The Government Accountability Office has tabbed public diplomacy and improving the U.S. image abroad among the 13 most urgent issues for President-elect Barack Obama and the upcoming 111th Congress.

Public diplomacy shares billing with critical issues like defense spending, food safety, and financial market oversight in the list of priorities released to the press on Nov. 6 by acting Comptroller General Gene Dodaro.

U.S. Air Force personnel with a palate of USAID relief supplies headed for Burma this year. Photo: USAID

“It is critical that the U.S. develop a government-wide communication strategy to address negative views held of us overseas,” said Jacquelyn Williams-Bridgers, managing director of international affairs and trade at the GAO. “Moreover, the U.S. must determine whether its investments, program priorities and disparate collection of broadcast agencies maximize our goal to promote democratic values and principles.”

The GAO notes three critical points for policy makers to improve PD efforts. They include improving strategic planning, coordination and performance measurement; enhancing the substance and sharing of government audience research efforts, and addressing staffing challenges like language capabilities that arise from development of an overseas workforce.

President Bush in June 2007 issued the “U.S. National Strategy for Public Diplomacy and Strategic Communication” after the GAO recommended in 2003 that the federal government develop an interagency strategy for public diplomacy. The GAO said this week that gaps in research data, foreign language capability, staffing and resources hinder the ability of the U.S. to best target and communicate with foreign audiences.

Congress appropriated nearly $1.5 billion for the 2006 fiscal year for PD efforts by the State Dept. and Broadcasting Board of Governors. Those entities are bolstered by millions in strategic communications spending by the Dept. of Defense, USAID and the intelligence community.

The GAO has set up an '09 transition website outlining its 13 priorities at gao.gov_transition_2009.

Wes Pedersen. a 30-year vetran of the propaganda wars (11/06):
By first naming an advertising guru with no talent for international public diplomacy to head public diplomacy efforts (she quit after a few months) and then choosing Texas crony Karen Hughes, President Bush all but guaranteed a failure of our overseeas PR efforts.

The truth is that few administrations over the years have really taken public diplomacy seriously. Too bad. It is urgently needed, but throwing money and unqualified people at it just will not work.