromanage. mine the “root causes” of terrorism. The BBG, which had Former board member Norman Pattiz, for example, already begun putting together a new strategic plan before had an enormous influence on the development of pro- the attacks, was given additional funding to broadcast to gramming to the Muslim world. Pattiz, the founder of the Middle East and other critical regions. Westwood One Radio, was closely involved in setting up In 2002 the board unveiled its strategy under the title Radio Sawa and Radio Farda, whose formats focused on “Marrying the Mission to the Market.” It emphasized the pop music as a way of attracting listeners to news content. need to reach large audiences by applying modern broad- This drew criticism from some veterans of U.S. broadcast techniques, including music formats, and allocating casting such as former VOA director Robert Reilly, who resources to focus on high-priority broadcast markets. In wrote in a 2007 Washington Post op-ed: “It seems that the the aftermath of 9/11, it said, the priority in international board transformed the ‘war of ideas’ into the ‘battle of the broadcasting was improving outreach to Muslim countries. bands’.” The plan repeatedly referred to target listening areas as “markets,” lending a new, commercial-sounding ap- Post-9/11: Rebirth of a Cause proach to U.S. international broadcasting. It expressed a The inability to prevent the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist at- determination to reach Muslim audiences where U.S. pop- tacks marked a “failure of imagination,” in the famous ularity had plummeted: “We stand ready to launch new words of the 9/11 Commission. It was also widely seen as model radio and television operations in a multitude of Is-

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lamic languages. America’s message Some critics dismiss these bers like Pattiz injected dynamism will be heard and seen.” The strat- into a stodgy broadcast system and egy shift triggered debate, which stations as window dressing made sense as a way of stirring in- continues to this day, over whether terest in the huge under-30 popula- an attempt to attract larger audi- for an incoherent public tion in many Muslim target states. ences through methods such as pop The approach resonated among a music programming subverts the diplomacy strategy. number of members of Congress, larger, traditional mission of broad- gaining powerful allies like then- casters to be a forum for information Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., the cur- and ideas. rent vice president. “How do you get these people to listen? The BBG’s strategic plan reaffirmed a central aspect of It sure as hell isn’t [with] a news program,” Biden told a U.S. public diplomacy — the promotion of freedom and Senate Foreign Relations Committee meeting in 2003. democracy — which it would pursue by disseminating “Does anybody in [the United States] between the ages of “factual and balanced news and information.” Having de- 15 and 30 tune in in any numbers to public broadcasting? termined through audience surveys that it had expanded It’s an incredibly important means of communication. the listening area for U.S. international broadcasting from What do they do? They listen to rock stations.” 100 million to 175 million between 2002 and 2007, the But critics say the BBG has abandoned the worthy BBG released an updated strategic plan for 2008 to 2013 practice of targeting elite audiences within countries of emphasizing ways of gauging the impact on those audi- concern, and muddled the mission of U.S. broadcasting. A ences. It retained the mission of promoting freedom and 2007 report by the McCormack Tribune Conference Se- democracy and added a new goal: to “enhance under- ries, whose participants included a number of former top standing through multimedia communication of accurate, VOA and RFE/RL officials, labeled U.S. international objective and balanced news, information and other pro- broadcasting “an illogical patchwork, an archipelago of gramming about America and the world to audiences over- broadcasting organizations lacking clear individual mis- seas.” sions and lacking a normal separation between manage- The post-9/11 broadcasting emphasis reflects areas of ment and oversight.” greatest concern to U.S. national security. The board scrapped the Arabic service of VOA and replaced it with A Foray into Television Radio Sawa (Radio “Together”), geared to young audi- Questions about the mission also surround the latest, ences through a pop music format, in which newscasts are and most expensive new arena for U.S. broadcasting — embedded. The board says surveys have consistently satellite television. There, too, BBG officials stress the im- shown Radio Sawa is a ratings hit in much of its broadcast portance of editorial independence and objectivity. In the region in the Middle East and North Africa. case of VOA’s Persian News Network, which provides eight And in 2003, the board terminated RFE/RL’s Persian- hours of original programming daily, the added resources language Radio Azadi (Radio “Liberty”) and put in its place and editorial model appeared to be having the intended ef- Radio Farda (Radio “Tomorrow”). Initially, Farda also em- fect of attracting an Iranian audience, especially during the phasized pop music, but has since steadily moved to in- tumultuous days following the June 2009 presidential vote. crease the amount of news and current affairs program- PNN, along with BBC Persian TV, was deluged with e- ming and bolster its Internet presence. mails and other messages during the height of the demon- Alhurra came one year later, followed by VOA’s Aap Ki strations, and both stations attracted the scorn of Iranian Dunyaa (“Your World”) in Urdu to Pakistan, and VOA’s authorities. VOA officials emphasized their commitment to Radio Deewa (Radio “Light”) in Pashto to Pakistan’s tribal balanced coverage. “We don’t have in our charter, ‘pro- areas near its border with Afghanistan. Music and enter- mote democracy, change the world’,” VOA spokeswoman tainment programming are also important features of Aap Joan Mower told the Los Angeles Times. Ki Dunyaa, although it has shifted to more news coverage The largest U.S.-funded television broadcaster, Alhurra, at times of major developments. has had fewer such watershed moments. In its first five To supporters, the changes spearheaded by board mem- years the station has confronted perceptions that it is too

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close to official U.S. doctrine, as well Concerns about a lack lion from the previous year. as charges that its zeal for editorial Meanwhile, questions persist independence — notably its proof quality control have arisen about the quality of Alhurra’s programming related to Hamas and gramming. A 2008 study commis- Hezbollah — directly undermines in connection with stations sioned by the BBG and conducted U.S. policy in the Middle East. by the USC Center on Public There also continue to be debates like Alhurra. Diplomacy found that Alhurra failed about whether or not it is truly build- to meet basic journalistic standards, ing an audience. The May release suffered from poor programming of the annual viewer survey by the University of Maryland and was plagued by perceived bias. But the BBG stands and Zogby International indicated Alhurra was the least- by the station as a purveyor of balanced news and current watched station in the region and that viewership was de- affairs programming, with an emphasis on human rights, clining. The poll found that its audience share had dropped religious freedom and “insight into the policies and people from 2 percent in 2008 to 0.5 percent in 2009. It also found of the United States.” that Al-Jazeera is still the number-one news source for 55 percent of the Arab world. Restore Independence, Clarify the Mission In response, the BBG stressed that its own research Some critics have called on U.S. policymakers to phase showed Alhurra was reaching a growing audience. In late out international broadcasting efforts altogether, surren- spring, the board said the station was reaching 26.7 million dering the field to credible Western sources like the BBC. people weekly across the Middle East, up almost one mil- However, U.S. broadcasters provide a vital service for a

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comparatively tiny portion of tax- While the idea of consolidating tified a thirst for credible informa- payer dollars. Moreover, the pro- tion and discourse in these coun- grams remain popular in Congress, U.S. international tries as great as existed during the as evidenced by fresh examples of Cold War. “surge funding” for broadcasts to broadcasting services has Accordingly, extensive cultural Iran and Pakistan. and political programming about To make performance bench- merit, an even more effective the United States and detailed, in- marks more apparent, other ana- sightful reporting on local devel- lysts recommend following the approach would be to return opments in target countries re- BBC model: consolidate the best main just as important in today’s U.S. assets into one entity, perhaps them to their roots. post-9/11 context as they were run by VOA, which would retain during the Cold War. The current editorial independence. Alterna- hodgepodge of broadcasting enti- tively, a recent report by the Baker Institute says that U.S.- ties appears to cover some of this terrain some of the time, sponsored international broadcasting programs, with the but without the necessary rigor. exception of news services, “should be brought under the Obama administration officials, working with Congress, strategic direction of the public diplomacy policies and must undertake a vigorous review of the various mandates goals of the U.S. government as defined by the president, under which U.S.-funded stations are operating. The ad- Secretary of State and under secretary of state for public ministration should then heed the advice of public diplo- diplomacy.” macy veterans and revive the focus on broadcasting to elites While the idea of consolidation has merit, an even more in important countries such as Iran, Egypt and Pakistan, effective approach would be to return U.S. international scrapping the music-heavy formatting of stations like Radio broadcasting services to their roots, granting them the Sawa and Radio Farda. There is a place for music within greater independence they enjoyed in the Cold War era overall programming, but not as an organizing principle while clarifying their missions. To quote the 2007 report of aimed at growing “market share.” the McCormack Tribune Conference Series: “Broadcasting Congress and the administration should reinforce the organizations should be re-empowered to run their own separate editorial identity of the surrogates — such as operations without BBG interference … [and] none of the Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia broadcast components should be subordinated directly to — keeping them distinct from the Voice of America and the State Department.” protecting them from BBG meddling. They should also The report also urged Congress to “reimpose and provide extra resources to the monitoring of program con- strengthen the conceptual and operational distinctions be- tent and impact. There is too little available research tween the Voice of America, whose broadcasts should em- about the impact of U.S. international broadcasting to the phasize American life, values and policies, along with world Muslim world. Broadcasters need better in-house gauges news, and the surrogate broadcast stations, whose primary of program quality, as well, including the expensive but function is to stimulate debate within the target area by necessary periodic translation of all programming, espe- serving as ‘local’ broadcasters.” cially that directed to the Muslim world. The 21st-century world is awash in information. No Finally, the administration needs to pursue greater factor separates today’s U.S. international broadcasters coordination on international broadcasting strategy in from their Cold War predecessors more starkly. The mod- the U.S. foreign policy community, and initiate a public ern versions of VOA and RFE/RL compete with other discussion of the purpose of U.S. broadcasting. Too few media via satellite TV, blogs, cell-phone texting and audio Americans, or members of Congress for that matter, un- streamed on the Internet, in addition to radio. But while derstand it. it is true that the media landscape of major Muslim states While it may seem that today’s challenges require new of concern to U.S. policymakers — Pakistan, Iran, much of approaches, in fact the greatest problem for U.S. interna- the Arab Middle East — is substantially different from the tional broadcasting is that it has strayed too far from the former Soviet bloc, numerous experts have rightfully iden- fundamentals that distinguished its Cold War success. ■

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FS HERITAGE THE DIPLOMAT AND THE DUCHESS

ONE OF AMERICA’S FIRST (MORE OR LESS) PROFESSIONAL DIPLOMATS, A JEFFERSON PROTÉGÉ, QUICKLY BECAME AN EFFECTIVE PRACTITIONER OF HIS CRAFT.

