Media and Foreign Policy
SMPA 210.10 Fall 2009
Jeremy Curtin
Office: SMPA 406D
Tel: (202) 994-6227
E-mail: jfcurtin@gwu.edu
Day:
Time:
Place:
Monday, 08/31/2009 – 12/07/2009
6:10 – 8:00
MPA, Room 307
Office Hours: Following class and by appointment
Overview:
The course will examine the US Government‟s use of media as an instrument of foreign
policy. This question will take us into an examination of the theory and practice of
public diplomacy and strategic communication, topics very much debated in government
and academic circles over the past decade. The debate remains unsettled.
We will particularly examine the impact of New Media and Web 2.0, which are posing
fundamental challenges both to traditional media like newspapers and television and to
USG strategic communication and information programs, some would argue to the
practice of diplomacy per se. Fundamental questions arise about how organizations,
including the US Government, communicate in the Web 2.0 world.
Many of the issues we will discuss are currently being explored and debated by scholars,
communication experts, bureaucrats, political leaders and others. So in many cases there
will be no agreed answers. The course will place heavy emphasis on a grasp of issues,
including relevant literature and on-line discussions, and on critical thinking and careful
argument.
Course Outcomes:
1. By the end of the course, students should understand today‟s multifaceted debates
about public diplomacy and strategic communication, New Media and Web 2.0, and
the role of public opinion and the media in US foreign policy making and
implementation.
2. Students should develop the necessary skills for critical analysis and articulation of
the central questions and issues raised in the course.
3. And they should be able to formulate and defend, orally and in writing, their own
positions on at least one central issue in the course.
Grading:
Your course grade will be determined by:
Mid-term examination (20%)
Paper on an agreed topic (40%)
Final examination (30%)
Class participation (10%)
Expectations: Class Attendance and Participation:
Students should come to class prepared to discuss required reading and respond to
questions. Classes will combine lectures and discussion of issues and readings.
Informed, thoughtful participation is expected.
I welcome and encourage discussions via e-mail or during office hours on course issues,
the paper and your academic and professional goals.
Laptops may be used in class for note taking or power point presentations. Cell phones
may not be used during class.
On-time class attendance is mandatory without an excused absence (illness,
emergencies), in which case, please notify me by e-mail in advance if possible.
Consistent tardiness or absence without prior e-mail notification will result in a lowered
grade.
University Policy on Religious Holidays:
1. Students should notify faculty during the first week of the semester of their intention to
be absent from class on their day(s) of religious observance;
2. Faculty should extend to these students the courtesy of absence without penalty on
such occasions, including permission to make up examinations;
3. Faculty who intend to observe a religious holiday should arrange at the beginning of
the semester to reschedule missed classes or to make other provisions for their courserelated activities
Academic Integrity:
I personally support the GW Code of Academic Integrity. It states: “Academic dishonesty
is defined as cheating of any kind, including misrepresenting one's own work, taking
credit for the work of others without crediting them and without appropriate
authorization, and the fabrication of information.” For the remainder of the code, see:
http://www.gwu.edu/~ntegrity/code.html
Disability Support Services (DSS)
Any student who may need an accommodation based on the potential impact of a
disability should contact the Disability Support Services office at 202-994-8250 in the
Marvin Center, Suite 242, to establish eligibility and to coordinate reasonable
accommodations. For additional information please refer to: http://gwired.gwu.edu/dss/
University Counseling Center (UCC) 202-994-5300:
The University Counseling Center (UCC) offers 24/7 assistance and referral to
address students' personal, social, career, and study skills problems. Services for students
include:
- crisis and emergency mental health consultations
- confidential assessment, counseling services (individual and small group), and
referrals
http://gwired.gwu.edu/counsel/CounselingServices/AcademicSupportServices
Security:
In the case of an emergency, if at all possible, the class should shelter in place. If the
building that the class is in is affected, follow the evacuation procedures for the building.
After evacuation, seek shelter at a predetermined rendezvous location.
