Report Review: "Voices of America: U.S. Public Diplomacy for the 21st Century" Foreign Policy at Brookings By Kristin M. Lord (November 2008).

The following report provides recommendations based on the conclusions that America’s reputation is fading across the world and thereby undermining its influence to gain cooperation of foreign publics. Thereby, the report urges to strengthen and enhance America’s public diplomacy-defined as the promotion of national interests through efforts to inform, engage, and influence foreign publics, in order to improve America’s stand in the world and “to strengthen America’s efforts to engage, persuade and attract the support of foreign publics”(Kristin, 2008).

As solutions or at least possible steps to achieve these objectives, this report recommends to create a new independent, public-private organization to strengthen America’s relations with foreign societies, while recognizing that the creation of such an organization will be insufficient unless it will be fitted into a broader U.S. strategy that undertakes more dedicated efforts towards public diplomacy and strategic communication, which is why it also advocates for the need of changes within current government agencies to strengthen U.S. public diplomacy. Regarding these suggestions, there are two important things to note: first, creation of a new organization does not call for a new cabinet-level government agency to conduct public diplomacy as it would absorb energy and resources and create competition and overlapping authorities within existing agencies and secondly, it does not suggest for undertaking major organizational restructurings, but rather it suggests to support the existing government agencies.

Report emphasizes the changing nature of the globalized world in the 21^st Century that America faces and the need for adjustment of policies and communication with foreign publics, because if America wants to advance its interests, defend against threats and build the desired international system that is conducive to American interests, then America cannot limit itself to relations with foreign governments only, but rather it has to gain the support of their people due to the recent spread of democracy and the importance of public opinion, as well as threats that transcend national boundaries such as climate change, infectious disease, international terrorist networks, whereby they cannot be dealt in traditional state-to-state ways, and the importance of ideas and ideologies that are crucial feature of contemporary security threats and finally, military force that is not only enough for dealing with current threats, but rather it is also the cause for the mobilization of support for enemies.

Considering these circumstances the role of public diplomacy is considered critical. Therefore, the report calls for the creation of an entrepreneurial new non-profit organization under the name of USA World Trust, which would coordinate and “draw on goodwill, creativity, knowledge and talent of the American people and likeminded partners overseas”(Kristin, 2008) and aim to:

• Present America in a more positive light and counter the negative views from popular culture and foreign media
• Support an environment of mutual trust, respect and understanding
• Work as a promoter of shared values and their champions
• Support the government’s public diplomacy efforts through informing and sharing the knowledge concerning communication, public opinion, foreign cultures and technology.

Main responsibilities of the USA World Trust would be that of:

• Conducting research and analysis with the help of the knowledge of experts and present in a form useful to public diplomacy practitioners.
• Encourage and coordinate the private sector such as companies, non-governmental organizations, universities and others to contribute to the innovative new initiatives.
• Support projects and initiatives that are parallel to the USA World Trust’s objectives through providing grants and venture capital
• Identify, cultivate, and experiment with new technologies and media products that support US public diplomacy and strategic communication.
• Work as a hub and gatherer of practitioners from the US government, scholars, and talented visitors from the private and non-profit sectors to address public diplomacy and strategic communication challenges.

In sum, the main purpose of USA World Trust is to: “engage new voices and talent, serve as a resource to government and private groups that wish to improve America’s image, strengthen America’s relations with foreign populations, and combat anti-American ideologies”(Kristin, 2008).

Meanwhile, report emphasizes that the organization by itself will be ineffective unless it is part of a broader U.S. strategy to engage the world, which should include:

• More committed efforts of public diplomacy and strategic communication at all stages of policymaking and government.
• New investment in public diplomacy and strategic communication
• Leadership and stronger mechanisms to ensure coordination between government agencies.
• Expansion of public diplomacy capacity within the State Department along with the creation of interagency “hubs” for public diplomacy and strategic communication in major world regions provided with deputy assistant secretaries for public diplomacy in every regional and most functional bureaus of the State Department; more and better trained staff; more training and educational opportunities for public diplomacy professionals; and programs to draw outside experts into government.
• Streamlined policies to facilitate government partnerships with the private sector.
• A review of international broadcasting strategy and operations
• Discussion upon the compatibility of covert information operations and public diplomacy
• Policies and practices that balance security and engagement within borders, overseas embassies as well as immigration and visa policies.

This report by providing above-mentioned recommendations, illustrates the growing need and importance of a more committed efforts towards public diplomacy and the necessity to make it more coordinated and organized in order to make it more effective and efficient. There are now numerous reports that are analogous in nature, which also illustrates a pressing need for a coherent and balanced use of public diplomacy. For example, in the light of the report by Defense Science Board, that claim: “Strategic communication, coordinated and executed in association with all aspects of national power, can help prevent and limit conflict as well as enhance responses to global challenges that threaten America’s interests and values.” (Defense Science Board, 2008), it is possible to note similar claims towards the use and importance of public diplomacy. For example, an analogous recommendation of Defense Science Board to create “an independent, non-profit, and non-partisan Center for Global Engagement as a focal point for strategic communication activities, bringing together government and non-government leaders and expertise” (Defense Science Board, 2008) supports the claim for the need to create USA World Trust and enhance the use of public diplomacy.

Kristin M. Lord, (2008) Voices of America: US Public Diplomacy for the Twenty-First Century, Brookings Institute, available at www.brookings.edu/reports/2008/11_public_diplomacy_lord.aspx

Defense Science Board (US), (2008) Report of the Taskforce on Strategic Communication, available at www.acq.osd.mil/dsb/reports/ADA476331.pdf