http://theorthodoxchurch.info/blog/news/2014/04/patriarch-kirill-meets-rossotrudnichestvo-federal-agency-director-k-kosachev/

"I was a mid-level officer in the Public Diplomacy cone, and how dare I think or write about world events and policy?"

--Noziglia; image from

"They are making a hashtag of our foreign policy."

--Paterrico's Pontifications, regarding the use of Twitter by the State Department

U.S. DIPLOMACY CENTER

Department of State and GSA Announce Contract for Construction of U.S. Diplomacy Center - Media Note, Office of the Spokesperson, Washington, DC, May 1, 2014, state.gov: "Today, the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced the award of a $25 million contract to begin construction of the U.S. Diplomacy Center—the nation’s first museum and education center devoted exclusively to exploring the history, practice, and challenges of U.S. Diplomacy. The project is privately funded with donations to build a 21st century, state-of-the-art glass pavilion


that will become a new public entrance at the Department of State’s headquarters. ... Situated only two blocks from the National Mall, the new U.S. Diplomacy Center pavilion will provide an exciting new educational destination for visitors to Washington, D.C. It will house interactive technology and exhibits to foster an engaging environment where the public can learn about the importance of diplomacy and those who practice it. The project is funded by private institutional and individual donors through the Diplomacy Center Foundation. In 2000, a group of former diplomats formed the Diplomacy Center Foundation with the goal of raising money to build a public facility to honor U.S. diplomacy. The project has enjoyed the support of all subsequent Secretaries as part of an effort to highlight the importance of U.S. diplomacy." Image from

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

Obama in Asia: Words and Deeds - Gregory Kulacki, allthingsnuclear.org: "President Obama often mentions the 'new model of relations' he is seeking with China, and he told the Japanese press that both nations 'have to resist the danger of slipping into conflict.' But his visit focused almost exclusively on the military steps his administration is taking to address that danger. ... The interests of the United States 


in Asia would be better served by offering a more honest, constructive and balanced mix of words and deeds that both China and its neighbors found encouraging. That would be easier if the President took the Senate’s advice, and used his influence in the region to shift the discussion about Asia’s future away from intractable historical disputes that an earlier generation of Asian leaders wisely set aside in order to focus on increasing economic opportunity, improving public diplomacy and facilitating regional cooperation. Image from entry, with caption: President Obama addresses U.S. forces in South Korea during his recent trip to Asia.
Kerry’s Propaganda War on Russia’s RT- Ray McGovern, Consortium News: "Kerry was warned three years ago by his predecessor of the steady strides being made by RT – as well as Al-Jazeera and CCTV (the new English-language programming set up by China). At a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee with then-Sen. Kerry in the chair, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lamented that the U.S. is 'losing the information war,' and added that she finds watching RT 'quite instructive.' Are Kerry and Clinton unable to grasp that the U.S. corporate media’s regurgitation of the manifold and manifestly deceitful justifications for U.S. actions abroad is the main reason why RT and others are gaining on us? Despite awesome advances in communications technology, it remains difficult to make a silk purse out of a pig’s ear, which is often what U.S. policies abroad are, especially to the people of the targeted countries. It is easy to blame 'Russian propaganda' for just about everything, including the public distrust of the endless propaganda pouring forth from Official Washington and its 'fawning corporate media.' But people tire of the constant spin from U.S. officials and the one-sided coverage by the U.S. mainstream press. I may be naïve about this, but I think people really do prefer the truth. Yet, it is in vogue to blame Washington’s loss of credibility on Kremlin propaganda. ... After years leading CIA’s Soviet Foreign Policy Branch, I know what effective propaganda looks like. The 'public diplomacy' effort led by Kerry and his merry propagandists at the State Department is a poor facsimile. True, Soviet propagandists played fast and loose with the truth – as all propagandists do. But they were pros at it, which led them, inter alia, to avoid embarrassing their government for the short-term gain of 24-hour spin. President Barack Obama needs to have a counseling session with Kerry, who could not resist the temptation to run with the spurious story on new registration requirements for Jews in pro-Russian eastern Ukraine. Nor could he pass up the chance to be able, finally, to adduce 'proof' of Russian soldiers in eastern Ukraine by citing photos front-paged by the New York Times, with the photos and story very quickly debunked and retracted."

Who’s the Propagandist: US or RT? - Robert Parry, globalresearch.ca: "The U.S. State Department, which has been caught promoting a series of false or dubious stories about Ukraine, is trying to give some substance to Secretary of State John Kerry’s counter-complaint that Russia’s RT network is a 'propaganda bullhorn' promoting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s 'fantasy.' In a 'Dipnote' of April 29, Richard Stengel, under secretary of state for public diplomacy, made some broad-brush criticisms of RT’s content – accusing the network of painting 'a dangerous and false picture of Ukraine’s legitimate government' by citing examples of fascism, anti-Semitism and terrorism surrounding the Kiev regime. Stengel claims he knows the difference between news and propaganda because he spent seven years as managing editor of Time. He defines propaganda as 'the deliberate dissemination of information that you know to be false or misleading in order to influence an audience' and asserts: 'RT is a distortion machine, not a news organization.' But Stengel offers no specific citations of the supposedly propagandistic stories done by RT, making it impossible to ascertain the precise wording or context of the RT content that he is criticizing. One basic rule of journalism is 'show, don’t tell,' but Stengel apparently didn’t learn that during his seven years in the top echelon of Time magazine. ... As for Stengel’s office of 'public diplomacy,' it is a segment of the State Department that I have personally dealt with since the 1980s during my days covering the Reagan administration’s Central America policies for the Associated Press and Newsweek. Back then, some of us referred to the 'PD' office as 'the office of propaganda and disinformation' because of the endless distortions and lies generated in support of U.S.-backed 'death squad' regimes in El Salvador and Guatemala and for Ronald Reagan’s beloved Nicaraguan Contra rebels who fairly could be called 'terrorist' given their proclivity for slaughtering and raping Nicaraguan civilians and for collaborating with cocaine traffickers to make money on the side. ... That Stengel, the current master of the State Department’s 'public diplomacy' operation, is now offended by what he considers 'propaganda' by RT has to be considered one of the purest expressions of hypocrisy in the long history of U.S. government hypocrisy." See also (1)

'You Must Hate RT!' Demands Latest State Department Propaganda - Daniel McAdams, ronpaulinstitute.org: "State Department watchers will have noticed over the past several weeks a noticeable up tick in the frequency of English-language propaganda dispatched from the Department obviously aimed at a US audience. Packaged as 'DipNotes,' these missives have become so at odds with objective reality that one wonders whether State.gov has somehow been hacked. The latest 'DipNote' is a full-frontal attack on the 24 hour news channel, RT. Leaving aside the matter of whether the US taxpayer should be forced to fund its diplomats attacking overseas media (while the Department itself funds entire networks of overseas media as long as they toe the US government line), the attack itself comes off as bizarre, shrill, and almost desperate. ... What really riles the State Department about RT is that the latter dares to feature guests and opinions that challenge the US government and US mainstream media line on a variety of issues. Independent-minded guests like Ron Paul, Dennis Kucinich, Lawrence Wilkerson, various Cato Institute and Reason employees, and many others whose opinions and perspectives are nearly completely ignored by the US mainstream media often find themselves welcome on RT. Individuals who challenge the warfare-welfare state in the US are often featured on RT. Those opinions are important to hear and consider regardless of whom is funding the network."

Can Congress Make Journalists Do Propaganda? A House bill seeks to change Voice of America from a news provider to a U.S. promoter - Alex Brown, nationaljournal.com: “It's not often the U.S.government tries to emulate its Russian counterparts. But a bill currently making its way through the House directs a U.S.-funded news outlet to mirror the Kremlin's propaganda machine. Russia's incursion into Ukraine has been backed with strong messaging, said Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, and the U.S. needs to counter-message. ‘The Russian propaganda machine is now in overdrive in its attempts to undermine regional stability,’ Royce said after the International Communications Reform Act passed his committee. ‘U.S. broadcasters are competing with a hand tied behind their back.’


Royce's bill changes the mission of Voice of America, a federally funded news outlet that provides radio broadcasts and Internet media around the globe. VOA says its mission is to provide ‘accurate, objective, and comprehensive news,’ especially in closed societies. One government official who has worked on international broadcasting issues described VOA's role as ‘putting itself out of business.’ While it provides citizens with information they wouldn't otherwise get, its goal is to produce free and open societies where VOA is no longer needed. ‘[VOA is] providing the news and information that societies lack,’ said the official. ‘It operates where the media doesn't exist, or where it's constrained, or where people don't have access.... It creates an environment in which the people are empowered, because it doesn't just disseminate information; it creates a conversation.’ But Royce thinks that role needs to change. ‘This legislation makes clear that the Voice of America mission is to support U.S. public diplomacy efforts,’ said his release. RT, Russia's propaganda outlet, trolled VOA in a Wednesday post. ‘Reform legislation in the House would change the language of Voice of America's mission to demand adherence to U.S. foreign policy directives, … calling into question how much editorial independence Voice of America will have left,’ RT wrote.” Image from entry, with caption: Voice Of America Afghan Service broadcaster Daoud Sediqi listens to a caller during a 2009 show.
Lawmakers Push Changes for Voice of America - Denver Nicks, time.com: "Legislation to restructure the organization overseeing the government-funded media outlet Voice of America advanced in the House this week, a measure that proponents say would bring it closer in line with U.S. policy but critics fear could turn the storied news service into a a propaganda tool. The U.S. International Communications Reform Act, which passed out of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday, would, among other things, make 'clear that the Voice of America mission is to support U.S. public diplomacy efforts,['] according to a summary of the bill. The bill’s authors say that over time, VOA has abandoned the mission outlined in its charter to provide a 'clear and effective presentation of the policies of the United States. 'We pay for the VOA to provide news that supports our national security objectives,' Shane Wolfe, a spokesman for the House Foreign Affairs Committee, chaired by bill co-sponsor Rep. Ed Royce (R—CA), told TIME. Supporters hope the measure will strengthen VOA by streamlining operations and clarifying the VOA mission. ... The bill would replace the Broadcasting Board of Governors that currently oversees VOA with a new office to be called the U.S. International Communications Agency led by a new chief executive. ... Shane Wolfe dismissed the idea that supporting U.S. 'public diplomacy efforts' is tantamount to propaganda. 'The U.S. spends a lot of money every year to help people in foreign countries; we do a lot of good in the world. Unfortunately, those stories don’t make it to BBC, Al Jazeera, RT (Russia Today), or CCTV (China),' he said. 'Most of those outlets tell stories that often deride the United States. If VOA is not in the business of telling those good stories, and otherwise reporting on U.S. policy, who is?'”

Congress seeks more control over government news agency - Julian Pecquet - al-monitor.com: "On April 30, the House Foreign Affairs Committee approved reforms to the government news agency that require it to promote US foreign policy goals and give Congress greater oversight over its operations, notably in the Middle East. ...  'Traveling to Eastern Ukraine, our delegation witnessed the Russian propaganda machine — now in overdrive — and its attempts to undermine regional stability,' committee chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.) said at Wednesday's mark-up. 'Unfortunately, US broadcasters — the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, Radio Free Asia and others — are competing with a hand tied behind their back.' ... The bill would require that Voice of America produce 'accurate' and 'objective' content that nevertheless 'is consistent with and promotes the broad foreign policies of the United States.' The mission of the broadcaster, which has a Farsi service but no longer broadcasts in Arabic, would be focused more narrowly on bringing US news to a foreign audience.
The proposal has outraged many Voice of America journalists. They fear a service that has long strived to appear independent of the government will end up operating like the Russian and Chinese foreign-language services, whose broadcasts closely toe the government line. ... While the Ukrainian crisis is dominating the headlines, the proposed changes follow years of congressional criticism about Middle East coverage in particular. The replacement of Voice of America's Arabic service by Radio Sawa, a mix of pop music interspersed with news, outraged many lawmakers a decade ago. Republicans have also objected to what they called the pro-Iranian tilt of VOA's Persian News Network and are now fighting plans to terminate Radio Free Iraq. 'There has been a lot controversy over Middle East broadcasting, going back to the 1990s,' Helle Dale, a senior fellow for public diplomacy with the conservative Heritage Foundation, told Al-Monitor." Image from entry, with caption: Voice Of America Afghan Service broadcaster Daoud Sediqi listens to a caller during a show in Washington, DC, Sept. 16, 2009