Key Dates:
Sept 7:
Labor Day – No Class
October 19: Paper Topic Summary Due
Oct 26:
Mid-term Exam
Nov 23:
Papers Due
Dec 7:
Last Day of Class
Take Home Final Exam – Dates To Be Determined
Required Reading:
Geoffrey Cowan and Nicholas J. Cull, eds., Public Diplomacy in a Changing World: The
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 616, March 2008
(Sage Publications Paperback).
Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations,
(New York: The Penguin Press Inc., 2008)
Philip Seib, The Al Jazeera Effect: How the Global Media are Reshaping World Politics,
(Potomac Books Inc., 2008)
Robert M. Entman, Projections of Power: Framing News, Public Opinion and U.S.
Foreign Policy (Studies in Communication, Media and Public Opinion) (Chicago,
University of Chicago Press, 2004)
Required books are available at the GW bookstore, but you may find less expensive new
or used copies on-line.
Additional reading will be available on-line and assigned for class discussion. Some
suggested articles, reports and speeches are found throughout and at the end of the
syllabus.
You should follow daily at least one high quality news source like The New York Times
or The Washington Post. I find the weekly The Economist very useful for staying on top
of a wide range of issues related to international relations, technology and
communication. Consider following the BBC or Al Jazeera in English. Develop a few
relevant blogs or other on-line sources to follow, for example, ForeignPolicy.Com.
The course schedule, assignments, some required reading and course links will be at the
Blackboard course site. Occasionally, reading assignments may change. New readings
will be posted. Blackboard is the primary source of course information, and you are
responsible for monitoring this site regularly.
Course Schedule
Aug 31:
T-01 – Introduction: Themes, Issues, Goals and Standards
Sept 7:
Labor Day
Sept 14:
T-02 – Public Opinion: Walter Lippmann, The Impact of Public Opinion
on Policy
Walter Lippmann questioned not only the role of public opinion in a democracy but the
validity of democracy itself. John Dewey offered an opposing and more optimistic view
of democracy. Who was right?
Walter Lippmann, Public Opinion (Online)
John Dewey, “Public Opinion,” The New Republic, May 3, 1922, pp. 286-288 (Handout)
Manuel Castells, “The New Public Sphere: Global Civil Society, Communication
Networks, and Global Governance,” in Cowan and Cull, eds., Public Diplomacy in a
Changing World
Robert M. Entman, Projections of Power (Course Reading, selected)
Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody (Course Reading, selected)
Sept 21:
T-03 – The CNN Effect and the Al Jazeera Effect
How much and how quickly does public opinion affect policy? How does the spread of
international media like Al Jazeera affect US foreign policy implementation?
Philip Seib, The Al Jazeera Effect (Course Reading)
Warren Strobel, “The CNN Effect,” American Journalism Review (Online)
Daniel Kimmage: “Al Qaeda Media Nexus,” RFE/RL Reports, 2008 (Online)
The War in Viet Nam, 1965 – 1968, SMU <http://faculty.smu.edu/dsimon/ChangeViet2.html> (Online)
Robert M. Entman, Projections of Power (Course Reading selected)
Sept 28:
T-04 – Why Public Diplomacy Failed: The Djerejian Report
Since 9/11, thirty-five plus reports on public diplomacy have appeared, nearly all if not
all highly critical of US public diplomacy for its failure to improve America‟s image
abroad. We will examine the main criticisms and debate their validity. We will also
examine the assumptions about public diplomacy and its role in foreign policy as
reflected in the criticisms.