BY JAMES R. BULLINGTON

n November 1784, a slight, Thus began the career of one of Amer- sandy-haired young man arrived ica’s first (more or less) professional diplo- in Paris to take up his duties as mats. Although he had few qualifications secretary to the new U.S. minis- and his appointment was based wholly on ter to France, Thomas Jeffer- his personal relationship with Jefferson, son. At 25, William Short had Short learned quickly, became an effective no international experience and practitioner of his craft and, over the next had never even set foot outside his native 11 years, rendered important service to IVirginia. But he had the strong support of the new American nation. Jefferson was a his new boss: Jefferson had come to con- good judge of talent. sider him his “adoptive son.” A frequent Ultimately, however, Short was disap- visitor to Monticello, Short had accompa- pointed both in his professional and per- nied Jefferson on his narrow escape from sonal life. This disappointment seems General Banastre Tarleton’s loyalist troops reflected in his portrait by noted Ameri- in 1781. And, as a newly minted lawyer, he helped settle can painter Rembrandt Peale, which was included in an ex- the estate of Jefferson’s deceased wife, Martha, to whom hibit in the Muscarelle Museum of Art at the College of Short was related. William & Mary in Williamsburg in 2008. The museum identified him as “America’s first career diplomat” — a des- James R. Bullington was a Foreign Service officer from 1962 ignation that on investigation seems both questionable to 1989, serving as ambassador to Burundi and dean of the (there are other potential claimants to that appellation) and Senior Seminar among many other postings. After a stint in not very meaningful (in those days there really were no ca- academia, he was Peace Corps director in Niger from 2000 to reer diplomats, at least not in any sense resembling our un- 2006 and served as editor of the online professional journal derstanding of that term today). American Diplomacy (www.americandiplomacy.org) from Nevertheless, the portrait piqued my curiosity, and I 2007 to 2009. Currently retired in Williamsburg, he is a sen- looked for further information on Short. Thankfully a pro- ior fellow at the Joint Forces Staff College. fessional historian, George Green Shackelford, has done The portrait of William Short (above) by Rembrandt Peale the necessary research and published a biography: Jeffer- is used by permission of the Muscarelle Museum of Art at the son’s Adoptive Son: The Life of William Short, 1759-1848 College of William & Mary. It was a gift to the college in 1938 (University Press of Kentucky, 1993). This profile is based by Mary Churchill Short, Fanny Short Butler and William primarily on information in that book, plus an article on Short. “Thomas Jefferson and William Short” published by the

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Thomas Jefferson Foundation (www. portant diplomatic post for the United monticello.org). States, and this put Short, as secretary At 25, William Short and then chargé, at the heart of Amer- Son of the “Squirearchy” ican diplomacy. He was especially suc- Short’s forefather, also named had no international cessful in helping to open markets to William, immigrated to Virginia in U.S. exports, and also reported ably on 1635 as an indentured servant. He experience and, in fact, the upheavals of the French Revolu- eventually became a landowner, and tion, predicting accurately that mob his grandson, the third William Short had never been outside rule would be replaced by a despot. of Virginia, had by 1741 ascended to Soon after he joined Jefferson in the “squirearchy,” with 40 slaves and a his native Virginia. Paris in 1785, following his language grist mill. The sixth William Short of training, Short met the woman who Virginia, our subject, was born in 1759. became the love of his life: Rosalie, the He had a classical education (Latin, Duchesse de la Rochefoucauld. Beau- Greek, math and philosophy) at Wil- ongoing negotiations with the French, tiful, charming, well-educated and 23 liam & Mary, where he was a founding Spanish and Dutch to conduct. So the years old, she was in an unhappy mar- member of Phi Beta Kappa in 1777, U.S. treaty commissioners remained in riage of convenience to her 53-year-old becoming its second president the fol- place for two more years. uncle, Duc Louis Alexandre de la lowing year. He was also a member of Franklin was concurrently minister Rochefoucauld. When she met the 26- the Virginia militia, but there is no ev- to France, and Adams was concur- year-old Short at a house party at her idence that he participated in any com- rently minister to Great Britain, so in country chateau, the two were imme- bat during the American Revolution. their ministerial capacities they were diately attracted to one another. They After graduation in 1779, he stayed on each authorized an official secretary. became dancing partners and friends; in Williamsburg to study law under Jefferson, however, was not authorized friendship developed into romance; George Wythe. (John Marshall was a a secretary as treaty commissioner, so and before long they were lovers. fellow student.) He passed the bar in he had to hire Short with his own funds Extramarital affairs were not un- 1781 — Jefferson was one of his ex- (at an annual salary of $1,000 plus usual among the French aristocracy of aminers — and moved to the new cap- room and board). Because Short did that era, and the duke was willing to ital, Richmond, to practice law. not speak French well, Jefferson first tolerate the relationship between his With Jefferson’s help, Short was sent him to live for six months with a wife and Short so long as they were dis- elected to the prestigious Virginia Ex- French family in a rural village, where creet, which they were. Rosalie’s let- ecutive Council of State in 1783, a po- he became fluent. ters, which Short preserved, as well as sition that often led to the governor’s Franklin returned to the United his seven-year quest (after the duke’s office — both Madison and Monroe States in 1785, and Jefferson replaced death) to make her his wife, indicate were members of the council early in him as minister to France. Thus their love was strong. their careers. He soon became disillu- Short’s official diplomatic career began sioned with politics, however, and after that October when Congress approved U.S. Fiscal Agent Jefferson’s 1784 appointment as a his appointment as Jefferson’s secre- When Short was appointed chargé “treaty commissioner” in Paris, Short tary. He remained in this capacity until in Paris, he was simultaneously named was delighted to accept an invitation to 1789, when Jefferson departed and left by Treasury Secretary Alexander Ham- become his private secretary. Short in charge of the mission. ilton (on President George Washing- After Jefferson became Secretary of ton’s instruction, no doubt as recom- Jefferson’s Secretary State in 1790, he secured Short’s com- mended by Jefferson) as the sole U.S. Jefferson replaced John Jay as one mission as permanent chargé d’af- fiscal agent in Europe. It was in that of three treaty commissioners, along faires, the first chargé appointed by the capacity that he rendered his greatest with Ben Franklin and John Adams. U.S. government. He was 31. His new service to his country: negotiating sev- The Treaty of Paris between the position was nonetheless a setback for eral critical loans at favorable rates, United States and Britain, ending the Short, as he had hoped to be desig- mainly from Dutch bankers (then the Revolutionary War and securing U.S. nated minister. most important moneylenders in the independence, had been signed on world). The loans were used both for Sept. 3, 1783. However, several issues Diplomat Meets Duchess domestic investment and to pay off remained unresolved, and there were At this time Paris was a crucially im- higher-interest loans from France and