Op-Ed: No propaganda, Voice of America need not fear reform bill - Ted Lipien, digitaljournal.com: "Mismanagement by senior executives threatens journalistic independence of Voice of America (VOA) much more than the bipartisan bill in Congress designed to reform U.S. international media outreach. There will be no government propaganda from VOA. ... Those who say that VOA could become like Russia’s RT or China’s CCTV have little knowledge of Russian and Chinese regimes and their propaganda, and little faith in America’s legislative tradition and commitment to freedom. ... The legislation tries to fix what has become a 'defunct' organization, to use Hillary Clinton’s description, much of it due to mismanagement by senior executives. VOA journalists should be assured that they will remain federal employees and that VOA will be separated from the surrogate pro-democracy media outlets such as Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). This should increase VOA's journalistic independence, not decrease it. It should also vastly increase effectiveness of surrogate news services to countries like Russia, eastern Ukraine, China, Tibet, Iran, and others that still need surrogate local free media. VOA executives and former International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) managers are themselves responsible, along with some former Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) members, for this bill being proposed in the first place. If they had not mismanaged the organization and ignored the VOA Charter, we would not be even having this discussion. ... Critics of the U.S. broadcasting reform bill are concerned that it places too much emphasis on U.S. public diplomacy, but the bill does not go as far as the public diplomacy component within the former United States Information Agency (USIA), under which VOA had operated. In later years, while still under USIA, VOA was able to preserve its journalistic independence thanks to the VOA Charter. Even BBC serves a public diplomacy role for Great Britain and does it through its outstanding world news service in many languages. VOA cannot be like BBC. It should accept a more modest role -- serving those who are most repressed and most deprived of access to news and information while at the same time telling America's story to the world. ... Congress is not going to fund VOA without specifying its mission at least in general terms, especially now that the Smith-Mundt Act has been modified to allow domestic distribution of VOA content. If some people think that this could happen -- Congress letting a VOA director do whatever he or she wants, allow distribution of programs in the U.S. while also increasing VOA budget year to year -- they are simply dreaming. ... If the bill does become law, then VOA has a chance of survival and can hope for better management and more funding, both of which are critically needed. Some modifications in the bill to strengthen journalistic independence would be highly desirable, but without any new legislation there is no hope for reform that could save VOA and its pure and noble mission."

As effort to reform Voice of America starts in Congress, VOA uses Reuters to report on Obama Europe trip, is four hours late - BGG Watcher, BBG Watch: "Voice of America executives were too busy today meeting behind closed doors to decide how to report on the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s bipartisan effort to address their dysfunctional management that they failed to arrange for coverage of Vice President Biden’s speech to the Atlantic Council. While VOA executives closely supervised the writing of a news report on the U.S. international broadcasting reform, Vice President Biden’s announcement that President Obama will


visit NATO countries in Europe in June was not reported by VOA News for more than four hours while other U.S. and international media outlets were providing their news reports and details of the announcement. Image from entry, with caption: Voice of America Screen Shot 2014-04-30 at 6.47PM EDT. The five-sentence report from Reuters was posted by VOA four hours late. As of 6:00 PM EDT, the report had only one Facebook Share. See also (1) (2) (3) (4)

Our State Department: Living By The Promise Of Hashtag . . . And Following Their Hashtag With Action - patterico.com: If that headline made no sense to you, you probably don’t belong at the U.S. State Department:


Not inane enough yet? Oh, it gets stupider:

...

They are making a hashtag of our foreign policy."

Senior US Official Talks Press Freedom With Burmese Minister - Kyaw Hsu Mon, irrawaddy.org: "In his first ever visit to Burma, the US undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs raised concerns with Burma’s information minister about the recent arrest of Burmese journalists. Richard Stengel met on Monday and Tuesday in Naypyidaw with Information Minister Aung Kyi, Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin and Culture Minister Aye Myint Kyu, to discuss press freedom, bilateral relations and cultural exchanges.


The US undersecretary told reporters in Rangoon on Tuesday that the Burma government had taken important steps to cultivate an environment conducive to free, fair and independent media, which he said was a critical element of democracy. 'However, in the past few months, the United States has watched with concern the arrest and sentencing of journalists trying to cover stories. These arrests raise questions about the extent of the government’s commitment to freedom of the press,' he added. Image from entry, with caption: US Undersecretary Richard Stengel speaks to reporters in Rangoon on Tuesday following a two-day visit to Naypyidaw, where he raised concerns about press freedoms with government officials.

US urges 'change of mindset' from govt toward media - Nyan Lynn Aung, mmtimes.com: "The United States has expressed concern over recent arrests and jailing of journalists and urged the government to adopt a 'change of mindset' into how it deals with the media, a senior official says. Richard Stengel, the under secretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs, said on May 29 that it was also important journalists improve their skills and reporting standards, particularly with the 2015 election approaching. He also pledged more US support for the training of journalists. ... Mr Stengel said that it was clear in his meetings that many government officials are not comfortable acting as spokespersons for their ministries or the government because they are worried about the ramifications of saying the wrong thing. ... A former editor of Time magazine, Mr Stengel said since joining President Obama's government in September 2013 he has realised that governments often do not take advantage of their role when dealing with the media. 'By taking advantage, I mean that they should be communicating, saying what they're going to do and talking about their reasons and motivations. That's the way that they can sell their policy to the public.'"See also.
UNDP Chairman highlighted ongoing crisis in Burma - burmatimes.net: "Eng. Abu Tahay, chairman of the Union Nationals Development Party (UNDP) discussed the following points with under Secretary of United States for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Mr. Richard Stengel at US Ambassador’s residence at 7pm today. ... Mr. Richard Stengel assured to the honorable UNDP chairman that US will be working with Burma until the all nationalities including Rohingya of Burma can get the equality, freedom and tranquility."

Granger highlights successes of U.S. aid to Africa - riponadvance.com: "Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas) said on Tuesday that U.S. aid to Africa has helped fight disease, maintain peace and build goodwill.


Granger, the chairwoman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operation and Related Programs, delivered her remarks during a hearing on U.S. assistance to Africa. 'We have seen proven results from some of the investments already made — such as life-saving programs in HIV/AIDS, malaria and maternal and child health — and conservation programs that have helped countries manage and protect Africa’s unique natural resources,' Granger said. 'Our investments pay dividends in public diplomacy. In Africa, opinions of the United States rank among the highest in the world.' Granger said $6.9 billion, or 35 percent, of the fiscal year 2015 budget request for state and U.S. Agency for International Development aid is for Sub-Saharan Africa. Granger image from entry

U.S. official on Bucharest visit, met Romanian political leaders - actmedia.eu [subcription]: "Hoyt Yee, Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs with the U.S. Department of State, was in Bucharest on Tuesday as part of a routine tour through region, the Public Diplomacy Office of the U.S. Embassy in Romania informed at the request of Agerpres. According to the cited source, the American official is to meet various Romanian leaders."

Duckenfield Appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at U.S. Department of State - hispanicprblog.com: "David Duckenfield, President of Balsera Communications, has been appointed deputy assistant secretary for Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of State beginning May 5, 2014, it was announced today. In this new role, Duckenfield


will lead the State Department’s public liaison and domestic outreach efforts as well as its intergovernmental functions and the U.S. Diplomacy Center. He will assist the Bureau of Public Affairs in carrying out its mission to further U.S. foreign policy and national security interests and broaden understanding of American values by communicating with the American people and global audiences. ... Duckenfield began his career as a Foreign Service Officer for the United States Information Agency (now part of the U.S. State Department Undersecretariat for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs), where he served in Mexico City and Bogota, Colombia in a variety of public affairs roles."  Duckenfield image from entry; see also.

The Score - Paul Rockower, Levantine: "So I am running a hip hop diplomacy program for the State Dept, called Next Level. My job is to take MCs, DJs, Breakdancers and Beatmakers to India, Bangladesh, Senegal, Zimbabwe, Serbia and Bosnia. We had our orientation this week. We have some amazing talents, and real pioneers in hip hop. I am taking Diamond D to Serbia. If you remember, Diamond D produced The Fugees album 'The Score.' He won a Grammy for it."

Diplomacy and Security Issues after 9/11 Attack - meefroism.blogspot.com: "[A]weapon in the fight against terrorism that has often been neglected, however, is public diplomacy, which includes diplomacy and the use of information in order to influence foreign public opinion about the United States’ foreign policy goals. The use of information and diplomacy, which are often referred to as forms of 'soft power,' may be considered part of the information war, which is conducted together with the 'hard power' conflict that is carried out using military and economic means. There are still no clear results regarding the success of the use of U.S. military power in Afghanistan and Iraq, but it has become clear that the United States is losing the war of ideas, and that the international public is starting to express doubts about the war on terrorism."

Zabul Attack: Spox Says State Dept Did Its Own Review, It’s Classified, and There’s Now a Checklist!– Domani Spero,diplopundit.net: "As can be expected, the Chicago Tribune report citing an army investigation into the death of FSO Anne Smedinghoff and four others in Zabul, Afghanistan in April 2013 made it to the Daily Press Briefing. ... QUESTION: So quickly on that Chicago paper report citing the army military unit investigation of the death of Anne Smedinghoff and other injuries there linked to State Department. The report makes a lot of accusations that point back to the State Department. 'State says that there was coordination with DOD in advance of the mission.' ... [State Department spokesperson] MS. PSAKI:... And let me say first of all too, of course, that regardless of that piece, the attack on – that took the life of Anne Smedinghoff, an Afghan American translator, and three members of the U.S. military and severely injured several others was a terrible tragedy, and one that, as you all know, people across this building and across the world who work at the State Department remember every day. The only people responsible for this tragedy were the extremists opposed to the many brave Afghans and Americans who have sacrificed so much to help build a stronger, more stable Afghanistan. And what they were doing that day was participating in an outreach event that was part of a nationwide public diplomacy initiative highlighting cooperation between the United States and Afghans in a number of areas. And that’s a program that we’ve been proud of and was underway for weeks there."

State Seeks Input on Making Program Material Available - Shannon Allen, regulatorypractice.blogspot.com: "The United States Department of State ('DOS')



issued an interim final rule amending regulations to implement Section 1078 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2013 ('NDAA'); and seeks input on changing the availability of Public Diplomacy Program Materials in the United States. U.S. public diplomacy outreach includes ['] communications with foreign audiences abroad through Program Material. . . .' The DOS is amending prior law to permit the DOS and the Broadcasting Board of Governors ('BBG') to now 'make public diplomacy program material available within the United States, upon request, following the dissemination of such material abroad . . .' The U.S. public diplomacy mission is to support the achievement of U.S. foreign policy goals and objectives, advance national interests, and enhance national security by certain means. Section 501 of the United States Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948, as amended (22 U.S.C. 1461; 'the Smith-Mundt Act') ('Section 501'), governs the domestic distribution of certain information about the United States, its people, and policies ('Program Material') prepared for dissemination abroad. Section 208 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1986 and 1987 (22 U.S.C. 1461-1a) ('Section 208') governs the creation of such (Program Material) material for the purpose of influencing domestic public opinion. The NDAA amends and clarifies Section 501 and Section 208. Prior to NDAA, 'such material could not be disseminated within the United States . . . .' Revised Section 501 permits the DOS and/or the BBG to make such Program Material available within the U.S. Both the DOS and the BBG must issue necessary regulations: to establish procedures to maintain such material, for reimbursement of reasonable costs incurred in fulfilling requests for such material, and to ensure that persons seeking the release of such material have secured and paid for necessary U.S. rights and licenses. (The BBG published its interim final rule on July 2, 2013, with a final rule published on November 8, 2013 (78 FR 67025).) According to the DOS, this interim final rule: benefits the public, media, and other organizations by allowing them to request and access DOS Program Material, which previously could not be disseminated within the United States; will not have a substantial direct effect on the states, on the relationship between the national government and the states, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government; is in response to a statutory requirement that will make more information available to the public; therefore, the benefits of the rulemaking outweigh any costs; will not have a significant impact upon small businesses; will not have tribal implications, will not impose substantial direct compliance costs on Indian tribal governments, and will not pre-empt tribal law; and will not result in the expenditure by State, local and tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 million in any year and it will not significantly or uniquely affect small governments. The DOS has determined that normal public rulemaking procedures are not practical, not necessary, and that there is good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(b) (B) and (d)(3) to exempt this interim final rule from public rulemaking procedures and to implement it upon publication. In the interests of transparency and public participation, however, the DOS is publishing this rule as an interim final rule with a 60-day provision for public comment. This interim final rule will be implemented as of April 21, 2014. However, the DOS will accept comments on the interim final rule from the public until June 20, 2014. Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: Online: Persons with access to the Internet may view this rule and provide comments by going to the regulations.gov Web site at: http://www.regulations.gov; Mail (paper, disk, or CD-ROM submission): Director, Office of Policy and Outreach, Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State, State Annex 5 (SA-5), Floor 5, 2200 C Street NW., Washington, DC 20522-0505; or Email: IIP_Inquiries@state.gov. RIN (1400-AD50) must be included in the subject line." Image from

FRINFORMSUM 5/1/2014: Modest Nuclear Stockpile Drop, Cybersecurity Issues, a Corrupt DHS Inspector General, and Much More - nsarchive.wordpress.com: “Finally this week, our #tbt document pick –inspired by the State Department’s recent easing of the restrictions allowing the Department and the Broadcasting Board of Governors to make foreign public diplomacy program material (i.e. propaganda) available to US requesters– is the Pentagon’s October 2003 Iraq War propaganda ‘roadmap.’  The secret Pentagon ‘roadmap,’ declassified thanks to an Archive FOIA request in 2006, calls for ‘boundaries’ between ‘information operations’ abroad and at home but provides no actual limits as long as US doesn’t ‘target’ Americans.”