Changing Minds, Winning Peace: A New Strategic Direction for US Public Diplomacy in
the Arab & Muslim World. (Djerejian Report, online)
Public Diplomacy: A strategy for reform, Council on Foreign Relations, 2002 (Online)
Mike Canning, “To Rub and Polish Our Brains,” The Overseas Post: The Forgotten
Element of Our Public Diplomacy, The Public Diplomacy Council, 2009
(Reading)
Stephen Johnson, Helle C. Dale, and Patrick Cronin, PhD, Strengthening US Public
Diplomacy Requires Organization, Coordination and Strategy (Online)
Kristen Lord, Voices of America: U.S. Public Diplomacy in the 21st Century (Online)
William A. Rugh, Enabling Public Diplomacy Field Officers to Do Their Jobs, The
Public Diplomacy Council, 2009 (Reading)
Pew Global Attitudes Project, Pew Research Center (Online)
Transatlantic Trends, German Marshall Fund of the United States, 2009 (Online)
Oct 5:
T-05 – The War of Ideas: Strategic Communication in the Bush
Administration
After 9/11, countering terrorism and extremist ideology was a primary US foreign policy
objective during the previous administration, generating a specific approach to public
diplomacy and strategic communication. We will examine the information doctrine of
the time and discuss its impact.
Defense Science Board Report on Strategic Communication, January 2008 (Reading)
James K. Glassman, “How to Win the War of Ideas,” The Wall Street Journal, June 24,
2008 (Online)
James K. Glassman, “The New Age of Public Diplomacy,” Remarks at Chatham House,
London, September 11, 2008 (Online)
Daniel Kimmage, Iraqi Insurgent Media: The War of Images and Ideas, RFE/RL Reports
2007 (Online)
Walter Pincus, “McChrystal Says Insurgents are Winning Communications Battle,”
Washington Post, September 27, 2009 (Reading)
William Rosenau, Ph.D., Waging the “War of Ideas,” The RAND Corporation (Online)
Daniel Silverberg and Joseph Heimann, “An Ever-Expanding War: Legal Aspects of
Online Strategic Communication,” Parameters, Summer, 2009 (Online)
U.S. National Strategy for Public Diplomacy and Strategic Communication, December
14, 2006 (Reading)
Oct 12:
T-06 – What is Public Diplomacy?
Something of an insiders‟ debate, the attention paid to public diplomacy since 9/11 has
generated scholarly as well as political and Congressional discussion of the proper role of
public diplomacy. What is public diplomacy? How well is the USG set up to carry out a
public diplomacy mission? Where does public diplomacy fit into the broader spectrum of
strategic communication, which might also include military information operations and
other activities? How do you measure success?
Mike Canning, “To Rub and Polish Our Brains,” The Overseas Post: The Forgotten
Element of Our Public Diplomacy, The Public Diplomacy Council, 2009
(Reading)
Nicholas J. Cull, “Public Diplomacy: Taxonomies and Histories,” in Cowan and Cull
Nicholas J. Cull, “USIA, Gone but Not Forgotten,” Layalina Perspectives, October, 2009
(Reading)
Kristen Lord, Voices of America: U.S. Public Diplomacy in the 21st Century Executive
Summary and Introduction (Online)
Evan Potter, “A New Architecture for Canadian Public Diplomacy,” PD Magazine, June
24, 2009
Council on Foreign Relations, Public Diplomacy: A Strategy for Reform, 2002 (Online)
William A. Rugh, Enabling Public Diplomacy Field Officers to Do Their Jobs, The
Public Diplomacy Council, 2009 (Reading)
Mary Beth Sheridan, “Leadership Vacancy Raises Fears About USAID's Future,”
Washington Post, August 5, 2009
Oct 19:
T-07 – Web 2.0: Here Comes Everybody
Paper Topic Summary Due
Web 2.0 changes everything. Discuss.
Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody (Course Reading, selected)
Daniel W. Drezner and Henry Farrell, “Web of Influence: How Blogs are Changing the
World,” Foreign policy (Online)
Daniel W. Drezner and Henry Farrell, “The Power and Politics of Blogs,” Public Choice
2008, 134 15-30 (Online)
“Online Social Networks, Everywhere and Nowhere,” The Economist, March 19, 2008
April Witt, “Going Viral,” The Washington Post, May 29, 2009 (Online)
Oct. 26:
T-08 – Mid-Term Exam
Nov 2:
T-09 – Government 2.0: Diplomacy and New Media in the Obama
Administration
New Media defined the Obama presidential campaign and continues to characterize the
Obama administration‟s approach to communication, including international information.