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Spain contracted during the Revolu- ber. Short resubmitted his resignation tionary War. as soon as this was accomplished and Short remained in Paris with dual In 1792, Short acquired departed for Paris in November. He responsibilities as chargé and fiscal planned to marry Rosalie and take her agent until 1792, all the while hoping to a third important position: to the United States. be named minister. Instead, Pres. Rosalie welcomed Short and was Washington gave that position to Gou- Pres. Washington named happy to live with him in France. She verneur Morris, naming Short minister proved unwilling, however, to marry to the Netherlands. This made good him a joint treaty him or to move to the United States, sense in view of his job as fiscal agent, probably because she did not want to since it facilitated his relationship with commissioner to Spain. abandon her aristocratic lifestyle or ex- the Dutch bankers; but it also took him change her position as duchess to be- away from Rosalie, so he was again un- come plain Mrs. Short. Always hoping happy with his assignment. she would change her mind, Short con- While in The Hague, Short was progress had been made by the sum- tinued to live with her for the next much distracted, both professionally mer of 1794, when his co-commis- seven years. and personally, by events in France. sioner Carmichael was recalled and Finally, he concluded that marriage The revolution had turned increas- Short was named sole commissioner was impossible and also decided that ingly violent, and Rosalie’s husband and, concurrently, minister to Spain. At he did not wish to spend the rest of his was arrested and executed. Short the same time, John Quincy Adams life as an expatriate. So in June 1802, managed to put some of Rosalie’s succeeded him as U.S. fiscal agent and he boarded a ship for Norfolk. After property in his name to protect it from minister to the Netherlands. his return to the United States Short’s confiscation, a maneuver that was Delayed communications and ru- relatives and friends engaged in vigor- honorable in the circumstances — he mors led to the impression in Wash- ous matchmaking, but he remained a eventually returned the property to ington that Short was on poor terms bachelor for the rest of his life. (In her — but would not likely be toler- with the Spanish government and that 1810, Rosalie married another aristo- ated by today’s State Department. this was the cause of delays in the crat, the Marquis de Costellano.) treaty negotiations. Although this was Since Jefferson had become presi- Treaty Commissioner untrue — or at least no fault of Short’s dent in 1801 and frequently invited in Spain — it led to his replacement as treaty him to Washington, Short hoped for In 1792, Short acquired a third im- commissioner by Thomas Pinckney in another diplomatic post. However, portant position, in addition to his roles late 1794. In fact, the negotiations had Jefferson reminded him of his policy as minister to the Netherlands and U.S. been largely completed by this time. that no one would be continued in a fiscal agent, when Pres. Washington Adding personal distress to Short’s foreign mission after an absence from named him and William Carmichael professional frustrations was his deep the United States of more than six or (who was then chargé in Madrid) as concern about Rosalie, who had been eight years — and Short had been ab- joint treaty commissioners to Spain. imprisoned by the Revolutionary sent for 17 years. Moreover, by this They were to negotiate a treaty defin- Committee of Public Safety in 1793. time successful participation in doing boundaries, securing navigation She was released after 10 months, but mestic politics had become a prereq- rights on the Mississippi and resolving Short was increasingly anxious to re- uisite for senior diplomatic appoint- various commercial and maritime turn to France and be with her. ments. claims. Thus, after only seven months Short had inherited property in Vir- of residence, on Dec. 18, 1792, Short Resignation ginia, but did not wish to become a departed The Hague for Madrid. On and Return planter; nor did he want to resume his the way, he was able to spend two As soon as he learned of Pinckney’s abandoned legal career. He used his weeks with the now-widowed Rosalie. appointment, Short submitted his res- capital and financial skills to invest, with Short’s tenure in Spain proved to be ignation from the diplomatic service. considerable success, in canals and later professionally frustrating. Soon after It was only at the personal request of in railroads, as well as in land on the his arrival in February 1793, Spain be- Pres. Washington that he remained in western frontier. He took up residence came allied with Britain in the war with Spain until Pinckney’s arrival (in June in Philadelphia and was elected a mem- France, and this stalled negotiation of 1795) to assist with final conclusion of ber of the American Philosophical So- a Spanish-American treaty. Little the treaty, which was signed in Octo- ciety.

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A Brief Appointment United States, humiliated by the expe- to Russia rience. He never again sought any Near the end of his second term, in Unusual for Virginia public office, remaining in Philadelphia 1808, Jefferson wanted to enlist the for the rest of his life. His investments help of Russia in the growing con- gentlemen of his time, prospered, and he supported worthy frontation with Britain over maritime causes, including the abolition of slav- rights and the impressment of seamen. Short was opposed to ery. (Unusual for Virginia gentlemen That summer, after Congress had re- of his time, Short was opposed to slav- cessed for the year, he offered Short slavery and had sold the ery and had sold the slaves he inherited the position of minister to Moscow. when he went to France in 1784.) Short was delighted to accept and de- slaves he inherited when He maintained a regular correspon- parted in September of that year for dence with Jefferson, visited him at Paris, where he was to await news of he went to France in 1784. Monticello on several occasions and his confirmation by the Senate before contributed to the fund that rescued proceeding to his new post. him from financial disaster in 1825. Jefferson handled the politics of this William Short died in 1848 at the appointment badly, and did not send age of 89. Though disappointed in his Short’s nomination to the Senate until ment” in European affairs. (In March, professional and matrimonial ambi- February 1809, just before leaving President James Madison nominated tions, Short nonetheless enjoyed what office. The result was the Senate’s John Quincy Adams for the same job; most people would consider a highly first-ever refusal to confirm a presi- he was also rejected at first, but won interesting and successful life. He dential diplomatic appointment, on the confirmation in June 1809.) served his country well, and helped lay grounds of the new mission’s cost and Short learned of his rejection in the early foundations of American the potential for further “entangle- Paris and immediately returned to the diplomacy. ■

AFSA Resource Marketplace Watch for the November FSJ’s annual Find the Most-Requested Resources from the roundup of books by current and Overseas Briefing Center Online at www.afsa.org/ads former members of the Foreign Service 1. FSI’s Transition Center and their families. 2. U.S. Department of State Overseas Briefing Center (OBC) 3. Security Overseas Seminars: PSOS, ASOS, SAA, SOS, SOS 4. Transition Center Training home page for eligible family NNUAL members and members of household (MOH) 2009 A 5. International Jobs - Working Overseas 6. Country Information (Bidding Resources) FS AUTHOR 7. Transition Center Courses 8. Preparing to Go Overseas ROUNDUP 9. Pets and International Travel 10. Foreign Service Assignment Notebook: What Do I Do Now? 11. U.S. Department of State Career Transition Center (CTC) 12. Personal Post Insights 13. Elementary School Stuff 14. Arrange Medical Clearance and Immunizations 15. High Stress Assignment Outbrief Program

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BOOKS

We Are the World? that the world must be rid of the Talbott scourge of communism before world The Great Experiment: acknowledges that governance might be possible. The Story of Ancient Empires, the path toward Despite the many ways in which Modern States and the Quest the United Nations has served Wash- for a Global Nation the goal of global ington’s interests in the past six Strobe Talbott, Simon & Schuster, governance will decades, the organization’s limited ef- 2009, $18, paperback, 512 pages. be incremental. fectiveness in dealing with scofflaw But we must begin regimes has only reinforced general REVIEWED BY TED WILKINSON American skepticism about world the journey. governance. When Barack Obama Strobe Talbott’s previous five described himself as “a fellow citizen books dealt largely with arms control of the world” during a July 2008 visit and/or the USSR, and drew heavily on to Berlin, columnist George Will at- his 20 years with Time magazine. The But is global governance even pos- tacked him for not putting America Great Experiment is more ambitious, sible? The first section of The Great first. Other campaign adversaries sounding a clarion call for putting tra- Experiment examines relevant prece- seized on “Obama’s drive for U.N. ditional concerns of national sover- dents in rich detail, among them the global governance.” eignty behind us and embarking on a “ecumenical” empires from Ham- Talbott admits that his eight years great experiment of governance by murabi through the Seljuk Ottomans at the State Department, seven as global rules. that generally tolerated religious di- Deputy Secretary of State, gave him As Talbott notes, throughout mod- versity and local autonomy, as well as “a fresh perspective on the power of ern Western history the rewriting of in- the more recent European and Amer- nationalism ... as well as the short- ternational rules has been a reactive ican practice of federalism. comings of internationalism.” He process. The Thirty Years War and the While it may seem surprising shared President Bill Clinton’s acute Treaty of Westphalia led to the mod- today, Talbott recalls that the concept disappointment with the trend toward ern nation-state system. The Napoleo- of world federalism was widely en- American exceptionalism that led to nic Wars and the Congress of Vienna dorsed in the immediate aftermath of Senate rejection of the Comprehen- produced a century of great-power World War II, even by future presi- sive Test Ban Treaty, the International concert in Europe. World War I dents Richard Nixon and Ronald Rea- Criminal Court and the principles of spawned the League of Nations and gan. He reminds us that the talented the Kyoto Protocol — even before the World War II, the United Nations. young Cord Meyer became the first 2000 elections. And his initial illusion However, the catastrophes that threat- president of the U.S.-based United that George W. Bush as president en us today — economic collapse, cli- World Federalists in 1947, only to might emulate his father’s cautious, mate change and nuclear proliferation leave the organization and join the consultative style on international is- — require us to be proactive. CIA when it became evident to him sues was soon dispelled.