New study, website focus on strengthening US-China connections - Elizabeth Krane, blog.uscannenberg.org: "The United States and China are more closely connected than ever before, but surveys show that trust between the two countries has declined in the last three years. At a time when global collaborations are crucial for tackling issues like climate change, how can the US and China build trust despite differences in values, politics, and communication styles? The Millenials offer hope: ‘While majorities of Americans and Chinese see the other country in a negative light, half of those under age 30 have a favorable impression of the other country,’ states a report just released by the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism and the Peking University School for International Studies. The report stresses the importance of engaging young people in ‘next generation public diplomacy’ through new communication platforms and technologies like social media. ‘There is much energy and attention focused on official Washington-Beijing based talks and too little financial support for and focus on people-to-people engagement.’ The report, titled ‘Building U.S.-China Trust: Through NextGeneration People, Platforms and Programs,’ was created by a commission of experts led by USC Annenberg Dean Ernest J. Wilson III and Wang Jisi, director of Peking University’s Institute for International and Strategic Studies."

NATO Countries Planning Comms Mission in Ukraine: Russia's extreme propaganda, 'haplessness' of Ukrainian military requires strategic fix - Paul D. Shinkman, usnews.com: "NATO countries may be ramping up their war of words in the coming weeks in Ukraine, where Russian propaganda flows freely into the east while ill-prepared security forces can't even talk to one another. Multiple officials who spoke with U.S. News say planning is underway to bolster the Ukrainian government’s ability to communicate among its security services and broadcast to the general public.


The details are still being worked out, including whether this would require troops from NATO countries on the ground in Ukraine to train and support the effort. ... 'NATO Allies are actively considering ways to further strengthen our long-standing cooperation with Ukraine, including in the area of public diplomacy,' the official said by email, speaking on the condition of anonymity. 'Allies are also providing assistance to Ukraine on a bilateral basis.' ... The need to send a message to ... [Ukraine's] citizens and to Russia alike reflects a cold truth in eastern Ukraine, where many lived through the Cold War and learned to speak the prerequisite Russian." Image from entry, with caption: Pro-Russian activists watch a Russian news report outside the security services building Wednesday in Lugansk, Ukraine.

Patriarch Kirill meets Rossotrudnichestvo Federal Agency director K. Kosachev - theorthodoxchurch.info: "On April 25, 2014, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia met with director of the Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independent States, Compatriots Living Abroad and International Humanitarian Cooperation (Rossotrudnichestvo), K. Kosachev. In attendance were also Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations, Archimandrite Philaret (Bulekov) a DECR deputy head, and Hierodeacon Roman (Kiselev) of the DECR secretariat for far-abroad countries. Representing Rossotrudnichestvo were also A. Khomenko, chief of the directorate for compatriots and public diplomacy, and S. Medvedev, chief of the directorate for Russian centers for science, culture and all-round cooperation in the CIS space. ... Patriarch Kirill noted that the cooperation with Rossotrudnichestvo had fruitfully developed for a long time. 'As far back as the time when I was head of the Department for External Church Relations, I was already fully aware of the importance of this cooperation. Visiting remote countries, in which we had no parishes at that time, I could see how much people abroad were attracted to our cultural centers, and already at that time we conducted services in many such places', he said. He made a special mention of the cooperation with Rossotrudnichestvo institutions in South-East Asia. His Holiness underscored as especially important the work for teaching Russian and Russian culture to people abroad.


'This work is carried out by our Sunday schools, but mostly with adults', he explained. 'The same work is carried out by your institutions. And, as I have already mentioned, in a number of countries, our cooperation has proved to be very effective'. Mr. K. Kosachev, in his turn, testified that 'we have carried out a fruitful and effective work with the Russian Orthodox Church’s parishes abroad. For us it is not just partnership but a very important support in all our initiatives, because the Russian World abroad is gathering, first of all, around the Russian Orthodox Church. Where there are no Russian cultural centers, it is sometimes the only place where our compatriots can gather together'. He also pointed to the importance of cultural, educational and scientific projects as providing for Russia’s humanitarian presence abroad and eventually contributing to the consolidation of relations among nations." Uncaptioned image from entry

Russian policy in Ukraine, Mideast not just about Putin - Maxim A. Suchkov, al-monitor.com: "As an external power, Russia needs regional partners, ideally allies, to manage developing Islamic demographics and to counter its own Islamist challenges in the Caucasus, the Volga region and now the Crimea. Thus, Moscow is in constant pursuit of a balance between


a pragmatic, interest-based foreign policy in the Middle East and its own domestic challenges and trends. In this respect, it has obtained observer status at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, maintains healthy cooperative ties with Israel and tries to enlist support for its foreign policy initiatives through the channels of its own ‘Islamic public diplomacy.’” Image from entry, with caption: Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in a live broadcast nationwide phone-in in Moscow, April 17, 2014.

Baku sees no changes in Nagorno-Karabakh settlement - Elchin Mehdiyev, en.trend.az: "Baku does not see any changes in the situation over the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov told media on April 28.


'Armenia must assess the current situation which may worsen in the country and around it,' he added. 'The Armenian leadership must think it over.' ... 'Perhaps, the Armenian public can compel the country's leadership to assess the situation, Azerbaijan's position through public diplomacy,' he added."Uncaptioned image from entry

Georgia: Women Take Lead in Informal Peace-Building - Heather Yundt, IWPR Georgia: "Whenever Georgian and Russian officials meet in Geneva for formal talks as part of a process that has continued since the August 2008 war, few women are visible. In 2011, Georgia adopted a 'national action plan' to enhance female participation in peace-building efforts, so that women attend the Geneva talks, albeit still in small numbers. At an informal level, it is a different story. Women’s organisations from Georgia, South Ossetia, and Abkhazia have been reaching out to each other and talking about reconciliation for the last two decades. As deputy minister for reconciliation, Ketevan Tsikhelashvili has been part of the formal talks process but she says the government also recognises the value of people-to-people contacts, sometimes called 'track-two diplomacy'. She says certain groups are particularly open to cross-boundary communication – professionals, people with relatives on the other side, and the mothers of those who died in conflict. 'Because they’ve lived through the worse, they appreciate peace and reconciliation more than anybody else,' she said of these mothers. According to Tsikhelashvili, the key is to find common interests and acknowledge the needs of the other side without getting into the politics of conflict. 'We have to work through the barbed wire and tanks for public diplomacy,' she said."

Israeli FM: “Coming to Azerbaijan, I feel as if I’m coming home” - “'This is my fifth visit to Azerbaijan. Coming to Azerbaijan, I feel as if I’m coming home', said Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman following the meeting with his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov, APA reports.


He noted that Azerbaijan and Israel have close relations: 'We discussed a number of areas of cooperation, mainly economy and public diplomacy. For us, the main issue in Azerbaijan is the coexistence of Jews and the activity of Jewish community in this country. This community acts as a bridge between the two countries.'” Uncaptioned image from entry

UN irrelevance - Zalman Shoval, israelhayom.com: "When Sharett [Prime Minister Moshe Sharett] reminded Ben-Gurion that the U.N. had formed the State of Israel, Ben-Gurion admonished him, saying it was the Jews' own courage -- not the U.N.'s -- that had formed the State of Israel. The majority of U.S. presidents were also not convinced that the U.N. -- other than holding symbolic value and being a convenient international platform for public diplomacy -- was the best institution to promote the free world and America's agenda. That is, until U.S. President Barack Obama came along, touting the international body's institutions, and especially the Security Council, as the foundations upon which his policies should be based."

Salvaging a lost cause - Chinmaya R Gharekhan, indianexpress.com: "The latest round of negotiations [between Israelis and Palestinians] began in Washington on July 29, 2013, following an agreement between the parties brokered by US Secretary of State John Kerry. ... Let alone settling the problem, Kerry could not even manage to persuade the parties to extend the talks by six months. ... The two sides have always had one thing strongly in common through the past four decades: each wants the other held responsible for the failure of negotiations.


But now, Israel feels so confident of itself that it no longer cares if it is blamed for the breakdown. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had a slight upper hand in terms of public diplomacy. Most of the international community was holding Israel responsible for its intransigent attitude." Image from entry, with caption: The practical consequence of handing over the Palestinian Authority’s keys to Israel would be that Israel would become a full-fledged occupying power over three million Palestinians living in the West Bank

Six people to be charged for accident that killed IDF officer on Jerusalem's Mount Herzl - jpost.com: "The State Attorney’s Office plans to indict five people and a corporation with negligent manslaughter in the death of IDF Lt. Hila Betzaleli, who was killed two years ago when a scaffold fell on her during rehearsals for the annual Independence Day ceremony on Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl. ... [A] part of the investigation focused on whether officials in the Public Diplomacy Ministry might have had a hand in the accident."

Learning to say sorry in the Middle East: In the past week, not one but two leaders – Turkish and Palestinian – made rare acknowledgements of the suffering of the 'other.' Critics have called the gestures opportunistic - Christa Case Bryant, csmonitor.com: "In a region better known for harboring old hatreds than saying, “I’m sorry,” this was a seminal week. On the eve of the 99th anniversary of the deportation and massacre of Armenians under Ottoman rule, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan conveyed the country’s 'condolences' to the grandchildren of the 600,000 to 1.5 million killed in what many regard as a genocide.


And just as Israel began marking Holocaust Remembrance Day, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called the killing of 6 million Jews 'the most heinous crime' of the modern era and expressed 'sympathy with the families of the victims and many other innocent people who were killed by the Nazis.' Both Armenians and Israelis dismissed what they saw as opportunistic statements by leaders under pressure. But whatever their motives, Mr. Erdogan and Mr. Abbas’s willingness to express empathy for the suffering of their adversaries represents a significant break from the region's obdurate public diplomacy in the name of honor." Image from entry, with caption: Two Middle East leaders, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (l.) and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan pictured in this combination photo, have made rare acknowledgements for the suffering of their adversaries in the past week.

President’s Visit: Dr Masuma Hasan’s Speech - pakistanhorizon.wordpress.com: "Address of Welcome Dr. Masuma Hasan Chairperson, The Pakistan Institute of International Affairs Tuesday, 29 April 2014 [:] ... When Mr. Liaquat Ali Khan, the first prime minister of Pakistan, inaugurated this Institute in March 1948, he stressed upon the need for an institution which would disseminate information from the people to policy makers and vice versa. Through our public diplomacy events we have endeavoured to do that and our members have been addressed by heads of state and government, statesmen, diplomats and scholars."

Brazil Springs A WikiLeak... Assange Tags Newsman As Media Mole - capitalparanaense.blogspot.com: "With a London court ruling that media activist Julian Assange must now return to Sweden to face charges of sex crimes, the WikiLeaks founder has made his last dance a Samba, outing Brazil's most trusted newscaster as what some local media are caling an informant, even suggesting the journalist in question was an agent of the CIA, in place to promote US policy and business deals.

The Daily: The Soft Power of K-Pop - Julia Watson, thepublicdiplomat.com: "Our round-up of news, notes, tips and tweets exhibiting how public diplomacy affects the world each and every day."

Myrtle Beach mayor planning second trip to China this year - Maya T. Prabhu, myrtlebeachonline.com: "Fresh off of a recent trip to Haikou, China, Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes is planning to return in June as a speaker at the third annual conference of World Cultural Forum in Shanghai. 'I was invited to speak on public diplomacy and developing Chinese and foreign relationships,' Rhodes said. 'It’s an honor.' ... In March, Rhodes went with Bill Golden, president of Golf Holiday, to the Iagto Golf Tourism Convention to meet with golf travel agents and learn what Myrtle Beach can do to become more marketable to the Chinese golfer.