We will examine the doctrine of engagement and the impact of New Media on the
practice of diplomacy in the 21st century.
President Obama, “A New Beginning,” Remarks at Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt, June
4, 2009
Evan H. Potter, “Web 2.0 and the New Public Diplomacy: Impact and Opportunities,”
Engagement: Public Diplomacy in a Globalized World, Foreign and
Commonwealth Office, UK, posted July 2008
Daniel Kimmage: “Al Qaeda Media Nexus,” RFE/RL Reports, 2008
Various press articles (Google New Media – White House)
USG websites: State.Gov, White House.Gov, America.Gov
Nov. 9:
T-10 – Government 2.0(b): Can the USG Blog?
Web 2.0 posits a vastly democratic, free-flowing global information environment, where
social interaction, collaboration, credibility and relationships, as opposed to “authoritative
sources,” provide the foundations for communities of shared interest. Many USG
agencies are based on an information-control structure of clearances and carefully crafted
statements, often arrived at by committee. Hence the question: Can the USG blog?
Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody, (Course Reading, selected)
America.Gov, State.Gov, US Embassy Sites
Southeast Europe Times Website
Foreign Policy Magazine Website
Nov 16:
T-11 –Metrics and a Culture of Measurement
A common theme of reports about public diplomacy is the need to establish a culture of
measure for strategies and programs. How does one measure the impact and value of
public diplomacy? New Media poses new challenges for measuring impact and may
require a new standard for success, an issue Google as well as the State Department is
trying to figure out. Suggestions?
April Witt, “Going Viral,” Washington Post, May 31, 2009 (Online)
Daniel Kimmage: “Al Qaeda Media Nexus,” RFE/RL Reports
Business models for Google (Online research)
Google John Kelly, Morningside Analytics
Ben Discoe, Mapping the Web, Washed Ashore,
www.washedashore.com/projects/webmap/mapping.html
Nov 23:
T-12 – The New Diplomacy: Government-to-Government Becomes
Government-to-People, Transformational Diplomacy and Smart Power
Papers Due
The attention to public diplomacy and, more recently, New Media, has run parallel to
discussions of basic questions about the practice of diplomacy itself. What distinguishes
transformational diplomacy and smart power from traditional diplomacy (and from one
another)? Key speeches by President Bush, Secretary Rice, President Obama, Secretary
Clinton and Secretary Gates outline the goals and issues.
President Bush at West Point, June 1, 2002 (Online)
Secretary Rice at Georgetown University (2006) (Online)
Secretary Gates at Kansas State University (2007) (Online)
President Obama at Cairo University (2009) (Online)
Secretary Clinton at Council on Foreign Relations (2009) (Online)
Richard L. Armitage and Joseph S. Nye, Jr., Co-Chairs, CSIS Commission on Smart
Power: A Smarter, more secure America, Smart Power, CSIS, 2007
(Online)
Joseph S. Nye, Jr., “Public Diplomacy and Soft Power, in Cowan and Cull
Nov. 30:
T-13 – The New Diplomacy, Continued
What is the future shape of diplomacy in a networked world?
Castells in Cowan and Cull, eds., Public Diplomacy in a Changing World
George Kennan, “The Sources of Soviet Conduct,” Foreign Affairs, 1947 (Online)
Francis Fukuyama, “The End of History?” The National Interest, Summer, 1989 (Online)
Samuel P. Huntington, “The Clash of Civilizations?” Foreign Affairs, Summer 1993
Slaughter, Anne-Marie, “America‟s Edge: Power in the Networked Century,” Foreign
Affairs, 2009
Dec 7:
T-14 – Last Day of Class, Conclusions
Final Exam: TBD
Course Texts
Geoffrey Cowan and Nicholas J. Cull, eds., Public Diplomacy in a Changing World: The
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 616, March 2008
(Sage Publications Paperback).
Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations,
(New York: The Penguin Press Inc., 2008)
Philip Seib, The Al Jazeera Effect: How the Global Media are Reshaping World Politics,
(Potomac Books Inc., 2008)
Robert M. Entman, Projections of Power: Framing News, Public Opinion and U.S.
Foreign Policy (Studies in Communication, Media and Public Opinion) (Chicago,
University of Chicago Press, 2004)
Articles, Remarks and Reports
Armitage, Richard L., and Joseph S. Nye, Jr., Co-Chairs, CSIS Commission on Smart
Power: A Smarter, more secure America, CSIS, 2007
Changing Minds, Winning Peace: A New Strategic Direction for US Public Diplomacy in
the Arab & Muslim World. Report of the Advisory Group on Public Diplomacy for the
Arab and Muslim World, Edward P. Djerejian, Chairman, 2003
Defense Science Board Report on Strategic Communication, January 2008
Drezner, Daniel W., and Henry Farrell, “Web of Influence: How Blogs are Changing the
World,” Foreign Policy, Nov/Dec, 2004
Drezner, Daniel W., and Henry Farrell, The Power and Politics of Blogs, Public Choice
2008, 134 15-30 (Online)
Fukujama, Fukuyama, “The End of History?” The National Interest, Summer, 1989
Glassman, James K., “How to Win the War of Ideas,” The Wall Street Journal, June 24,
2008
Glassman, James K., “The New Age of Public Diplomacy,” Remarks at Chatham House,
London, September 11, 2008
Huntington, Samuel P.,“The Clash of Civilizations?” Foreign Affairs, Summer 1993
Ikenberry, G. John, and Anne-Marie Slaughter, Forging a World of Liberty Under Law:
U.S. National Security in the 21st Century. Final Report of the Princeton Project on
National Security
Johnson, Stephen, Helle C. Dale, and Patrick Cronin, PhD, Strengthening US Public
Diplomacy Requires Organization, Coordination and Strategy. The Heritage
Foundation, August 5, 2005
Kennan, George, “The Sources of Soviet Conduct,” Foreign Affairs, 1947
Kimmage, Daniel, “Iraqi Insurgent Media: The War of Images and Ideas,” RFE/RL
Reports 2007
Kimmage, Daniel, “Al Qaeda Media Nexus,” RFE/RL Reports, 2008
Leonard, Mark, and Andrew Small, “British Public Diplomacy in the „Age of Schisms,‟”
London: Foreign Policy Centre, 2005
Livingston, Steven, “Diplomacy in the New Information Environment,” Georgetown
Journal of International Affairs, Summer/Fall 2003, pp. 111 – 116
Lynch, Marc, “Why Arab Opinion Matters,” Foreign Affairs, September/October 2003
“Online Social Networks, Everywhere and Nowhere,” The Economist, March 19, 2008
Pew Global Attitudes Project, Pew Research Center
Potter, Evan, “A New Architecture for Canadian Public Diplomacy,” PD Magazine, June
27, 2009
Potter, Evan H., “Web 2.0 and the New Public Diplomacy: Impact and Opportunities,”
Engagement: Public Diplomacy in a Globalized World, Foreign and Commonwealth
Office, UK, posted July 2008
Public Diplomacy: A strategy for reform, Council on Foreign Relations, Washington,
DC, 2002
Rosenau, William, “Waging the „War of Ideas,‟” The Homeland Security Handbook, The
RAND Corporation, 2006, pp. 1131-1148
Silverberg, Daniel and Joseph Heimann, “And Ever-Expanding War: Legal Aspects of
Online Strategic Communication,” Parameters, Summer, 2009
Slaughter, Anne-Marie, “America‟s Edge: Power in the Networked Century,” Foreign
Affairs, January/February, 2009, pp. 94-113
Strobel, Warren P., “The CNN Effect,” American Journalism Review, May 1996
Transatlantic Trends, German Marshall Fund of the United States, 2009
Witt, April, “Going Viral: Brandon Hardesty discovered that in the age of YouTube, if
you can make it in the family rec room, you can make it anywhere.” Washington Post,
May 31, 2009