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Even the more internationalist for “humanitarian intervention”: in- course that Secretary of State Con- ternational efforts to save endangered doleezza Rice set during Bush’s sec- Talbott recalls that innocent lives by means of a robust ond term was largely vitiated by the military response. performance of John Bolton as am- the concept of world Despite abundant lip service, how- bassador to the U.N. Several un- ever, that approach has had only lim- named political appointees in the federalism was widely ited success as a rallying cry for White House and the Pentagon went effective action. The likely recipients so far as to tell Talbott that the Iraq endorsed in the of such intervention — small, weak intervention and the tensions it countries caught in a spiral of civil caused with the United Nations had immediate aftermath conflict — tend to see the movement been “an opportunity to kill two birds as justification for neocolonialist for- with one stone.” of World War II. eign meddling in local affairs. And In conclusion, Talbott acknowl- those nations likely to carry out the ac- edges that the path toward the goal of tions — significant powers capable of global governance must be incremen- launching expeditionary forces — tal. The first step is stemming the bility: International Order in an Era have been none too pleased with what erosion of international institutions of of Transnational Threat, published by they viewed as manpower and budg- the Bush 43 years. In parallel, world the Brookings Institution (of which he etary drains. Finally, many of the leaders must focus on stabilizing mar- is president) earlier this year. nongovernmental organizations al- kets and eliminating poverty in order ready providing humanitarian relief to avert recurring economic crises. To Ted Wilkinson, a Foreign Service offi- under challenging, if not horrifying, advance arms control, we must seek cer from 1961 to 1996, is the chair- conditions, do not want their role to further reductions to American and man of the FSJ Editorial Board. be compromised by an implicit al- Russian nuclear stockpiles, revive the liance with an invading military force. Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, pursue a The person who, more than any multilateral cutoff of fissile material Effective other, pushed the policy world to production and ratify the Compre- Intervention move from that earlier concept to the hensive Test Ban Treaty. new intellectual construct of “respon- And to combat climate change, we sibility to protect” is the author of this The Responsibility to Protect: must heed the warnings of the scien- book, Gareth Evans. A former Aus- Ending Mass Atrocity Crimes tific community and take measures tralian foreign minister, he is a previ- Once and for All that go beyond what may (or may not) Gareth Evans, Brookings Institution ous president of the widely respected be agreed at the Copenhagen summit Press, 2008, $19.95, paperback, 349 International Crisis Group, and was in December. If we can meet these pages. co-chair of the International Com- challenges, Talbot contends, “we will mission on Intervention and State be giving ourselves time and useful REVIEWED BY LEON WEINTRAUB Sovereignty. It was ICISS that, in experience for lifting global gover- 2001, published its report, “The Re- nance in general to a higher level.” We have heard “never again” in responsibility to Protect,” and Evans has The Great Experiment is a great sponse to mass atrocities so often that become the leading proponent of read, both for history buffs and for it is now almost impossible to take “R2P” since that time. students of international organiza- that pledge at face value. Even as les- This response to genocide turns tions. Talbott’s policy prescriptions sons from the Holocaust recede from humanitarian intervention on its head. are less detailed than his analysis of memory, the horrors of Cambodia in Rather than the international com- precedents. But he points out that a the mid-1970s, Rwanda in 1994, Sre- munity having primary responsibility, more detailed roadmap for the future brenica in 1995, Kosovo in 1998 and it is now each sovereign state that has is to be found in Power and Responsi- Darfur since 2003 have all fueled calls the duty — as an essential part of its

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sovereignty — to protect all persons Moving? within its borders from those who would do them harm. Evans puts forward a As Evans explains, it is only when a state is unwilling or unable to avert compelling argument Take AFSA such harm that “the principle of non- intervention yields to the international for formal adoption responsibility to protect.” In other With You! words, intervention to protect a vul- of “R2P” by the nerable or attacked population must be a last step, not a first one, tried only community of nations. Change your address when less intrusive measures — e.g., online at: incentives, sanctions, boycotts, em- www.afsa.org/comment.cfm bargoes, no-fly zones — fail to stop the loss of life. follow, given the grim reality that In addition, after prevention has chaos and violence show no sign of Or failed and reaction (including possible ending in today’s world. military measures) has occurred, Send change of address to: there is also a responsibility to rebuild, Leon Weintraub, a Foreign Service of- AFSA Membership in order to minimize the chances that ficer from 1975 to 2004, is director of Department the violence will flare up again. The the University of Wisconsin’s Wash- 2101 E Street NW book’s Appendix B lists both direct ington, D.C., Semester in Internation- Washington, DC 20037 and more long-term structural meas- al Affairs Program. ures for each category of action. Many Foreign Service members will at some point be asked to make A Senseless recommendations concerning possible Incident? measures to stop civil disturbances that threaten to deteriorate into mob action Attack on the Liberty: The and mass violence. It is therefore es- Untold Story of Israel’s Deadly sential that they be familiar with the 1967 Assault on a U.S. Spy Ship full spectrum of actions that can be James Scott, Simon & Schuster, 2009, pursued before any call to “send in the $27, hardcover, 374 pages. Marines” or the 82nd Airborne. Evans puts forward a compelling REVIEWED BY EDWARD PECK argument for formal adoption of R2P by the community of nations, a step Israel’s fierce attack on the USS that gained traction at the 2005 World Liberty during the Six-Day War still Summit Outcome and was endorsed generates heated discussion more than by the U.N. Security Council in 2006. four decades later. Although journalist However, the recent United Nations James Scott is the son of a surviving General Assembly debate saw growing Liberty officer, his coverage of the in- concern (real or feigned) that the “re- cident is carefully researched, exten- sponsibility to protect” would become sively annotated and refreshingly “a right to intervene.” non-polemical. He raises understated This is a discussion all members of but important questions about the de- the Foreign Service would do well to cisions to cover up the attack, the

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BOOKS

shameful treatment of the survivors, despite the death or wounding of most and America’s relations with Israel. of the crew, his own concussion and Scott vividly reminds us of the Although Scott is multiple wounds. He was awarded the undisputed facts of the case: Medal of Honor, but it was not pre- • The Sixth Fleet had been or- the son of a surviving sented by the president, or even con- dered out of the eastern Mediter- ferred in the White House, as is ranean shortly before the attack, but Liberty officer, customary. Instead, he received it at the warning never reached the Lib- the Washington Navy Yard without a erty, a World War II-era cargo ship his coverage of the press release or press coverage. The converted to an easily recognizable in- Secretary of the Navy made the pres- telligence collector. Unarmed save incident is refreshingly entation, and the chief of naval opera- for four .50-caliber machine guns, she tions, who read the citation, later called flew the American flag, with interna- non-polemical. it “a backhanded slap in the face.” tionally registered hull markings sev- Scott’s careful examination of thou- eral feet high. sands of Israeli and American docu- • On the morning of June 8, 1967, ments, many declassified only recently, Israeli jets repeatedly circled the ship, Gaza. They attacked at 2 p.m., drop- indicates that Israel was aware of the which was in international waters off ping napalm and leaving 821 cannon ship’s nationality both before and dur- and rocket holes, as well as damage ing the attack. More significant from from machine guns and shrapnel. A both domestic and international rela- surface-launched torpedo blasted a tions perspectives are the sometimes You Are Our hole 24 by 39 feet in the unarmored questionable actions subsequent U.S. hull. administrations have taken to prevent Eyes & • The attack killed 34 Americans attention to the attack, and thereby dis- and wounded 171, many seriously — courage criticism of Israel. Efforts by Ears! more than two-thirds of the crew, by the survivors to generate a full-scale in- far the heaviest loss to a U.S. ship since vestigation have been totally ignored. World War II. Many countries pay very careful at- Dear Readers: • Two protective aircraft carrier tention to our close ties to Israel, missions were launched, only to be re- which they correctly perceive as hav- In order to produce a high- called on direct orders from Washing- ing a significant impact on our rela- quality product, the FSJ depends ton. Seventeen hours passed before tions with them. Attack on the Liberty on the revenue it earns from help arrived. presents compelling information about advertisisng. You can help with this. • President Lyndon Johnson’s sen- a painful aspect of that relationship, ior advisers were deeply divided on without any provocative finger-point- Please let us know the names how to respond, but he accepted Is- ing. It fully merits a careful reading. ■ of companies that have provided rael’s apology for a tragic mistake and god service to you — a hotel, reparations. The survivors were or- Edward Peck, a retired FSO, was chief insurance company, auto dered to remain silent. There was no of mission in Mauritania and Iraq and dealership, or other concern. Israeli investigation, and no Israelis also served in Morocco, Algeria, Tun- A referral from our readers were punished. Nor was there a con- isia and Egypt, among many other as- is the best entrée! gressional investigation. The conduct signments. Ambassador Peck has lec- and findings of a very brief Naval tured at FSI and other U.S. govern- Ed Miltenberger Court of Inquiry have been sharply ment institutions and does other public Advertising & Circulation Manager criticized by key participants. speaking and writing. Resident in Tel: (202) 944-5507 E-mail: [email protected] • The ship’s captain kept his heavily Maryland, he travels extensively in the damaged, partially flooded ship afloat Middle East.

66 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/OCTOBER 2009 67-76_FSJ_1009_AN:firstlook 9/15/09 11:11 AM Page 67

AFSAAmerican Foreign ServiceNEWS Association • October 2009

THIRD EDITION OF POPULAR BOOK WILL BE RELEASED NEXT YEAR AFSA Embraces Role as Publisher BY FRANCESCA KELLY

ow many Foreign Service members have heard the ques- Service. Six years after publication, “What is the Foreign Service, anyway?” Or, “What tion, the book is still in steady Hdo you actually do overseas?” demand, with average sales of One of the biggest hurdles facing the State Department and 400-500 copies a month. To other foreign affairs agencies is the lack of knowledge on the part date, AFSA has sold over 70,000 of the average American about what it is we do at missions copies. abroad. And such a void in understanding can easily be filled Updated and revised in with misperceptions. 2005, Inside a U.S. Embassy AFSA has striven for many years to demystify the public contains Foreign Service stories image of diplomacy. This outreach has included releasing a from around the world, as well number of books, including: Tales of the Foreign Service (Uni- as essays about embassy life versity of South Carolina Press, 1978); Duty & Danger: The and work. These include “day American Foreign Service In Action (booklet, 1988); Inside a U.S. in the life” journals that show Embassy (1995, 1996, 2003, 2005) and The Foreign Service Reader in detail what a typical day is like for people in various embassy (1997). positions, from ambassadors to economic officers and infor- However, it was not until issuing the 2003 edition of Inside a mation management specialists. U.S. Embassy, compiled and edited by FSJ Associate Editor This past spring, as AFSA was making plans to put together Shawn Dorman, that AFSA began to look seriously at market- a new edition of the book, the question arose: Should we find a ing, promoting and distributing its own book about the Foreign Continued on page 74