'The purpose was to talk with the travel agents from Asia about golf and coming to the U.S. and learn exactly what we had to do to prepare for these visitors,' Rhodes said. 'And it was to promote Myrtle Beach and let [travel agents] be aware of what we have to offer. When you mention 100 hundred golf course [on the Grand Strand], they were amazed.' Rhodes said he also met with Hainan Airlines and China Southern Airlines – which both operate direct flights to New York City – to discuss ways to package trips to Myrtle Beach and make the city a destination for Chinese travelers. 'We want the golfers – which are the high-end travelers – and also the middle-class travelers to come here,' he said. 'If we don’t make the attempt to look for new sources of tourists … our number of visitors will become stagnant.'” Image from entry, with caption: Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes.

ESF Helps Launch Planet Forward University Consortium: Focus of new initiative includes water, energy, climate change - esf.edu: "The SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) has joined a new initiative focused on giving a stronger voice to those working on issues such as food security, water, energy and climate change. ESF is a founding member of the Planet Forward University Consortium, which was announced May in Washington, D.C. ... Planet Forward ... announced that former under secretary of state for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, Tara Sonenshine, currently a Distinguished Fellow at the School of Media and Public Affairs, will lead the strategic planning and stakeholder relationships with institutional partners for Planet Forward."

Bringing the State Back In, Kind of: National and Not-so National Search Engines - cgcsblog.asc.upenn.edu: "How ... do we describe the complex relationship between states and internet companies? As domestic or foreign policy? As public diplomacy? Increasing challenges to US companies’ online dominance and the emergence of the next billion internet users means these questions will become increasingly relevant: the state has returned, certainly, but in what form is sometimes unclear."

Antalya expo 2016 - wegodubai.com: "For over 100 years, Expos have placed education of global citizens and national progress at the forefront of their mission. First of all used as a means of promoting national identity, industrial progress and discerning consumers, Expos have today become a unique platform for international dialogue, for public diplomacy and for international cooperation. ... EXPO 2016 Antalya


will be held on a 112-hectares area within the boundaries of Aksu Municipality between 23 April and 30 October 2016. The Site will also be open to the public after the event. Uncaptioned image from entry

EUNIC Summer Academy 2014 - eunic-online.eu: "There is a growing number of residencies for artists and curators operating in the cultural and creative sector throughout Europe and its neighbouring countries. ... In this year’s Summer Academy (SA), we would like to consider how EUNIC member organisations might work together on innovative residency programmes focusing on mobility between countries in and outside Europe, and how residencies might contribute to local, regional and international development. As part of the training, we will also be taking a look at residency programmes as a tool of public diplomacy. We will be providing lectures, workshops and a number of study visits."

MTV Launches Multi-Year Campaign To Help Youth Accelerate Fight Against Racial, Gende and  LGBT Inequality - webwire.com: "Advisory Board: In addition to a coalition of world-class partners, the Look Different campaign is advised by a collection of the foremost


authorities on matters of race, gender and LGBT issues: [including;] ... The Center for Public Diplomacy at Penn State University."Image from, with part of the content: The Joe Paterno statue was removed Sunday morning from its pedestal outside Beaver Stadium, and it will be stored in an unnamed "secure location," Penn State president Rodney Erickson announced. Erickson also said the Paterno name will remain on the university's library.

Educational Innovation director Mark Johnson - The Daily Cardinal: "The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s provost office selected Mark Johnson, assistant professor of educational policy studies, as the new director of Educational Innovation, according to a university release. ... Johnson has more than 20 years of experience working with higher education reform projects and works in the fields of history, international studies, public diplomacy and educational studies. He will assume the position May 26."

Digital entrepreneurs vie to be USC Annenberg’s startup in residence: Students take their novel ideas to alpha testing at Annenberg Innovation Lab - news.usc.edu: "Winners of the CRUNCH Student Design challenge literally had to hack their way to victory, a $10,000 prize and the distinction of becoming the official startup in residence at the Annenberg Innovation Lab (AIL). ... The CRUNCH course is designed to provide a skill-based, business-oriented overview of product development for small teams (three to five members) of students. The 10-week course allowed students, who were provided $3,000 for development costs, to take their ideas to alpha testing in a single semester. Just gaining entry to the course involved competition, as teams vied to win CRUNCH hackathons held in 2013 to earn priority admission. But even without a victory, the journey was worth it for Gabriel Shapiro, a second-year master’s student in public diplomacy at USC Annenberg."

RELATED ITEMS

Russia cranks out propaganda as militants hang on in Ukraine - Olga Rudenko, USA Today: According to a state-ordered study of TV audiences conducted by GFK Ukraine in early March, the combined share of the three most-watched Russian TV stations in Ukraine was 3.4% of the audience — but that does not mean the Russian broadcasts have no influence.

Tit-for-Tat: Putin’s Maddening Propaganda Trick - Michael Crowley, time.com: By now Vladimir Putin’s flair for propaganda is well known.


But as the Ukraine crisis continues to unfold, the former KGB agent’s particular brand of disinformation is coming into clear focus. The method is simple. Whenever he’s accused of something, Putin retorts: That’s what you’re doing, not me. Image from

The United States Dedicates the Campus Renovation of the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki, Finland - Media Note, Office of the Spokesperson, Washington, DC, April 30, 2014, state.gov: In an important symbol of our bilateral relationship with Finland, Under Secretary of State for Management Patrick F. Kennedy; Ambassador to Finland Bruce J. Oreck; and Director of the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations Lydia J. Muniz hosted a dedication ceremony today alongside local Finnish officials to dedicate the new Chancery and campus renovation of the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki.

Obama Confidant To Be Next Ambassador To South Korea - Josh Rogin, thedailybeast.com: One of Obama’s longest serving foreign policy advisors, now a top Pentagon official, is set to be named U.S. Ambassador to South Korea. President Obama will name Mark Lippert, an advisor and friend dating back to his time in the Senate, as the next U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, two senior administration officials told The Daily Beast.

How Studying or Working Abroad Makes You Smarter- Annie Murphy Paul, time.com: Research shows that


experience in other countries makes us more flexible, creative, and complex thinkers. Image from entry, with caption: Young woman at museum

Agitation and propaganda - Duncan Hallas, socialistworker.org: Abstract propaganda raises ideas which are formally correct, but which do not relate to struggle or to the level of consciousness which exists among those to whom the ideas are being put. For example to argue that under socialism the wages system will be abolished is absolutely correct to place such a demand to workers today is not agitation, but propaganda of the most abstract form.


Similarly constant demands for a general strike regardless of whether the prospect is a real one in the present situation leads not to agitation but to abstaining from the real struggle in the here and now. Realistic propaganda on the other hand starts from the assumption that tiny groups of socialists cannot decisively influence large groups of workers at present in most circumstances. But ii also assumes that there are arguments over specifics around which socialists can attempt to build. So the realistic propagandist in a factory will not argue for abolition of the wages system. He or she will argue for a set of demands which hopefully can lead the struggle to victory, and certainly beyond the tokens of the trade union bureaucracy. Image from entry

AMERICANA

This Map Shows How Badly The People In Your State Want To Get The Hell Out- uproxx.com:


--Via CDM on Facebook

MORE AMERICANA: A HUNDRED AND SEVENTEEN TIMES


PUTINITSA


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From

How to Win the Information War against Vladimir Putin

The best antidote to propaganda isn't counterpropaganda. It's access to accurate information.

• BY CHRISTIAN CARYL
• MAY 2, 2014
• CHRISTIAN.CARYL
• @CCARYL
•    

From; written a decade ago

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FPIF Commentary Options for Ukraine By John Brown | December 20, 2004 Editor: John Gershman, International Relations Center (IRC) Foreign Policy In Focus www.fpif.org The tense political situation in Ukraine may find a peaceful solution. But, at this critical juncture, efforts to maintain Ukraine as currently configured could turn out to be dangerously counterproductive. Ukraine should therefore seriously consider the option of working with all parties involved in its current crisis--including the European Union, Russia , and the United States--in taking possible steps toward its nonviolent dismemberment in a manner acceptable to its variegated population. The possibility of such a peaceful, democratic, and internationally acceptable geographical rearrangement of Ukraine should at least be put on the table before it is too late to prevent an unpredictable situation from falling out of control from increased regional, ethnic, economic, cultural, and linguistic conflicts. Ukraine as it exists today is a failed state for several reasons. First, since its independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union, it has not succeeded in significantly improving the well-being of its population. Second, its ingrained political structures have not allowed democracy and a free press to develop. Third, as recent events demonstrate, it has clearly proved incapable of bridging the complex divide between its Russian-oriented, Orthodox eastern part and its westward-looking, Catholic area. Ukraine’s most significant achievement in the past decade was to dispose of its nuclear missiles, but this did more to ease tensions with Russia and the United States than to ameliorate the lives its ordinary citizens. Regrettably, changing the ruling regime in Ukraine to a more European-oriented, democratic one is unlikely to provide a satisfactory, long-term solution to its enormous endemic problems. These stem in large part from the fact that the area, as a former Soviet republic with nearly 50 million people, is essentially a geopolitical construction of the USSR, not a country with sufficient national identity or self-governing experience in its history to develop as a viable economic and political entity. Ukrainian émigré nationalists will disagree with this view, but they cannot ignore the fact that prior to 1991 Ukraine--the name in its original meaning means borderland--in its entire past was "independent" for only a very short period after World War I. And it certainly was never a model of democracy, even if the Cossacks of the region earned a reputation for disregarding authority. There are two options for the next ruling party in Ukraine. The leadership--be it composed of the current opposition or those struggling to remain in power--can try to keep the country geographically as it is. Perhaps this is possible, and provides the comforting panacea of not rocking the boat, on the surface at least. But, from a longer-term perspective, preserving Ukraine as it is could increase tensions between its ethnic groups and regions, as demands for autonomy from Russian-speaking areas already suggest. Dangerously, maintaining Ukraine as one unit at all costs could lead to greater internal conflicts leading to a bloody, Balkans-like dissolution of the country--and possible Russian intervention ostensibly to protect ethnic-Russian areas. One must not forget that modern Ukraine is not foreign to civil war, having experienced a horrid one less than a hundred years ago. In such a situation, democratic and economic reform would be all but impossible. A second option for the Ukrainian leadership, whatever its political colors, would be the Czech and Slovak solution. After the end of Communist rule Czechoslovakia’s parliament decided to split Czechoslovakia in two--the Czech Republic and Slovakia--for a range of reasons, many of which were far from noble. But not a shot was fired during the separation, and although the “velvet divorce” has not turned the two sections of the former country into economic miracles, it has prevented tensions between them. As separate entities capable of keeping track of their own individual needs, they should play a role in NATO and the European Union more beneficial to their local populations than as smaller parts of a larger "Czechoslovakia." There are no models for the future of Ukraine, only options. A peaceful division of the area would be a complicated, time-consuming process requiring extensive international involvement and patience. A reconfiguration process would face great challenges, including determining the exact nature of the new entities. Three significant challenges would face such a process. One is to effectively discourage pre-21st century romantic notions of national identity. These images, often propagated by the Ukrainian diaspora, bear little resemblance to the country in which it does not live. This "long-distance nationalism" suggests that Ukraine as it now appears on the map is bound to play a unique role in world history because of its size and location. Two, Great-Russia imperialists, who hold expansionist illusions, would also have to be held in check. Finally, Poles who want a large buffer state between themselves and Russia would have to be reminded that the well-being of the people in Ukraine, not imaginary realpolitik, is what matters most. If the tense political situation in Kiev gets worse and if the status quo--i.e., Ukraine as currently configured--is maintained, separatist political groups and nationalities could resort to violence. Given such dire possibilities, Ukrainian leaders should look beyond a priori concepts of how the continued existence of today’s Ukraine is in the best interests of its long-suffering population or international stability. All options, including the geopolitical reinvention of Ukraine itself, deserve consideration. This could lead to a real Ukraine -- not the artificial prolongation of "the" Ukraine forced upon its people during Soviet times. John Brown, a former Foreign Service officer, has served, among other places, in Czechoslovakia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine and is a contributor to Foreign Policy In Focus (online at www.fpif.org). He compiles the "Public Diplomacy Press Review."

THE BIG IDEA
The Great American Comeback
The United States is not in decline. It’s on the cusp of a great revival.
By MICHAEL O'HANLON and DAVID H. PETRAEUS April 27, 2014 - Politico


As President Obama travels in Asia, the Ukraine crisis is very much on everyone’s mind. But so are questions, stoked over the last half-dozen years in particular, about whether America is somehow a declining power that will cede space and influence to China in the years to come. The number of magazine and book covers with some variant of “Are America’s Best Days Behind Us?” could fill an entire library.

