Lately I’ve been reflecting on ethics in government. Have you? Ethics definitely apply to public diplomacy, but how? The guidelines that I can find remind me of a very old joke, usually told by an aging male. “When we got married, I made it clear to my wife that I would handle the important decisions…
First Monday Forum attendees got a panoramic view of U.S. public diplomacy over the past 70 years through the practiced eye of Dr. Vivian Walker, Executive Director of the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy. Previewing the Commission’s annual recommendations to the U.S. Congress and public, due out in about one week, Dr. Walker…
Ambassador Linda Jewell, who died November 18, was treasurer of the Public Diplomacy Council and a longstanding board member, active up to the time of her passing. She was one of the most distinguished public diplomacy officers of that generation in charge when the U.S. Information Agency was abolished and incorporated into the State Department…
Our People and Our Values Are the Core of U.S. International Leadership A Statement by PDC and PDAA Boards of Directors October 31, 2019 As Board members of the Public Diplomacy Council and the Public Diplomacy Association of America, non-partisan organizations of professionals committed to U.S. global leadership, we support all public servants who…
When you’re my age, twenty years pass in the blink of an eye. On an autumn day in 1999, I was standing by a bank of elevators watching office furniture exiting the U.S. Information Agency (USIA) building in Southwest Washington, enroute to its new location in the State Department. I was deputy director of USIA’s…
That will be the question tomorrow when the senior public diplomacy official, Michelle Giuda, appears before the Advisory Commission for Public Diplomacy to discuss the ongoing merger of two bureaus under her aegis. The Council is co-hosting this event with the Advisory Commission at at George Washington University Elliott School’s Lindner Family Commons, 1957 E…
Eugene Kopp, who served twice as Deputy Director of USIA (1973-1977 and 1989-1992) and as Acting Director in 1976 -1977, died on Monday, May 13, 2019, of cardiac arrest. Mr. Kopp, a political appointee of Republican Presidents, engendered an unusual degree of respect and affection from a generation of government employees working in public diplomacy. …
Last week offered two glimpses of U.S. public diplomacy’s gradual evolution. The State Department received confirmation that a merger between two of its three public diplomacy bureaus will move ahead. International Information Programs and the Public Affairs bureau will become the Bureau of Global Public Affairs. A less visible but deeper change went public Thursday,…
Exchange of persons programs “are a lot like dark matter.” That was Dr. Allan Goodman’s assertion at the “Hard Case for Soft Power” panel discussion at American University. They’re hard to see, but critical to U.S. “soft power.” Goodman and four other speakers filled a large conference room at the SIS on Monday, February 25…
Joe B. Johnson consults on government communication and technology after a career in the United States Foreign Service. He is an instructor for the National Foreign Affairs Training Center, where he teaches strategic planning for public diplomacy. Read More