DIPLOMATIC SECURITY AND HUMAN RESOURCES REVISE FAM with foreign nationals, implications of dual citizenship for the security clear- Foreign Contacts Reporting: An Update ance process and other incidents that employees with clearances must report. AFSA encourages all members to fa- he following is condensed from a closely with AFSA lawyers and accept- miliarize themselves with the new rules, cable by AFSA General Counsel ing many of our suggestions. especially those relating to foreign na- TSharon Papp. For the full text, visit HR has rescinded 3 FAM 4100 Ap- tionals from countries with critical www.afsa.org/contactreporting.cfm. pendix B (old 3 FAM 629, 1988) and de- human intelligence threat posts and For more than five years, AFSA has veloped a new chapter, 3 FAM 4190: travel to critical-threat posts. For a clas- undertaken vigorous efforts to bring Marriage Requirements of an Employee sified list of these countries, see the Se- about a long-overdue update of the reg- to a Foreign National or to a U.S. Citi- curity Environment Threat List, which ulations governing the reporting of for- zen. DS has developed an entire FAM can be accessed on the DS Source Web eign contacts, cohabitation and intent chapter, 12 FAM 270: Security Report- page. Because failure to comply with to marry foreign nationals. The Bu- ing, that is intended to be the primary these regulations can result in the sus- reaus of Diplomatic Security and resource for security reporting require- pension or revocation of your security Human Resources have finally revised ments. 12 FAM 270 covers processes re- clearance, curtailment from post and the Foreign Affairs Manual, working lating to marriage to and cohabitation Continued on page 71

OCTOBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 67 67-76_FSJ_1009_AN:firstlook 9/15/09 11:12 AM Page 68

A F S A AFSANEWSBRIEFS N E W New FSJ Editorial Board Support AFSA with a CFC Gift! S Members Appointed You can easily support AFSA by designating #11759 The new AFSA Governing Board has approved the reappointments and/or #10646 on your Combined Federal Campaign pledge card. This is a great way to support the entire Foreign Serv- of Ted Wilkinson as FSJ Editorial Board Chairman and current board ice community. members Joseph Bruns, Stephen W. Buck, Julie Gianelloni Connor, • The AFSA Scholarship Fund (CFC # 11759) provides Jeff Giauque and George Jones. It also approved the appointments of the merit awards and undergraduate need-based scholarships following new members: May G. Baptista, D. Ian Hopper, Lynn W. Roche, to Foreign Service children to help pay for their college edu- Rima J. Vydmantas and Mary E. Glantz (Governing Board Liaison). cation. Go to www.afsa.org/scholar/CFC11759.cfm for more The new Editorial Board, which will serve for two years, had its first information. meeting on Sept. 15. We welcome our new members and also salute • The Fund for American Diplomacy (CFC #10646) the departing members of the current Editorial Board for their dedicated reaches out to the general public to demonstrate how diplo- service: Jim DeHart, Laurie Kassman, Yvette Malcioln, David McFarland macy is our nation’s first line of defense and how the For- and Al Pessin. eign Service works for America. We target our message to high school and college students, business and community leaders, media and our own FS employees. For more infor- Life in the Foreign Service mation, go to www.afsa.org/CFCFAD.cfm. ■ BY BRIAN AGGELER Annual Art and Book Fair It’s that time of year again! The annual Art and Book Fair, sponsored by the Associates of the American Foreign Service Worldwide, offers an opportunity to hunt for bar- gain books and exotic art treasures. The fair will first open its doors from 2-5 p.m. on Oct. 16, for all badge holders and escorted guests, continuing for this same group Oct. 19-23 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. During the weekends of Oct. 17-18 and 24-25, the fair is open to the general public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The sale takes place in the Exhibit Hall of the Harry S Truman Building. Access is from C Street. Visa, Master- Card and personal checks will be accepted. By special arrangement, Silk Road Imports will sell a variety of im- ported goods on behalf of AAFSW. And the ever-popular Art Corner has been considerably expanded to present a much larger collection of goods from all over the world.

AFSA HEADQUARTERS: Staff: PRESIDENT: Susan R. Johnson Executive Director Ian Houston: [email protected] (202) 338-4045; Fax: (202) 338-6820 STATE VP: Daniel Hirsch Business Department STATE DEPARTMENT AFSA OFFICE: Controller Kalpna Srimal: [email protected] USAID VP: Francisco Zamora (202) 647-8160; Fax: (202) 647-0265 Accounting Assistant Cory Nishi: [email protected] FAS VP: Henry Schmick USAID AFSA OFFICE: Accounting and Administration Assistant Alicia Campi: [email protected] FCS VP: Keith Curtis (202) 712-1941; Fax: (202) 216-3710 Labor Management FCS AFSA OFFICE: General Counsel Sharon Papp: [email protected] RETIREE VP: Robert Houdek (202) 482-9088; Fax: (202) 482-9087 Labor Management Attorney Zlatana Badrich: [email protected] SECRETARY: F.A. “Tex” Harris Labor Management Specialist James Yorke: [email protected] AFSA WEB SITE: www.afsa.org TREASURER: Andrew Winter Grievance Attorney Neera Parikh: [email protected] FSJ: [email protected] Office Manager Christine Warren: [email protected] STATE REPS: Carleton Bulkin, Jorge Delfin, PRESIDENT: [email protected] USAID Senior Labor Management Adviser Douglas Broome: [email protected] Mary Glantz, Les Hickman, Joyce Namde, STATE VP: [email protected] Member Services Julia Stewart, Mike Unglesbee, Sharon White, RETIREE VP: [email protected] Member Services Director Janet Hedrick: [email protected] USAID VP: [email protected] Member Services Representative Michael Laiacona: [email protected] Teresa Yata FAS VP: [email protected] Web Site & Database Associate Geron Pleasant: [email protected] USAID REP: Michael Henning FCS VP: [email protected] Administrative Assistant Ana Lopez: [email protected] FCS REP: Rebecca Balogh Communications, Marketing and Outreach FAS REP: Melinda Sallyards Retiree Liaison Bonnie Brown: [email protected] AFSA News Director of Communications Thomas Switzer: [email protected] IBB REP: Al Pessin Editor Francesca Kelly: [email protected] Legislative Director Casey Frary: [email protected] RETIREE REPS: Executive Assistant to the President Austin Tracy: [email protected] (202) 338-4045, ext. 516; Janice Bay, Robert (Bill) Farrand, Scholarship Director Lori Dec: [email protected] Fax: (202) 338-8244 David Passage, Molly Williamson On the Web: Professional Issues Coordinator Barbara Berger: [email protected] Elderhostel Administrator Bernard Alter: [email protected]

How to Contact Us: to Contact How www.afsa.org/fsj and www.fsjournal.org Marketing & Outreach Manager Asgeir Sigfusson: [email protected] Governing Board:

68 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/OCTOBER 2009 67-76_FSJ_1009_AN:firstlook 9/15/09 11:12 AM Page 69

A F V.P. VOICE: STATE ■ BY DANIEL HIRSCH S A N E W Filling in the Blanks S

uring the course of the past year, in my previous job, I ning, and have already provided us with some excellent per- helped rewrite a portion of the Foreign Affairs Man- spectives on issues important to our members. For example, Dual. It was a lengthy, collaborative process, involving members have proposed that AFSA: coordination with several functional bureaus, other agencies, • Urge the department to implement the provisions of FTR many overseas posts and all regional bureaus. Dozens of pairs 302-14, and offer a home marketing incentive program for of expert eyes repeatedly reviewed our draft from numerous employees who face home-sale losses due to reassignment; perspectives. Every portion was scrutinized, tweaked and • Push for more specialist-generalist conversion opportu- scrutinized again. nities; A week after it was published, I got an e-mail from the field • Promote administrative leave and telecommuting options pointing out a perfectly valid, obvious omission that nobody to enable employees to have a child in the U.S. without burn- had considered. ing annual or sick leave, pursuant to the Federal Employees As that example demonstrates, the rules are not perfect. Paid Parental Leave Act of 2009; Much of what AFSA’s labor management office does is de- • Seek application of the Law Enforcement Officers Safety voted either to pointing out areas that are inadequately ad- Act of 2004 to retired Diplomatic Security agents; dressed, or assisting the many employees affected by situations • Advocate measures enabling diplomatic passport hold- unforeseen by the writers of the rules. ers to transit airport security faster, under a “trusted traveler” In his last column, my predecessor lamented what he called program; management’s hard-line attitudes and unsympathetic insis- • Push for a more level playing field on assignments for dis- tence on applying the most rigid interpretation of the regula- abled employees and those with special-needs dependents; tions, which he blamed for most of the grievances and and employee discontent that AFSA handles. • Encourage State to expand Eligible Family Member em- When problems arise, those who implement the regula- ployment opportunities overseas through telecommuting, en- tions sometimes imply that employees are seeking to “game” abling EFMs at one post to perform work for another post or the system, or have failed to comply with regulations, or that for offices in Washington. something desirable is simply prohibited. Yet often the most The committees meet by e-mail, and are therefore accessi- important question is whether the rules apply fairly to the sit- ble to employees posted overseas. Please join one if you have uations in which employees have been placed. issues you care strongly about, or suggest a focus for a new As it happens, the change of administration in AFSA co- committee. I cannot guarantee that we can change a partic- incides with new management in several of the offices most ular regulation, for there are often good reasons why things involved in employee issues. My initial meetings with those are as they are. But I do guarantee that my office will vigor- managers have convinced me that there is much good will and ously pursue the issues you raise and consult committee much desire to develop and to support the employees who members as we develop positions and take action on issues of carry out State’s mission throughout the world. interest. Visit the State Web page at www.afsa.org for more It is my hope that as these managers settle into their new information. roles, they will resist bureaucratic inertia and will question If your interest is more general, and if you are a State For- and improve — rather than adapt to — the procedures cur- eign Service employee in Washington, I urge you to consider rently in force. joining the State Standing Committee. This group will meet AFSA routinely brings to management’s attention cases regularly to discuss AFSA agenda items. As with the advisory where we feel a rule does not apply, as well as cases where it committees, my office may also consult with Standing Com- might be better for the State Department’s mission to change mittee members as we develop positions on issues. The a rule affecting employees rather than force employees to fol- Standing Committee is more structured, meets physically and low it. will address larger, more general issues. On a related subject, in my last column I announced my However you choose to participate, know this: AFSA can- intention to set up virtual advisory committees to bring is- not truly be the voice of the Foreign Service unless you make sues to AFSA’s attention. These committees are up and run- your own voice heard. ❏

OCTOBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 69 67-76_FSJ_1009_AN:firstlook 9/15/09 11:12 AM Page 70

A F S V.P. VOICE: USAID ■ BY FRANCISCO ZAMORA Briefs • Continued from page 68 A AFSA Joins Facebook N Where Does USAID Fit? We are happy to report that AFSA E has joined the social networking world by establishing its own Facebook page. W We encourage all of our members, and S s an agency that is unaccustomed to being in the other interested parties, to visit the page limelight, USAID does not often show up on the av- and become “fans” of AFSA. To do so, erage citizen’s radar screen. In spite of some truly A simply go to www.facebook.com, type significant successes worldwide, we do not toot our own “American Foreign Service Association” horn. Indeed, most people would be hard pressed to define what USAID is. into the search box and then click the This sad fact is invariably mentioned by the seven public members who serve on “Become a Fan” button at the top of the our yearly Performance Evaluation Boards. Impressed by what they read in the AFSA page. You can also go directly to Annual Evaluation Forms, these private citizens spontaneously vow to talk to their the AFSA page by visiting www. colleagues about the great work we perform for our country. facebook.com/afsapage. One reason for our invisibility is a regulatory prohibition on lobbying the gen- We will use the Facebook page as an- eral public and Congress. Another reason is that the media prefer to focus on prob- other way of getting information to our lems, not accomplishments. members by posting links to news items But perhaps the main reason is that no one seems to know just where USAID of interest, sending reminders about fits in the federal picture. upcoming deadlines, alerting you about In the past, with USAID or its predecessor in the lead, foreign assistance pro- a new issue of grams in health, agriculture, education, business, housing and democracy helped the Foreign rebuild wartorn Europe, kept the communist threat in check, reconciled ancient Service Journal, enemies and provided emergency assistance to countries suffering natural disasters. However, once the Cold War ended, we cashed in our peace dividend and slashed notifying you our programs and staff. of upcoming While the 21st century saw a doubling of foreign assistance, this did not trans- AFSA events late into a strengthening of the agency. Instead, a large part of this new funding and posting shifted to the State Department, the Millennium Challenge Corporation and even pictures the military. Ironically, the powers-that-be did not trust the agency and, in effect, from AFSA- replaced it with new programs and agencies. related cer- Of late, we finally have renewed support from both the executive and legislative emonies branches of government to expand our staff and in-house expertise. We are now and events. considered part of the national security trident: Defense, Diplomacy and Devel- We also hope to have input from opment. We should be happy, right? members about how we use the page in Yes and no. Yes, because USAID is finally getting recognized for our essential the future. service to the country. No, because there is an internecine government struggle regarding our ultimate level of independence. On the one side, the State Depart- We encourage people to post comment is pulling us closer by increasing control of the budget, policy and planning ments and observations. (Please be functions; on the other, Congress is introducing legislation to strengthen these ac- civil; otherwise we will have to call the tivities at USAID. Facebook police.) The page is being ad- Senators John Kerry, D-Mass., Richard Lugar, R-Ind., Robert Menendez, D-N.J., ministered by Marketing and Outreach Bob Corker, R-Tenn., James Risch, R-Idaho, and Benjamin Cardin, D-Md. — three Manager Ásgeir Sigfússon; any com- Democrats and three Republicans — introduced the Foreign Assistance Revital- ments or questions about the page may ization and Accountability Act of 2009 (S. 1524). And in the House, Rep. Howard be directed to him at sigfusson@ Berman, D-Calif., who is chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, afsa.org. drafted the Initiating Foreign Assistance Reform Act of 2009 (H.R. 2139). Members may also want to become Both these bills have the aim of overhauling and reforming foreign assistance — fans of AFSA’s other pages on Facebook: correcting the damage done by the constant earmarking and the fragmentation the Foreign Service Journal, our Inside a and dispersal of aid programs to other agencies. The winner of this tug-of-war will U.S. Embassy book and the national answer the question of where USAID fits. Will USAID simply be an appendage of the State Department, or will we be entrusted to manage the whole set of develop- high school essay contest all have their ❏ ment tools ourselves? Stay tuned… ❏ own Facebook pages.

70 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/OCTOBER 2009 67-76_FSJ_1009_AN:firstlook 9/15/09 11:12 AM Page 71

A 12TH GRADER WRITES ON ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT school students across the country and F abroad. AFSA promotes the contest S Sec. Clinton Hails widely through direct mailings to social A studies teachers, as well as through list- AFSA Essay Contest Winner ings on various Web sites, including N Facebook. In that way teachers, as well BY TOM SWITZER, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS as students, are made more aware of the E role of the Foreign Service. W ecretary of State Hillary Rodham essay on the subject, “Challenges to the The 2009 contest generated more S Clinton presented the first-place U.S. Foreign Service: The Israeli-Pales- than 250 submissions from high school Saward for AFSA’s 2009 National tinian Conflict.” Lynn Parker, Brian’s students nationwide. Students were High School Essay Contest to Brian mother, and Sharon Cohen, his teacher asked to analyze and explain how For- Parker on June 14. Brian, a 12th-grader and mentor, were also received by Sec. eign Service members promote U.S. na- at Springbrook High School in Silver Clinton. tional interests by participating in the Spring, Md., submitted his winning Thirty finalists received honorable resolution of today’s major interna- mention certificates for tional problems. their excellent essays. An The contest is open to all students in AFSA advisory panel of grades nine through 12 attending a pub- judges selected the win- lic, private, parochial or home school, or ners. This year’s win- participating in a high school corre- ning essay was deemed spondence program anywhere in the one of the most out- U.S., as well as U.S. citizen students at- standing submissions in tending schools overseas. Students the history of the contest. whose parents are members of the U.S. The first-place award Foreign Service or have served on the comes with a check for advisory committee are not eligible. $2,500. AFSA consultant Perri Green de- The goal of AFSA’s serves much credit for ably administer- High School Essay Con- ing the contest since its inception in test, now in its tenth year, 1999. For more information about the is to stimulate interest in essay contest and to read this year’s win- MICHAEL GROSS Sec. Clinton presents the first-place 2009 essay award to Brian Parker, a Foreign Service career ning essay, please go to www.afsa.org/ on June 14. AFSA President Susan Johnson is at right. among American high essaycontest. ❏

Foreign Contacts • Continued from page 67

disciplinary action, seek the advice of the Regional Security Of- ciated with foreign intelligence; and reporting a contact any ficer or your agency’s security office if in doubt about whether time that “illegal or unauthorized access is sought to classified to report. AFSA attorneys are also available to give confidential or sensitive information.” advice regarding these issues. Contact reports should be made within one business day of The regulations cited below apply to all employees and con- the contact, using online Form DS-1887. The new rules define tractors under chief-of-mission authority as well as State De- what DS considers to be a contact, which includes e-mail, text partment employees and contractors assigned to the United messaging and chat rooms. If an employee is unsure whether States. Employees of other foreign affairs agencies serving in to report a contact, he or she must do so. the United States should check with their agency’s security of- The requirement to report relationships with foreign na- fices for reporting requirements, or contact AFSA’s attorneys tionals from non-critical HUMINT threat countries involving for guidance. continuing romantic or sexual intimacy has been eliminated. However, DS may legitimately question employees about such Foreign Contract Reporting Requirements relationships, which could affect an employee’s security clear- Key requirements of the 12 FAM 262 and 12 FAM 274 reg- ance or assignments. ulations include reporting unofficial contacts from critical HUMINT threat posts if both parties agree to a second meet- Requirement to Report Certain Personal Travel ing; reporting “contact and/or associations with persons or or- 12 FAM 264 and 12 FAM 276 advise that U.S. government ganizations who the employee knows or suspects advocate the employees at post must notify the RSO at least two weeks in unlawful overthrow of the U.S. government,” or who are asso- Continued on page 74

OCTOBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 71 67-76_FSJ_1009_AN:firstlook 9/15/09 11:12 AM Page 72