It is important that Americans and Asians understand very clearly that the United States is not in decline. The United States is actually on the threshold of great opportunities, and North America is poised for several decades of leading the world.

The evidence is all around us. The U.S. economy is reviving, strengthened enormously by the ongoing energy and information technology revolutions, as well as the nascent manufacturing and life sciences revolutions. Twenty years into implementation of the North American Free Trade Act, the United States is part of a highly integrated North American market with Canada and Mexico—now our top two trading partners—as well as countries that share common values, a commitment to pluralistic democracy and an embrace of free-market economics. All of this should provide a sense of renewed confidence in a part of the world supposedly suffering from decline.

We first wrote about this last April; a year later, the argument appears to be holding up very well.

No question, our country and our continent face major problems. U.S. primary and secondary education lag the world, the U.S. federal budget is still far from healthy, much-needed immigration reform remains elusive for a divided Congress, middle-class incomes have hardly recovered from a generation of stagnation and our national politics remain largely paralyzed. At home, there is much to be done.

Abroad, Vladimir Putin’s aggressive actions in Ukraine have cast a certain strategic pall over 2014 thus far, and the Syria conflict remains as intractable as ever. But for Americans hearing cries from the left and right about our supposed national weakness, it is worth focusing on some key facts that should make us even more hopeful for the future than we were a year ago:

A shrinking deficit: The federal budget deficit is expected to be down to about $500 billion this year and to remain around that level through much of the decade. This is still too high, to be sure, and within a decade the figure is expected to again top a trillion dollars annually, as it did in the years immediately after the onset of the Great Recession. But the deficit is currently down to a manageable 3 percent of GDP, and the national debt is now declining modestly relative to the size of the economy. Part of the reason is the admittedly modest economic recovery; part of it too, however much one wishes to credit the Affordable Care Act, is the relative easing in the rate of growth of health-care costs.

Still besting China: After a couple years of decline, America’s standing in international competitiveness according to the World Economic Forum has stabilized in fifth place, with only Germany (a strong U.S. ally, despite the Snowden revelations) ahead of us among the world’s major economies. And China, for all its strengths and promise, has stopped ascending on the list for the moment, stuck at 29. No one wishes China ill, but it is probably preferable for American strategy that China’s geostrategic ascent slow somewhat, as too rapid and radical a pace of change in the international order creates a sense of American decline internationally and threatens to upend a generally stable global order. (And in fact, China faces an enormous array of challenges: a rapidly aging population exacerbated by the legacy of the one-child policy; horrible air and water pollution; rising restlessness and increasing riots and other manifestations of domestic unrest; and rising wages that are making its manufacturing slightly less competitive even as many people still need jobs, especially in the half of the country that hasn’t leaped ahead yet.)

The energy boom: According to the latest data, American oil production has been increasing at the rate of more than 10 percent a year and gas production at the recent rate of more than 5 percent. The United States leads the world in natural gas and, by some estimates, could surpass Russia and Saudi Arabia even in the former later in this decade. The comparative advantage the U.S. enjoys in any industry that requires natural gas as a raw material or cheap gas-produced electricity is, for the near-term at the least, now insurmountable.

The manufacturing rebound: American manufacturing, though down substantially as a fraction of world totals and of the overall U.S. GDP compared with a decade or two ago, has stabilized and in fact ticked up slightly in the last couple years. We are now in a clear No. 2 position behind China, with the latter producing $2.6 trillion in manufacturing value-added according to the most recent annualized figures in comparison with $2.0 trillion for the United States. But the U.S. share of the world total has nudged up slightly to just under 18 percent and there is considerable reason to think that the North American energy revolution will continue to “bring jobs home” and otherwise create manufacturing opportunities that had been rather rare in the early years of the 21st century otherwise.

The innovation edge: America continues to lead the world unambiguously in overall spending on research and development, on new patents, on the quality of its higher-education system, and in computer, aerospace and pharmaceutical innovation. And despite the logjam on immigration reform, its continued reputation as a melting pot and its modest but positive population growth rate (especially together with the growth of our North American partners) give it easily the best demographic profile and trajectory of any major power on Earth.

Put all this together, and a few important conclusions emerge.

First, we need not panic about today’s deficit but we still need reform on entitlements and tax policy—with each political party compromising more than it currently would like on sacred political cows—so that the situation remains acceptable come 2020 and beyond. Barring that kind of compromise, our deficit-to-GDP ratio will begin to climb once again.

Second, while the Murray-Ryan budget deal of 2013 stopped the indiscriminate sequestration axe for a while, we need a sounder budget deal for the short term since sequestration is due to return in 2016 (and in fact, the deal’s budget levels in 2015 for defense, and for domestic discretionary accounts that fund infrastructure development and science research and development and education, are already too low).

Third, we need immigration reform to keep our workforce dynamic, and if a big deal proves elusive in the short term, smaller deals on issues like increasing quotas for H1-B visas are long overdue.

Fourth, education reform at home, a slow and difficult project to be sure, needs to continue, with experimentation in various ways as we seek to improve our international competitiveness, with a particular eye on science and math. The White House can help further by establishing a high-profile project to make science and math education seem more alluring to children by showcasing the amazing accomplishments of Americans whose stories should be inspiring to our youth.

Fifth, and even more so in light of Russia’s ongoing threat to Ukraine, and also given the uncertainty that Iran’s nuclear program continues to cause for Middle Eastern markets, we need to get moving on energy, notably by allowing and encouraging the export of American natural gas to economic partners in Europe and Asia (action in particular is needed to speed the final approval process for the firms granted export licenses for liquefied natural gas).

Sixth and finally, despite our challenges, we need to avoid talking ourselves down. More than a decade of harsh partisanship in Washington, D.C., and profound anxiety across the country over our national future—a longer stretch of national doubt than we had even in the 1970s, arguably—have taken their toll. But we are doing much better than the common wisdom often holds, and that should help us face everyone from Vladimir Putin and Ayatollah Khamenei to an increasingly assertive China with confidence and rational optimism, not gloom and doom.

Michael O’Hanlon is senior fellow at Brookings and coauthor with James Steinberg of the new book Strategic Reassurance and Resolve: U.S.-China Relations in the 21st Century. David H. Petraeus, General, U.S. Army (Ret.) is chairman of the KKR Global Institute, visiting professor at CUNY’s Macaulay Honors College, Judge Widney professor at USC, senior fellow at Harvard, and co-chairman of the Council on Foreign Relations Task Force on North America


Read more: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/04/the-great-american-comeback-106060.html#ixzz30crnb6p9

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Борис Херсонский

Действующие лица и исполнители.

Вчера в Одессе произошла катастрофа, унесшая много жизней. Наверное, через несколько часов мы узнаем это число точно. Сейчас, ориентировочно - 44. Половина киевской "небесной сотни"в одночасье. Мы с Людой потрясены и выражаем самое искреннее соболезнование всем. кто потерял во вчерашнем побоище-пожарище своих близких. По обе стороны баррикад - никому, кажется не нужных, но скорее всего - кому-то нужных и даже необходимых.

Мои глубочайшие соболезнования моему городу, который навсегда утратил репутацию толерантного, с хитрецой, но без агрессии, порта, где договориться могут все со всеми ценою денег. но не крови.

Спасибо, Господи, что взял деньгами - шутят здесь, столкнувшись с материальными потерями . Но Господу не нужны ни деньги, ни человеческая кровь. Идолы, темные языческие боги любят, когда их губы мажут человеческой кровью и бросают золото в жертвенный огонь.

Одесса потеряла граждан. И приобрела геороев-мучеников. Плоха и эта потеря, и это приобретение.

Я попробую восстановить ситуацию. Когда-нибудь выстроятся тома огромного уголовного дела. Если только законность вернется на наши улицы, в наши города, в нашу душу. Сейчас - краткий конспект.

1. Ультрас.

Футбол - рискованная игра. Один из самых реальных рисков - столкновения между болельщиками - фанами, тифози, ультрас, наконец. Мы уже привыкли к маршам фанатов "Черноморца". Молодость, пиво, страсть. Речевки. Флаги. Не без хулиганства. Но без убийств - до вчерашнего дня.

В Украине произошло опасное сращение футбольных и политических страстей. Тут я скажу, что ультрас обычно слишком молоды и незрелы, чтобы иметь реальные политические убеждения. Для них политика - те же футбольные трибуны. Но выкрикивать политические лозунги для них приблизительно то же, что футбольные речевки. У нас "ультрас" - за Украину, единую и неделимую. За наш гимн. За наш флаг, который накидывают на свои детские плечи.

Ничего они во всем этом не понимают. Чувствуют сердцем.

Вчера, в день футбольного матча (Одесса-Харьков) они договорились пройти маршем от Соборной площади до стадиона. Обычное дело. Из этого никто не сделал тайны, место и время встречи обсуждалось и согласовывалось в сети.

Надо бы нашим спецслужбам читать эти записи и сделать выводы. Это "надо бы"рефреном будет звучать во всей этой истории....

2. Анти-майдан

Мы уже привыкли к тому, что в мирной и равнодушной Одессе действуют две противоборствующие силы - Евромайдан и Антимайдан. У каждой сое место сбора, свои лозунги, свои лидеры. Потемкинская лестница, - место сбора Евромайдана, Соборка, а затем - Куликово поле - место сбора пророссийских сил. Между ними шли словесные баталии, но не жестокие столкновения. Два эпизода насилия, которые были в Одессе, не имели особого отношения к этим группам. Там, как я понимаю, на сцену выходили т.н. "титушки", к которым я применяю термин "наемники" - более знакомый из истории.

Совсем недавно наиболее радикальные антимайдановцы "выдвигались"к памятнику Дюку "поучить"евромайдановцев"с помощью бейсбольных бит. Но их встретили самооборонцы с сомкнутыми щитами и теми же битами в руках. Столкновения как такового не случилось. Вчера все было иначе.

Опять же в сети шли переговоры антимайдановцев - надо проучить ультрас, чтобы не махали флагами и не выкрикивали "Слава Украине". Как я понимаю, записи открыто выкладывались в сети. Их читали и "ультрас". Опять-таки, читали ли их представители спецслужб?

А пока главный вывод. радикальные антимайдановцы готовились напасть. И ультрас знали, что на них нападут и готовились. Все что требовалось от органов правопорядка тогда - встать между противоборствующими сторонами. Этот шанс был упущен.

3. Третья сила

И антимайдан и ультрас - очень молодые большей частью люди. Во многих смыслах - наивные и в большинстве своем искренние. Эти силы могли наломать дров, да. Но сами организовать вчерашнее побоище они не могли. У меня нет доказательств есть некоторые наблюдения. Представляется, что в ситуации уличного насилия на сцену всегда выходят "профессионалы" - боевики, снайперы - серьезный, жестокий народ. Это взрослые тренированные люди - не титушкам чета. Эти лиц не показывают. Фигура рослого, тренированного человека в балаклаве (лицо закрыто), человека вооруженного - вот типичный портрет представителя третьей силы.

Уличные столкновения создают фон, мутную воду, в которой плавает крупная хищная рыба. Там, где молодой хулиган бросает камень, представитель третьей силы прицеливается и стреляет.И не промахивается.

Я видел таких людей в районе Дома Профсоюзов. Они держались особняком.

4. Правый сектор

Думаю, что именно эта сила, по крайней мере, в Российских СМИ будет названа главной движущей силой одесских событий. Я видел своими глазами человек двадцать юношей, весьма нескладных, которые с криками "пра-вый-сек-тор"прошли по Куликовому полю и растворились в толпе. О них и говорить не стоит.

По крайней мере - в Одессе.

See Translation

History is full of ironies.

Perhaps its latest trick on mankind is that a former KGB lieutenant colonel who laments the loss of the USSR, is now doing his best, as president of the Russian Federation, to destroy one of the Soviet Union's most memorable geographical constructions, 20th-century "the" Ukraine.


See, for example, "Khrushchev’s transfer of Crimea to Ukraine was unconstitutional – Putin."

Image from, with caption: Flag of Ukrainian SSR in 1949 image by António Martins and Victor Lomantsov; see also.

"I know I'm becoming my father because I still don't understand what a 'hashtag' is."

--Comment by a Facebook friend; image from

ANNOUNCEMENT

Public Meeting in Washington, DC, May 8, 2014 - state.gov: "The U.S. Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy will hold a public meeting on 'Disasters, Wars, and Cultural Heritage Preservation: The Role of Arts and Culture in National Security'from 10:00a.m. until 11:30a.m., Thursday, May 8, 2014 in Lindner Family Commons (sixth floor) of The George Washington University’s Elliot School of International Affairs at 1957 E Street, NW, Washington, DC."