A F S Visual Diplomacy: Bringing Art to Embassies A BY FRANCESCA KELLY

N porate and private collections, galleries, E museums and individual artists, to be W displayed in the public rooms of more S than 180 American diplomatic residences overseas. Each exhibit is on view for a period of two to three years, to co- incide with an ambassador’s tenure. (“Rural Texas,” the painting that was in Stockholm, has just returned home; a new exhibit will follow the next U.S. ambassador to Sweden.) One reason this loan program is so successful, according to Senior Curator WERNER HUTHMACHER Robert Soppelsa, is because AIEP works Sol LeWitt, “Wall Drawing #1256: Five Pointed Stars,” acrylic paint, installed in 2008 at the American Embassy in Berlin. Gift of the artist through FAPE, made possible by The Honorable Ronald S. Lauder “in collaboration with incoming am- and Mrs. Jo Carole Lauder. A team of artists worked together to install the work. bassadors to come up with a theme for an exhibit, which can be related to the n Stockholm, a city where the light is The American art that appears in political, cultural or even geographical diffuse at best and almost nonexist- these and other U.S. missions overseas is climate of the host country and its rela- Ient in winter, a 1932 oil painting by there due to the State Department’s Art tion to the United States.” American artist Edward G. Eisenlohr in Embassies Program, complemented Since 2005, AIEP’s mission has ex- (1872-1961) was recently displayed in by the Foundation for Art and Preserva- panded to overseeing all facets of build- the library of the U.S. ambassador’s res- tion in Embassies. Although their goals ing a permanent art collection for newly idence. The painting, “Rural Texas,” was often overlap, the two operate quite dif- constructed U.S. missions worldwide. on loan from the Panhandle Plains His- ferently. As an integral part of the department’s torical Museum in Canyon, Texas, The Art in Embassies Program, es- cultural exchange effort, AIEP also has through the State Department’s Art in tablished in 1963 as a part of the U.S. established relationships with thou- Embassies Program. It depicts a land- Department of State and currently sands of artists and dealers domestically scape very different from the Scandina- under the Bureau of Overseas Buildings and internationally. This broadened vian urban environment outside the Operations, plays a vital role in our na- function unites American culture and residence windows. tion’s public diplomacy through a cul- that of the host country in ongoing Eisenlohr chose warm desert colors to turally expansive series of temporary artistic conversation by including local portray a Southwestern canyon, and the exhibits and permanent collections. For talent. For example, a new collection in oil-on-canvas features hues of salmon its temporary exhibits, AIEP arranges Beijing features Chinese and American and terra cotta for the rock face, con- for the loan of American art from cor- artists. trasted by blue-gray shadows and green AIEP provides international audi- trees dotting the landscape. The effect is ences “with a sense of the quality, scope one of heat and brilliant sunlight. and diversity of American art and Thousands of miles south, an out- culture.” Internationally known artists door stone installation by New York such as Martin Puryear and Jasper Johns artist Elyn Zimmerman stands in the share the spotlight with emerging artists. courtyard of Embassy Dar es Salaam, The vast majority of art in Ameri- commissioned by the Foundation for can missions abroad is accomplished Art and Preservation in Embassies as through this vital program.

part of the newly constructed mission. IN EMBASSIES ART The Foundation for Art and Preser- Made up of a circle of African red gran- Mickalene Thomas, “Girlfriends and Lovers,” vation in Embassies was established as a 2008, acrylic, enamel and rhinestones on ite sculptures surrounding a shallow panel. Currently in AIEP’s “Contemporary nonprofit organization in 1986 as a re- pool, the large-scale 2004 work is titled African-American Artists” exhibit at the Waldorf sponse and a complement to the State “Assembly of Friends.” The cool, trick- Astoria, the residence of the U.S. ambassador Department’s cultural diplomacy en- to the United Nations, New York. On loan cour- ling water provides a fluid contrast to tesy of the artist and the Rhona Hoffman deavors. Founders Leonore Annenberg, the solidity of the towering figures. Gallery, Chicago, Ill. Wendy W. Luers and Carol Price had

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A F served overseas as spouses of ambassa- S dors. They, along with co-founder Lee A Kimche McGrath, had seen the need for more permanent American art in U.S. N ambassadorial residences, but their vision soon widened to include all official E American buildings overseas. FAPE fo- W cuses largely on commissioning works S from contemporary American artists — works that are specifically designed to become a permanent part of a particular space. The foundation has expanded, do- nating American works of art to more

than 70 countries, and is currently fund- IN EMBASSIES ART ing site-specific installations through its Works by American and Chinese artists dazzle visitors and employees alike in the Embassy Beijing atrium. Russell Crotty, three spheres, 2004, pencil, paper and mixed media on Lucite: “Sands of Time,” Art in New Embassies program in 48” diam., “Looking for Baade’s Widow,” 36” diam., “Western Skies,” 72” diam.; Cai guo-Qiang, “Eagle Kingston, Mumbai, New York, Beijing Landing on Pine Branch,” 2007, gunpowder on paper mounted on five-panel screen (bottom left); and Guangzhou. Other programs Qin Feng, “West Wind East Water,” 2006, oil on canvas (bottom right). opened by FAPE include the Leonore and Walter Annenberg Award for Diplo- without spending public funds, thanks priate space for the permanent installa- macy through the Arts and the Lee Kim- to the generosity of FAPE’s artists and tion. One current project is a giant che McGrath Original Print Collection. private American citizens.” mural by Dorothea Rockburne that is In 2001, FAPE assembled an un- FAPE also provides financial support being readied for shipment to Embassy precedented collection called “Gift to for restoration projects, such as preserv- Kingston. The work, depicting the night the Nation” comprised of 245 American ing the ancient statues on the embassy sky, honors former Secretary of State artworks representing more than 145 grounds in Rome and refurbishing the Colin Powell, whose family hails from artists. These works have been placed Marshall Center, which once served as Jamaica. in permanent locations in embassies the headquarters of the Marshall Plan, Although their organizational struc- around the world. in the 18th-century Hotel de Talleyrand tures are different, AIEP and FAPE are “FAPE is unique,” says Director Jen- in Paris. alike in one important way: each has nifer Duncan. “As a nonprofit support- FAPE carefully selects artists when found a unique way to engage in diplo- ing a government agency, it is able to commissioning contemporary artwork, macy through the arts. Says Duncan: provide the State Department with per- collaborating with an architectural proj- “Art is a universal language that tran- manent, monumental works of art, ect team from OBO to locate an appro- scends borders. Our gifts enhance our nation’s presence overseas by affording people from other countries insights into our cultural traditions.” Next time you find yourself at the ambassador’s holiday party or wander- ing through the gardens of an embassy compound, you may want to point out the art exhibits and sculpture installations to international guests. A lot of thought, time and funding, as well as hard work from the folks at both AIEP and FAPE, go into our nation’s “visual diplomacy.” For more information on the Art in Embassies Program, please visit http://aiep.state.gov. To find out more about the Founda- tion for Art and Preservation in Em- FOUNDATION FOR ART AND PRESERVATION IN EMBASSIES AND PRESERVATION FOR ART FOUNDATION Elyn Zimmerman, “Mkusanyiko wa Marafiki/Assembly of Friends,” 2004, African red granite. Gift of bassies, please go to www.fapeglobal. the artist to U.S. Embassy Dar es Salaam through FAPE. org. ❏

OCTOBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 73 67-76_FSJ_1009_AN:firstlook 9/15/09 11:12 AM Page 74