FACT SHEET

Highlights of State Department and USAID Efforts to Support Press and Media Freedom - Fact Sheet, Office of the Spokesperson, Washington, DC, May 2, 2014

VIDEO (SPECIAL AMERICANA FEATURE)

What A Girl's Shoes Mean - JennaMarbles

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

President Obama’s Underreported Asia Strategy - Wenchi Yu, blogs.cfr.org: "President Barack Obama just returned from Asia after an eight-day, four-country visit to the region. International media coverage carefully examined the Obama administration’s 'pivot,' or 'rebalancing,' to Asia through trade, military, and other security issues and the reaction of China to the president’s visit. But given the United States’ complex diplomatic relations with the region, it is the president’s people-to-people diplomacy in Southeast Asia that is most likely to result in long-term goodwill from the region. ... In this vein, a core U.S. strategy has been and should be people-to-people diplomacy using non-security issues such as innovation, technology, entrepreneurship, gender equality, youth, and development as tools for engagement. In Southeast Asia, people-to-people diplomacy has manifested itself in strategic initiatives such as the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative, the annual U.S.-ASEAN Business Summit, the Lower Mekong Initiative, and entrepreneurship and women-focused programs. The U.S. State Department underwent organizational changes to embed a senior (deputy assistant secretary) position in the regional bureau to carry out public diplomacy programs. Embassies and ambassadors are encouraged to use social media—popular in the region—to reach out to new and young audiences. For example, America’s popular ambassador to Thailand, Kristie Kenney, uses Twitter extensively to communicate with her nearly fifty-thousand followers. In Jakarta, the @america cultural center uses technology



to engage young Indonesians with American culture and values. Most of these people-to-people efforts are welcomed by this region’s governments and societies because they speak directly to citizens, bring new opportunities, and bridge differences. To the United States, investing in and influencing open-minded, innovative, and moderate emerging leaders is an important long-term strategy. The goal is simple—win the hearts and minds of the people and future leaders. This strategy is working on the ground and American diplomats are doing it more. During Obama’s visit to Malaysia—the first American presidential visit in forty-eight years—he held a town hall event with five hundred Malaysian university students. He also held a business signing ceremony for major U.S.-Malaysia commercial deals and spoke with young entrepreneurs from Southeast Asia to discuss challenges facing their societies. When young social entrepreneurs, with U.S. support, are given the opportunity to present their own solutions to community problems, they are much more likely to develop a positive impression of the United States. Although these efforts do not replace important security and military cooperation, Obama’s message was clear—people-to-people engagement is an important part of U.S. policy in the region. Still, winning the hearts and minds of the people is not just about unquestioning support." Image from entry, with caption: U.S. president Barack Obama high fives a member of the audience as he leaves after the Young Southeast Asian Leadership Intiative (YSEALI) Town Hall inside the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur on April 27, 2014.

Let’s get the Asia rebalance right - Sen. Robert Menendez, thehill.com: "To improve the effectiveness and sustainability of the rebalance policy and increase civilian engagement, strengthen diplomatic partnerships, and empower U.S. businesses, the United States should: [inter alia] ... Redouble efforts to support U.S. students to study in the region, ensure faster processing for non-immigrant visas for tourism and conferences, and increase resources for public diplomacy."

Dealing with Russia: A Way Forward - Kenneth S. Yalowitz, wilsoncenter.org: "More effective public diplomacy will be needed to counter the Putin propaganda onslaught against the West. This means expanding Russian language information flows and quality radio and television programming through standard techniques as well as the internet to reach audiences in Russia. One target must be to shed light for Russian audiences on the massive corruption at high levels in Russia and the abuses by the security forces. ... In sum, the West needs to employ a containment strategy 'light' that aims to strengthen Ukraine and its neighbors, broadens the horizons of the Russian people and allows for the resumption of diplomacy."

Showdown over Ukraine sparks Cold War-style propaganda battle - Stars and Stripes: "Fed up with the Russian government’s false claims early in the Ukraine crisis, the State Department issued an unusual, point-by-point takedown along with a cheeky note that said not since 19th-century novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky had the world seen such 'startling Russian fiction.' The jab didn’t seem to hurt in Moscow. A pro-Kremlin newspaper columnist mocked the Obama administration’s 'excellent knowledge of Russian literature.' And an undeterred President Vladimir Putin spent the next several weeks polishing his narrative of a strong Russia standing up to Western imperialism in order to protect a vulnerable ethnic Russian population from an illegitimate, Nazi-infiltrated new Ukrainian leadership.In retaliation, the State Department fired off a second literary-themed fact sheet: 'Russian Fiction the Sequel: 10 More False Claims about Ukraine.' Such calculated repartee is familiar to historians and analysts of the Cold War, who’ve noticed a resurgence of that era’s disinformation and propaganda tactics in Russia’s showdown with the United States and Europe over its military activities in and near neighboring Ukraine. ... Richard Stengel, a former Time magazine editor who’s now the undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs, used a State Department blog this week to rattle off evidence that Moscow is subjecting 'the rest of the world to an intense campaign of disinformation that tries to paint a dangerous and false picture of Ukraine’s legitimate government.' Stengel noted how Russia’s RT network, which Kerry described last month as a 'propaganda bullhorn,' manipulated a leaked telephone call to suggest that a former Ukrainian prime minister was advocating violence against Russia. He also noted the 'ludicrous assertion' that the United States has invested $5 billion to foment regime change in Ukraine. 'These are not facts, and they are not opinions,' Stengel wrote. 'They are false claims, and when propaganda poses as news it creates real dangers and gives a green light to violence.'”

Richard Stengel contradicts Victoria Nuland’s remarks - voltairenet.org: "Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs (tantamount to propaganda) Richard Stengel posted a 'dipnote' on the State Department’s official blog, labelling the work of RT.com as propaganda, that is to say of 'deliberate dissemination of information that you know to be false or misleading in order to influence an audience.' The Under Secretary of State makes fun of the 'constant reference to all Ukrainian opposed the Russian grip on the country as a terrorist and blind repetition of the ridiculous assertion last week that the United States has invested $ 5 billion in regime change in Ukraine. These are not facts or opinions. These are false allegations, and when the propaganda presented as news, it creates real dangers and gives the green light to violence.'



However, Russia Today was not alluding to the numerous accounts of direct funding that the Maidan protesters have received from the U.S. Embassy in Kiev, but to the address delivered by Victoria Nuland herself, before the US-Ukraine Foundation in the middle of the crisis EuroMaidan. On that occasion, speaking on behalf of the State Department, the diplomat stated that 'Since Ukraine’s independence in 1991, the United States has supported Ukrainians as they build democratic skills and institutions, as they promote civic participation and good governance, all of which are preconditions for Ukraine to achieve its European aspirations. We’ve invested over $5 billion to assist Ukraine in these and other goals that will ensure a secure and prosperous and democratic Ukraine.' [1] At first glance, the U.S. propaganda chief appears to contradict Victoria Nuland’s remarks. Taking a closer look, he changes the version by simply switching speakers."Image from entry; via BB on Facebook; see also.

New Bill Would Return ‘Voice of America’ To Propagandist Roots: A long-time and historic voice of journalistic integrity is set to become a mouthpiece for the federal government - Frederick Reese, mintpressnews.com: "Despite its role in promoting American interests internationally, VOA has always held itself to the highest journalistic integrity. Much of the organization’s journalistic code — including the use of two sources when reporting third-party, taking care to present a story in an unbiased and balanced way, and not using special privileges or access in reporting on an issue — has been embraced by the news industry as part of journalistic integrity. ... Some in Congress, however, feel that this sense of editorial freedom and integrity compromises VOA’s function as America’s mouthpiece. On Wednesday, the House Foreign Affairs Committee will vote on a bill that will significantly reform the Broadcasting Board of Governors, VOA’s sponsoring agency.



The changes will make it clear that VOA and other BBG-backed broadcasts are not neutral news platforms, but messaging devices for the federal government. ... The recent move by the Congress to control VOA has raised comparisons to Russia and its use of its foreign-facing mouthpiece, the television network RT, to denounce Western involvement in Ukraine and to attack the Kiev government as right-wing fascists. With Congress passing a bill last month to expand VOA and Radio Free Europe in Ukraine and Eastern Europe, what was one of the greatest founts for journalistic integrity is slowly being returned to what it once was: a propaganda weapon."Uncaptioned image from entry

Overhaul of U.S. International Broadcasting Proposed - Randy J. Stine, radioworld.com: "A newly drafted bill introduced and referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee last week would reform U.S. international media outreach. Bill sponsor California Republican Rep. Edward Royce says the objective of H.R. 4490 'United States International Communications Reform Act of 2014' is to improve efficiency, effectiveness and flexibility of United States international broadcasting and calls for the creation of the United States International Communications Agency. ... The move comes at a time of criticism of the current management and structure of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the bipartisan federal entity that sets funding and gives direction to its various broadcast organizations, which include Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio TV/Marti and the Middle East Broadcast Networks and Radio Free Asia. BBG critics say they find the agency’s patchwork of network services outdated and inflexible at a time of increasing global competition. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called the organization 'practically defunct' during congressional testimony in 2013. More recently, the BBG has said the organization believes it will become more nimble and streamlined under its FY2015 request of $721.26 million. Its five broadcast networks reached some 200 million people per week in 2013, according to BBG estimates."

How to Win the Information War against Vladimir Putin: The best antidote to propaganda isn't counterpropaganda. It's access to accurate information - Christian Caryl - foreignpolicy.com: "U.S. lawmakers apparently now believe that the way to counter Russia's information offensive is by supplying propaganda of our own. The code for this is ‘messaging’ -- in other words, the priority should be on ‘getting America's message out.’ That seems to be the idea, for example, behind the recent reforms proposed for the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the supposedly independent public corporation that oversees Radio Free Europe, Voice of America, and other government-financed broadcasters. The logic behind this thinking is clear: ‘Why are we paying all this money for overseas news when the journalists we're paying for sometimes say things we don't like?’ The reason is simple.



The people who live in these countries already spend a lot of their lives listening to news pumped out by governments with an axe to grind. And that's precisely why accurate, professional journalism can have a profound impact -- especially when it's not trying to persuade them of some particular viewpoint (such as ‘messaging’ about the inherent superiority of the American system). The model of surrogate journalism practiced by journalists  ... at RFE (and their sister broadcaster, Radio Free Asia) is exactly the right one. (For the record: I'm also a big fan of the BBC World Service and the BBC's various foreign-language arms, which have long wooed listeners and viewers in repressive societies like Burma, Iran, and China with their high, professional standard of reporting.) If you stick to this model, you'll sometimes end up broadcasting criticism of the United States and its policies. And that's all for the good -- because it will show audiences that the reporters aren't beholden to a particular line. And, lest we forget, criticizing the government is a fundamentally American value, too. But we do need to tweak the model a bit. To compete effectively with Putin's Russia and other autocracies, the United States needs to beef up its efforts dramatically. What the U.S. government currently spends on international broadcasting is a joke. (RFE/RL's current annual budget is about $95 million, the price of a couple of helicopters.) We need to spend a lot more money, and we need to spend it much more effectively -- perhaps by getting the private sector involved. (Looking at you, Google.) The trend in recent years has been more money for bureaucrats and less for journalists, which is, needless to say, getting it ass-backwards. And, to be sure, U.S.-sponsored journalism efforts should use social media far more aggressively, but we also need to find creative ways to challenge the autocrats' hold on national TV networks, which is usually their most effective tool. Above all, we need to find ways to let audiences get involved and active, to speak up about the problems of their own societies. That's important not only because it's precisely what Putin and other dictators don't want to allow. It's also important because this is one of the most elementary ingredients of democracy. If we're really serious about convincing people of the virtues of our system, you'd think we'd be serious about this.” Image from

GOP Lawmakers Wicker, Schock Aim to Restore Cuts to Radio Free Europe - Andrea Billups, newsmax.com: "Lawmakers are pointing at Russian aggression in Crimea as they call on a federal agency to cancel proposed funding cuts for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's news coverage in the Balkans. 'The timing of this decision by the [Broadcasting Board of Governors] just seems unbelievable,' Republican Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, who wrote the BBG in late February, told Newsmax. ... The Radio Free Europe's Balkans service has been in place since 1994 and extends its message via Internet, radio, and television to Bosnia, Serbia, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Montenegro. More than 150 station affiliates distribute the news service programming, and supporters say the voice of freedom must remain strong there as Russian aggression grows. Wicker said he is concerned the cutbacks have been done with little input from Congress."

President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts - officialwire.com: "President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts: ... Dana Shell Smith, Nominee for Ambassador to the State of Qatar, Department of State [:] Dana Shell Smith, a career member of the Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, is currently Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, a position she has held since early 2014. Previously, Ms. Smith served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Public Affairs at the Department of State from 2011 to 2014. She was the Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Media in the Bureau of Public Affairs from 2010 to 2011, and Regional Arabic Spokesperson for the Regional Media Hub in Dubai from 2009 to 2010. ... She was a Public Affairs Officer at the American Institute of Taiwan from 2003 to 2006 and a Press Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Amman, Jordan from 1999 to 2002. From 1996 to 1999, she was a Public Diplomacy Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel and was Assistant Cultural Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, Egypt from 1993 to 1996."

Rethinking US public diplomacy and digital engagement - Craig Hayden, intermap.org:  "I had the pleasure of speaking with Mike Ardaiolo of the Public Diplomat, a podcast and website produced by students and scholars at Syracuse University’s public diplomacy program. Here is the link: U.S. Public Diplomacy in a Digital Context [.] I speak about my research into how digital platforms have been incorporated into US public diplomacy, and how this reflects broader institutional shifts in the practice and discourse of PD. Basically, I argue that technology is not driving change by istelf, but rather serves as a context for reconceptualizing PD and the larger field of diplomatic practice. I also talk a bit about the US strategy toward Ukraine and other programs."

Quick Take: What’s the Significance of Ukraine/Russia So Far? - cips.uottawa.ca:"Benjamin Zyla [:] "One interesting (yet I am not sure if it is the most significant) outcome to date of the Ukrainian crisis is that it has led to a rapprochement between the Europeans and America. ... Until now have they not ratcheted up the sabre-rattling. Rather, their foreign ministers were jetting between Washington, Paris, Berlin, Moscow, Geneva, Warsaw and Kiev to keep diplomatic channels and possibilities open and to stress principles of de-escalation. ... The only person who currently torpedoes this strategy of de-escalation is NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.



Some observers note that he is now experiencing a resurgence of his commonly-perceived weak tenure at the helm of the alliance. He certainly pushed the escalation by suggesting in an op-ed piece for the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag that NATO’s doors for Ukrainian membership are 'open in principle', and lamenting that sovereign states are principally free to decide their own destiny and to join international alliances if they so desire. Again, a restrained public diplomacy in an intensifying crisis sounds different, and so it is little surprising that he was snubbed by Germany’s Foreign Minister, who noted that NATO membership for Ukraine is not on the agenda at the moment. This, however, is hard to believe as one hears from NATO’s International Staff. The next Summit in September apparently has only one point on the agenda at the moment: a new NATO strategy. Military planners across European capitals are already discussing the resurrection of Leopard panzers."Zyla image from entry

Numerous visitors welcome 2014 Tehran intl. book fair - presstv.ir: "Many local and international book enthusiasts have flocked to the 27th edition of Tehran International Book Fair (TIBF) during only two days after opening gala. ... Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati along with a number of international diplomats attended the opening ceremony. 'The international book fair is a kind of public diplomacy and a place for cultural exchanges and interactions,' Rouhani stated.


Some 600 foreign publishers from Germany, France, Turkey, Japan, Lebanon, Syria, China, Qatar, and several other countries have presented about 160,000 of their latest publications at the event."Uncaptioned image from entry; see also.

Koreans are hospitable - Hilary Ogbechie, sunnewsonline.com: "Penultimate weekend, I was in Seoul, the Capital City of South Korea on the invitation of the Korea Foundation as a guest of the foundation and the Korean government. The visit which was under the auspices of the Korea Foundation invitation program for prominent and distinguished guests in culture for the year 2014, had invitation extended to eleven (11) countries from different parts of the world including Nigeria. ... In all, my Korean experience was thrilling and rewarding, as I developed a network of accomplished art and culture practitioners, ready for meaningful and beneficial collaborations to involving parties.


I now know more about the Korean culture and its very widely acknowledged successful approach for reaching and influencing other parts of the world. I can safely say that the Korea Foundation public diplomacy initiatives of helping develop expertise while building solid foundation of cooperation and friendship is working very well and worthy of emulation by others, especially those from the developing countries. Hilary C. Ogbechie is Director – Extension Services, National Council for Arts and Culture, Abuja, Nigeria."Uncaptioned mage from entry

'David the Nahlawi' sparks viral protest in Israel - Mazal Mualem, al-monitor.com: "David Adamov, a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Nahal Brigade, nicknamed 'David the Nahlawi' ... was filmed in the West Bank town of Hebron cocking his rifle at a Palestinian youth who confronted him while holding brass knuckles. ... As of May 2, the number of likes on the Facebook page titled 'I, too, am with David the Nahlawi' had reached 122,000, with more to come. The Nahal Brigade soldier has become a hero.  ... People assumed that Adamov, who was sentenced on the same day to 20 days in jail for violent behavior toward his commander, was punished because of the filmed incident. From that point it was only a short period of time until the IDF experienced its first outburst of digital protest. ... [T]he power of the protest generated by David the Nahlawi  ... places a mirror in front of the Israeli leadership, and especially in front of Netanyahu’s face, by enabling us to see the difficult and ugly reality that we force on our young soldiers by the hour. The fancy words about diplomatic negotiations, the public diplomacy campaigns and the security quiet come crashing down with one documented incident, in which death or injury is not even needed to sum up the explosive nature of the conflict."

S40M Learn Spanish in Asia: Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations - dulaboo.com: "The Institute of diplomacy and Foreign Relations, or more simply known as the IDFR, was established in 1991 under the tutelage of the Prime Minister’s Department, housed on the former site of Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra al-Haj’s, the first Prime Minister, residence. It was in 2004 that it became the training arm of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. ... The institute


is intended for the Ministry’s officers as well as for officers from other government departments. They offer programs including diplomatic training courses, pre-posting orientation courses, public diplomacy and media skills courses, high level workshops, as well as Arabic, French, Malay, Mandarin and Spanish language courses."Image from entry, with caption: Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations

Lesson 215 NGOs as Public Diplomacy - larrydlauer.wordpress.com: "NGO’s (non-governmental organizations) range from disaster relief, to healthcare, to conservation and cause-promoting organizations. Most are non-profit and international in their outlook. If 'strategic communication' is defined as planning and implementing communication initiatives to achieve specific outcomes, and 'public diplomacy' is defined as people communicating directly with people in other cultures the basic elements of their beliefs and values, then NGO’s are clearly using strategic communication tactics to carry out basic public diplomacy. There are many varieties of public diplomacy carried out each day by thousands of governments and NGO’s. One would think we would be making much greater progress toward world peace. And while many of these organizations also have education programs, we might just have to call upon education institutions to complete the job. Higher education potentially is the purest form of public diplomacy. People gather to learn about each other’s way of life, the elements of global leadership, and how to use research and knowledge skills to solve world problems. Maybe as this industry becomes even more international, we will finally have the groundwork in place to achieve a true community of nations."


Congressional scrutiny puts propaganda plan on hold - Ray Locker, usatoday.com: Increased scrutiny by Congress has led the Pentagon's Special Operations Command to shelve a plan to pick potential targets for propaganda, according to a command spokesman. SOCOM announced this week it was halting its plans to seek bidders for its planned Global Research Assessment Program, which involved hiring contractors not conducting military propaganda programs to have them select and monitor the effectiveness of those programs around the world.


"We are currently working to answer congressional questions concerning the program and have voluntarily delayed the release of the [plan] until the committees involved are satisfied with the response," said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Allen, a SOCOM spokesman. Uncaptioned image from entry

The International Flavor of Kremlin Propaganda - Jamestown Foundation Blog: That Russia should be trying to sway international public opinion is not surprising, given the magnitude of international norms its president broke by ordering the annexation of Crimea and promoting instability in eastern Ukraine. The vision of Europe that the Kremlin projects is one that promotes the importance of ethnicity in international relations. This is hardly unexpected given the contentious debates over the place of ethnicity in the multi-ethnic Russian Federation and the fact that Russia experienced a different historical development of nationalism to the Western European states.

Why Neocons Seek to Destabilize Russia - Robert Parry, consortiumnews.com: Any propaganda war starts by planting stories that your target is getting rich, whether he is or isn’t, the latest move in demonizing Vladimir Putin. But the larger question is what might happen if the neocons succeed in destabilizing nuclear-armed Russia.

Ukraine – The US and Russia Propaganda - armstrongeconomics.com: Those who keep attributing everything to the CIA have greatly harmed Ukraine.

America's Peace Crisis: The U.S. diplomatic corps is underfunded, overstretched, and set up to fail. Here's how to fix it - Christopher Holshek, foreignpolicy.com: America's foreign policy and national security establishments simply aren't structured for success in peacemaking.


As Alexis de Tocqueville observed, Americans know well how to get into wars and fight them, but not how to end or prevent them. Image from entry

Arrests, Censorship and Propaganda: China's Tiananmen Anniversary Dance -- As the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown approaches, Beijing’s censors and security forces are kept busy - Tyler Roney, thediplomat.com: While the dreaded anniversary of the crackdown itself


isn’t until June 4, there are a number of anniversaries and events surrounding the protests that give Beijing an itchy propaganda finger. Image from entry, with caption: Image Credit: Hong Kong 2011 Tiananmen remembrance image via Jess Yu

North Korea: Binding minds [susbcription] - The Economist: Dear Leader. By Jang Jin-sung. Random House. A fascinating inside account of how the Kims used propaganda to cement their hold on power.

Nazi Girls Are Easy: Porn In Left-Wing Political Propaganda - Angel Millar, peopleofshambhala.com: Porn has a political message. At least at times. Partly because the center-Right claims to stand for “family values,” and to oppose sex out of wedlock and other “sins” (including, often, pornography), political propaganda of the pornographic type has tended to emanate from the Left-wing.


More than just an open rejection of the center-Right’s values, certain theories on the Left tied sexual liberation to anti-fascism, anti-racism, anti-sexism, etc. The “authoritarian personality” could be stamped out of society through promiscuity, “polymorphous perversity,” and so on. Image from entry, with caption: Anti-fascist entertainment: The Night Porter (left), and Sid Vicious of The Sex Pistols wearing his controversial trade mark swastika t-shirt

ONE MORE QUOTATION FOR THE DAY

"[C]onnoisseurs of the Athenian democratic punishment of rhaphanidosis (forcing a radish up the anus) will not be disappointed."


--Paul Cartledge, reviewing (in The Times Literary Supplement, April 25, 2014, p. 25) David Phillips, The Law of Ancient Athens, which mentions the abovementioned punishment; image from

IMAGE



--From Julia Ioffe, "Of Course The Ousted President of Ukraine Commissioned a Nude Portrait of Himself," New Republic

What A Girl's Shoes Mean - Jenna Marbles

From The Indepedent; via AS on Facebook

From The New York Times; see also a recent review of Adams's wife, Louisa

A Principled Warrior

‘John Quincy Adams,’ by Fred Kaplan

By ROBERT W. MERRYMAY 2, 2014

Photo

From the New York Times

American Architect

‘James Madison,’ by Lynne Cheney

By GORDON S. WOODMAY 1, 2014

Photo

"We do not pay for the VOA to be just another news outlet.”

--A  House Foreign Affairs Committee spokesperson adding “We pay for the VOA to provide news that supports our national security objectives.”  Image from

EVENT

May 8, 2014: The Fulbright Effect - fulbright.be: "You are invited to the following event: The Fulbright Effect [.] Event to be held at the following time, date, and location: Thursday, May 8, 2014 from 4:00 PM to 5:30 PM (EDT) | 22:00 -23:30 Brussels time/CEST.  The J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board and The Woodrow Wilson International
Center for Scholars invite you to participate in a discussion on: The Fulbright Effect. How do we shape the future of public diplomacy and global education? Thursday, May 8, 2014 – 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EDT. Join us live-stream at www.watchitoo.com/show/wav-772"

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY


Troops on the Ground: U.S. and NATO Plan PSYOPS Teams in Ukraine: Effort reminiscent of CIA’s Radio Free Europe during Cold War - Kurt Nimmo, globalresearch.ca: "The United States is working closely with members of the NATO club in Eastern Europe to help the junta in Ukraine better manage its propaganda effort, U.S. News and World Report said on Thursday. 'We are starting some projects together with others, understanding the time factor is of the essence,' Janis Sarts, the state secretary of defense in Latvia, told the news magazine. Asked if the plan includes sending troops and trainers to Ukraine, Sarts said, 'Yes. I think that would help.' He added the United States is currently involved in discussions. The Pentagon, however, refused to comment on any possible mission 'that would help Ukrainians to deal with the propaganda that is going on,' as Sarts characterized Russian reportage on the political and military crisis.