F Publisher • Continued from page 67 Foreign Contacts • Continued from page 71 S A “real” publisher or continue to publish it ourselves? Initial advance of personal travel to any country with a critical queries to several publishers brought strong interest. HUMINT threat post. State Department employees sta- And, when Dorman attended an international studies con- tioned domestically should directly notify DS’s Office of N ference in New York City, she found enthusiastic interest from Counter Intelligence. Domestic employees of other foreign E a number of academic publishers there. affairs agencies should contact their agency’s security of- W But she had what she describes as an “aha!” moment — “a fice. S little like the end of The Wizard of Oz,” as Dorman puts it — as she sat with an editor from a small publishing house look- Reporting Requirements for Employees with ing out over the exhibit hall filled with dozens of publishers. SCI Access “But you’re already a publisher,” the wise editor said. “Why Please see 12 FAM 264.2(g) about the special security ob- would you want to give your book away? They’ll give you $1 ligations required of employees having access to sensitive a book, when you could be making $10.” compartmented information. Still, it took several months of research and negotiations with a number of publishers, leading to five firm offers, to con- Reporting Requirements for Employees Who Intend vince AFSA that, indeed, there’s no place like home. to Marry or Cohabit with a Foreign National “I realized that not only do we know the core market for DS has shortened the time period for reporting intent to this book, but we’re probably already reaching it,” explains marry to 90 days. Reporting your intent to marry or cohabit Dorman. “Having embraced the fact that AFSA is a small pub- with a foreign national is intended to allow DS to provide lisher — now called ‘Foreign Service Books’ — we are plan- you with a determination on whether the intended relation- ning to consider more book projects after the next edition of ship may have an adverse impact on your security clearance, Inside a U.S. Embassy is completed.” and for HR to do the same for your career — before you take And, of course, AFSA will continue, as it has for the past 85 action. 12 FAM 275 contains new details. years, to publish the Foreign Service Journal. Employees must submit a security package and obtain AFSA did not altogether abandon the idea of working with approval from the chief of mission or principal officer prior a publisher to help give the book a wider reach, however. As to cohabiting with a foreign national (or a U.S citizen who is of Aug. 1, Potomac Books, Inc., took over distribution of the not on your orders) in U.S. government-provided housing. current edition of Inside a U.S. Embassy, in an arrangement (Domestic employees must submit a security package to DS that should provide the best of both worlds. Potomac will also within 30 days from the start of a cohabitation relationship be the exclusive distributor for the new edition. with a foreign national.) Potomac Books is a good fit for AFSA. Formerly part of Seeking approval to cohabitate is separate and distinct the British publishing house Brassey’s Ltd., the Northern Vir- from declaring a member of household to the COM under ginia-based company publishes books on U.S. and world his- 3 FAM 4181. tory, intelligence studies, sports, security studies and inter- Regardless of duty location, DS will conduct appropriate national affairs. checks on the intended foreign national cohabitant or Inside a U.S. Embassy is one of AFSA’s best outreach tools, spouse. and helps fulfill AFSA’s mission to educate the public about the role of the Foreign Service and diplomacy. The book is on Other Reporting Requirements the syllabus for more than 40 university courses and is used for There are several additional reporting requirements of a number of military training courses, as well. A Chinese pub- which employees should be aware, including financial issues, lisher wants to issue a Mandarin-language edition of the book. such as bankruptcy; arrests; and applications for foreign cit- In addition, U.S. embassies have purchased hundreds of izenship. Please see 12 FAM 270 for details. copies for representational use, and the State Department’s recruiting division uses the book for outreach and education. Possible Consequences of Not Reporting Their bulk orders have helped sustain the book program, and Failure to report foreign contacts, travel to a critical- AFSA is grateful for their longstanding support. threat country, or intent to marry/cohabit may result in the Finally, the book has inspired those curious about a Foreign employee’s curtailment from post, suspension/revocation of Service career to take the next crucial steps in getting hired. security clearance, and/or disciplinary action. Accordingly, At our July recruitment lunch for newly minted Foreign Serv- when in doubt report the contact or call one of AFSA’s at- ice generalists, where AFSA was offering complimentary torneys for confidential guidance. copies of Inside a U.S. Embassy, an entry-level officer was over- If you wish to speak with an AFSA attorney about any of heard commenting to his friends, “That book changed my these situations, please direct your questions to General life.” Counsel Sharon Papp or AFSA Labor Management Attor- Find more information about Inside a U.S. Embassy and a ney Zlatana Badrich at (202) 647-8160 or [email protected] link to Potomac Books at www.afsa.org/inside. ❏ or [email protected]. ❏

74 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/OCTOBER 2009 67-76_FSJ_1009_AN:firstlook 9/15/09 11:11 AM Page 75

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A F S A CLASSIFIEDS N E W TEMPORARY HOUSING REAL ESTATE SHOPPING S DC FURNISHED EXTENDED STAY in SARASOTA, FL. PAUL BYRNES, FSO SELLING YOUR VEHICLE? Penn Quarter/Chinatown. The Lansburgh, retired, and Loretta Friedman, Coldwell BUYING A VEHICLE? 425 8th Street, NW. 1BR and 2BR apart- Banker, offer vast real estate experience in Since 1979, Steve Hart has been helping ments w/fully equipped kitchens, CAC & assisting diplomats. Enjoy gracious living, Foreign Service members with their auto- heat, high-speed Internet, digital cable TV no state income tax, and a current “buyer’s motive buying and selling needs. w/ HBO, fitness center w/indoor pool, resi- market.” Tel: (941) 377-8181. AUTO BUYING SERVICE dent business center, 24-hour reception E-mail: [email protected] (Paul) BUYS and SELLS desk, full concierge service, secure parking or [email protected] (Loretta). ALL MAKES AND MODELS available, controlled-entry building, 30-day Steve Hart, Auto Buying Service 2971 minimum stay. 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Each unit is furnished with a full- U.S. AUTOMOBILE PARTS WORLD- size washer and dryer, fully equipped WIDE: Express Parts has over 30 years’ ex- kitchen with cherry cabinets, granite counter BOOKS perience shipping original and aftermarket and stainless steel appliances, cable, wire- parts for U.S. specification vehicles. Give us less Internet, security system and a shared, THE AAFSW ANNUAL ART & BOOK- the year, make, model and serial number of private, enclosed backyard. Utilities in- FAIR opens on Oct. 16 (2-5 p.m.) for all your car and we will supply the parts you cluded. Garage parking available. Special- State badge-holders and escorted guests. need. ized in renting to government employees on It continues from Oct. 19-23 (11 a.m.-3 Tel: (440) 234-8381. Fax: (440) 234-2660. detail, we work with per diem. Contact p.m.) for this same group. 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The ad placement is for two E-mail: [email protected] Tel: (703) 471-7818 or (800) 871-2535. weeks. The E-Classifieds are posted al- www.carepharmacies.com most immediately, especially helpful for E-mail: [email protected] FSOs who are always on the go. 110 / 220 VOLT PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD: REAL ESTATE TRANSFORMERS, MULTI-SYSTEM TV, $1.40/word (10-word minimum). First SERENE EQUESTRIAN HOME ETC. 3 words bolded free, additional bold text 85¢/ word. Header or box-shading $12 GREAT FALLS, VIRGINIA, near DC. Re- VISIT EMBASSY SHOWROOM each. Deadline for text: 5 weeks ahead laxing casual contemporary home with 5810 Seminary Road of publication date. soaring ceilings. 5.5 acres; pool, barn, Falls Church, VA 22041 Adv. Mgr. Tel: (202) 577-3588. great pastures. Realtor.com - FX7095368. Tel: (703) 845-0800 Fax: (202) 647-0265. $1,990,000. Owner Broker. E-mail: sandy E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] [email protected] Tel: (703) 509-5253.

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OCTOBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 79 77-80_FSJ_1009_RE:proof 9/8/09 6:33 PM Page 80

REFLECTIONS

Throwing in the Towel in Casablanca

BY MICHAEL VARGA

he first months of my assign- the king’s own words, or someone in ment to Morocco’s commercial The students weren’t the Interior Ministry had been tipped Tcapital were a disappointment. willing to give up off and pressured him to abandon the Like any young man who has seen project. And I accepted that this prob- Humphrey Bogart’s “Casablanca,” I that easily. ably meant the end of the production. was prepared for romance, intrigue ― The students weren’t willing to give maybe even a little unconventional re- up that easily. We were just a few porting. Instead I collected data on the weeks from opening night, and they in- Moroccan fishing fleet as it battled The students had asked my permis- sisted that I step in as director. Russian trawlers overfishing just off sion to rewrite some of the lines for the In the end, overflowing crowds re- shore. And I investigated textile ex- overbearing overseer — a nasty char- warded the students with ovations each ports to the U.S. that originated in the acter who never appears on stage but is night. In the heart of noisy, smelly city’s sweatshops but were labeled a barking voice ordering them around Casablanca, they brought to life the “Made in Indonesia.” Not exactly the — substituting the king’s pronounce- plight of farm workers in forgotten stirring highlights for a memorable ments. fields who fought against “throwing in tour. But then things got interesting. It was risky, and I didn’t want the the towel.” The students escaped any One day I returned after a morning students to get into trouble. Since the punishment from the government and at the port with the Fisheries Research play would be performed in English, relished their little moment of flicking Center’s director to find a message to they were sure that most French- the king’s nose. call “Fouad” (not his real name), a pro- speaking/Arabic-speaking Casablan- Now in retirement, I often think fessor of English language at Hassan II cans would be oblivious to their clever back on that tour in Casablanca. And University. Students there had decided ploy. But it would heighten their satis- every now and then I dig out the play to produce a play I’d written about mi- faction in performing, they told me. and remember how the students threw grant farm workers who had slipped When I returned Fouad’s call, he themselves into it, becoming migrant into America, mostly from Cuba and told me that he was bowing out as the farm workers in America, struggling to Haiti, dreaming of “the good life.” In- play’s director. He didn’t have suffi- escape unpleasant pasts and dreaming stead, they wound up on the circuit of cient time to rehearse, he said. This of new lives, free of an overbearing boss. following the seasons, traveling from was a radical turnabout. Fouad had Paging through the album, I notice Florida to Wisconsin, harvesting fruit, been excited about working on the play again that Fouad is not in any of the vegetables and even Christmas trees and was using it as an exercise for his photos. And I ponder the fact that for pitiful wages, all the while falling students to master some unique idioms while I was mystified by his sudden deeper into debt. (“throwing in the towel” was one the change of heart, the students seemed to At the time, Morocco’s king — Has- migrants often used as the sun beat too know in their souls why he withdrew. ■ san II — was trying to build the third- hot and the quota looked impossible to largest mosque in the world and was meet). Some students who were not Michael Varga served in the United graciously allowing Moroccan citizens even in the play were writing term pa- Arab Emirates, Syria, Morocco and the opportunity to contribute to the ef- pers about phrasing differences among Canada. His stories and essays have fort. In other words, people were being the characters. appeared in a wide array of journals, shaken down in every quartier of the I suspected that either Fouad had and four of his plays have been pro- country for donations. gotten cold feet about the daring use of duced and one published.

80 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/OCTOBER 2009 C1-C4_FSJ_1009_COV:proof 9/8/09 3:33 PM Page c3 C1-C4_FSJ_1009_COV:proof 9/8/09 3:33 PM Page c4