NATO, however, is more forthcoming, although it prefers to speak in generalities. 'NATO Allies are actively considering ways to further strengthen our long-standing cooperation with Ukraine, including in the area of public diplomacy,' a NATO official said. 'Allies are also providing assistance to Ukraine on a bilateral basis.' NATO’s use of the phrase 'public diplomacy' is significant. The term was coined during the Cold War when the United States engaged in a concerted propaganda effort to influence public opinion on the Soviet Union. Public diplomacy is defined as 'white propaganda' whereas psychological operations are considered black propaganda."Image from article, with caption: Military PSYOPS in Europe: 1) German Combat Camera Team CCT – Combat Camera is a PSYOPS Center controlled function in Bundeswehr. 2) German and Belgian Tactical Psyops Team patch. 3) German OPINFO Team Kunduz – PSYOPS Team 4) NATO ISAF patch 5) Non Kinetic Working Group Advisory Team – 109th AFGHAN Corps. Non Kinetic Warfare – an interesting term comprising CIMIC, INFO OPS AND PSYOPS 6) Regional Command Public Affairs Office 7) Tactical PSYOPS Team Task Force Northern Lights TPT 6C23 8) NATO INFO OPS ISAF 9) ISAF INFO OPS 10) German IEB – Intercultural Ops Advisor – part of the German OPINFO Center.

VOA reform push sparks propaganda fears- Julian Hattem, thehill.com: "The House is moving to overhaul the handful of taxpayer-funded media organizations, but critics say the changes would turn the Voice of America into a tool for pro-western propaganda. Last week, the House Foreign Affairs Committee unanimously passed a bill to make 'dramatic reforms' to the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), which oversees the government-backed outlets. ... Last week, the House Foreign Affairs Committee unanimously passed a bill to make 'dramatic reforms' to the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), which oversees the government-backed outlets. One of the highest profile changes in the new bill is an explicit statement that news at the Voice of America, the U.S.’s flagship foreign broadcaster, 'is consistent with and promotes the broad foreign policies of the United States.' ... The Kremlin-funded Russia Today, which is itself the subject of criticism for its Moscow-friendly stance, wrote that the new bill calls 'into question how much editorial independence Voice of America (VOA) will have left.' But lawmakers and other supporters say the bill is just getting the broadcaster back to its roots. 'Public diplomacy is not propaganda – it’s telling America’s story; it’s explaining our policies to foreign audiences,' a committee spokesperson said in an email to The Hill.'The U.S. spends a lot of money every year to help people in foreign countries; we do a lot of good in the world.''We do not pay for the VOA to be just another news outlet,' the spokesperson added. 'We pay for the VOA to provide news that supports our national security objectives.' ... A Senate counterpart to the House bill has yet to be unveiled, but is expected to also spin off the Office of Cuba Broadcasting, according to a person with knowledge of the issue. The office operates Radio and TV Marti from within VOA’s formal structure. As lawmakers hammered out the details last week, BBG Chairman Jeff Shell promised employees that little would change for them. 'People around the globe depend on [U.S. international media] for high-quality journalism,' he wrote in a letter to staffers. 'This will not change, no matter the outcome of current efforts on Capitol Hill.'"See also.

Voice of America wasted estimated millions on improper contract payments, Radio Free Asia gets clean bill of health- BBG Watcher, BBG Watch: "Yet another Office of Inspector General (OIG) investigationshows that while Voice of America (VOA), the International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB) — all three within the federal structure of the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) — are mismanaged and waste taxpayers’ money on improper payments to contractors, BBG’s semi-private grantee media outlets, such as Radio Free Asia (RFA), Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and Middle East Broadcasting Networks (MBN), which receive far less money than VOA and IBB, are better managed and spend federal money wisely.

Image from entry

Kenneth Y Tomlinson, 1944-2014 - The Federalist, BBG Watcher, BBG Watch: "Mr. Tomlinson’s


tenure as VOA director is perhaps remembered as one of the better times in the agency."Image from entry, with caption: Kenneth Y Tomlinson, R.I.P.

Public diplomacy in the target of Aliyev’s government - Aravot -- News from Armenia: "Yesterday, the Azerbaijani political analyst Zardusht Alizadeh stated that the Azerbaijani Constitution and other laws do not prohibit public diplomacy, and that she is also an active participant of public diplomacy in the events organized since 1989. ... To argue that there is ... [a] powerful opposition in Azerbaijan, and a critical mass that can be a threat to Aliyev’s government, of course, would be an exaggeration, therefore, to this respect, the connection today between the fear and atmosphere of horror created in Azerbaijan would not be right. As to what is Aliyev’s actual purpose, what problem he solves, perhaps, it will be seen more clearly over the time. At the moment, the only available fact is that the public diplomacy has appeared in the target of Aliyev’s government, the Azerbaijanis communicating with Armenians in the international conferences and the programs funded by Western foundations."

Iran’s Foreign Ministry to Enhance Public Diplomacy: Spokeswoman - tasnimnews.com: "Iran’s foreign ministry spokeswoman said the ministry seeks to boost the public diplomacy, adding that every Iranian citizens can play an active role to promote public diplomacy. 'We are trying to expand public diplomacy as every Iranian citizen has the potential for (playing a role in) this diplomacy,' Marziyeh Afkham said on the sidelines of her visit to Tehran International Book Fair.


She added that other Iranian institutions can also come to support the country’s public diplomacy. According to Afkham, Iran’s public diplomacy is aimed at introducing a true picture of the country to the world based on the Iran’s capabilities and the progresses it has made. Last year, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani highlighted public diplomacy and referred to tourism as one of the most effective means of public diplomacy that can help improve interactions between nations and lead to peace, fraternity and mutual understanding of cultures and traditions."Uncaptioned image from entry

ABC kept embassy out of the loop - Sharri Markson and Peter Alford, The Australian [subscription] - "The ABC announced a 'historic deal' to broadcast content into China without seeking approval from the Chinese embassy in Canberra before issuing the ­statement."

American University [-] Posted on April 29, 2014 [:]School of Communication Political Communication Program Director/Faculty Search, AY2014-2015 - aejmc.org: "The School of Communication at American University is seeking a highly qualified candidate who has significant expertise in political communication to teach in the Public Communication Division as well as work with the School of Public Affairs (SPA) in overseeing the MA in Political Communication program. Rank will be dependent on experience and stature in the field. The non-tenure track position, which is expected to be renewable, begins in Fall 2014. ... The Public Communication faculty has a national reputation for work in political communication, public affairs, advocacy communication, social media, and public diplomacy."

Today’s Leaders, Tomorrow’s Decision Makers - socialchange2020.wordpress.com: "Karima Rhanem (Morocco) Opening Speech full transcript ... It’s so funny how many people around the world are so unaware about your country geography, culture, history, politics and economy. It’s also unlikely that several people have lots of misconceptions and stereotypes about your country, and this contributes in a way or another to many conflicts.


It is only through getting to know people and cultures through such international or regional opportunities as Model United Nations and similar public diplomacy meetings that we get a better idea about others’ cultures."Uncaptioned image from entry

Waite awarded international fellowship - times-herald.com [scroll down link for item]: "Cynthia Waite of Newnan was awarded a 2014 Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Fellowship following a highly competitive nationwide contest. The Rangel Fellowship, funded by the U.S. Department of State and managed by the Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center at Howard University, supports extraordinary individuals who want to pursue a career in the U.S. Foreign Service. ... Waite plans to attend graduate school in the fall at Georgetown University’s Master of Science in Foreign Service program. She will study US foreign policy and security, with a focus on public diplomacy and East Asia. The Rangel Fellowship will provide Waite with approximately $90,000 in benefits over a two year period to pursue a master’s degree in international affairs. As part of the Rangel Program, she will work for a Member of Congress on issues related to U.S. foreign policy this summer. In the summer of 2015, the U.S. Department of State will send Waite overseas to work in a U.S. Embassy to get hands-on experience with U.S. foreign policy and the work of the Foreign Service. Upon graduation, she will become a U.S. diplomat, embarking on one of the most challenging and rewarding careers of service to her country."

RELATED ITEMS

Ukraine: Lies, propaganda and the West's agenda: Is the Western narrative obscuring what's really going on in Ukraine? - Alastair Sloan, aljazeera.com: "Washington and Brussels are the heroes of the Ukrainian saga, if you believe the Western media. Russian President Vladimir Putin is cast as the Big Bad Russian Bear, US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry are the Democratic A-Team. Russia is supposedly using dirty KGB-inspired tactics: secret agitators backed by masked paratroopers. The West makes the same tired claims to back democracy and freedom and denounces Putin's foul play.


The hyperbole is extraordinary. In the face of clearly hypocritical Western lecturing - Putin's ratings at home have soared. And the people of Ukraine have also been betrayed - their push for democracy co-opted by US interests, and their economy having lost up to $80bn, according to latest reports. Will Western leaders be held to account? Probably not if this thundering and incorrect narrative continues to play out across the media. This is why Western leaders are so keen to demonise Putin - it gets them off the hook. Image from entry, with caption: Pro-Russian protesters attack pro-Ukrainian supporters during a rally for a Single Ukraine in Donetsk on April 28

Ravenous Russia? Thirsty Crimea: Back to basics like water and power. Taking Ukrainian territory is one thing, holding on to it is quite another - Oleg Shynkarenko and Will Cathcart, Daily Beast: A lack of water could influence dramatically this year’s harvest and could potentially render the Crimean peninsula an agricultural wasteland.


So much for the dreams of security and prosperity that were part of Moscow’s psy-ops. As millions learned under the Soviets, propaganda doesn’t grow beans.

Video: Ukraine and US Propaganda - williambowles.info: Eric Draitser of StopImperialism.org appears on RT (Thursday April 24, 2014) to discuss the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.


Specifically, Draitser examines the narrative constructed by Western media and senior Obama administration officials in which the “case against Russia” is built entirely upon fabrications, distortions, and outright lies. Image from entry

Castronoid lobby launches propaganda campaign on Twitter, on the Web, and in Washington D.C. - Carlos Eire, babalublog.com: A sickening display of Castronoid propaganda has made its way to Twitter, the internet, and the Metro train stations in Washington D.C.


One of the chief selling points of this new propaganda blitz is the fact" that Cap'n Obama's Cuba policy is responsible for creating a colossal wave of "reforms" in Cuba over the past four years. Image from entry

During this sad period in Russian-American relations, I cannot help but speculate on the "national character" of our two countries.

Of course, "national character" is an antiquated term, dismissed (if not despised) by "objective" social scientists without a sense of humor (dare I say subtlety?).

So I am stepping into dangerous academic waters.

But, as some Italians say, "Chi se ne frega?"

But allow my non-linear mind to wander, based on my down-to-earth experience living in these two countries for many years, in the case of Russia, perhaps too many years ago (1973-74; 1998-2001).

The USA and Russian Federation are both multi-ethnic geographical expressions shaped by their location on the extremities of the space on the globe known as "Europe," some pedants would generalize.

Well, common sense does suggest that Russia and the United States have significantly similar -- how about different? -- mentalities. Or should I say phobias?

OK: A few generalizations, including similarities and differences:

--The worst thing Russians can endure is being "insulted" by other countries. Americans, mostly unaware that other countries (including Russia) actually exist (but watch out for 'em Mexicans, wherever they're from south of the border), don't care that much about being "disrespected" by the "global community." For them, the outside world, being the Atlantic and the Pacific, simply does not exist, except as H2O.

--Both "average" Russians and "average" Americans want to be considered "all" -- all-Russian, all-American. Of course the "intelligentsia" in both countries finds this dreadfully "lower class."

--Proletariat-designed Russians still care about a good homemade meal, but "working class" Americans just want fast-food cheap crap at 7-11. Well, at least until McDonald invaded Russia, way before Russia aspired to take over Ukraine.


I've run out of stupid, simplistic comparisons. Maybe in the Putin-era Russia and America are totally different worlds. Or maybe not.

Viva globalization?

Bring in the social scientists!

But, at the risk of being serious, now that what we Americans and Russians can no longer pretend to "running the global show" as we thought/pretended in the Cold War, don't we better grow up, as we should have done all along?

From. Via MT on Facebook.

Путин наградил бойцов информационного фронта "за взятие Крыма"