George w. Bush administration. Good afternoon we are going to get started. Im shannon green. Im director of the human rights fascinating program. I thought i would walk through the agenda before we invite speakers. First up we have Catherine Brown and jay wong. Building alliance, dispelling disinformation. Catherine is counsel on foreign relations. We have been fortunate to have her for a couple of months leading this work. She most recently served director on Public Diplomacy. Jay wong is director of the ucs center on diplomacy. The paper emerge from workshop from back in november. This kulkt conducts an assessment where we have been with Public Diplomacy and the man succession of the under Obama Administration. Following that brief presentation, Michael Crowley will lead discussion with ben roads and jim glassman. We have fortunate to have them to share their experience and senior roles in the obama and Bush Administration. During this time youll have an time to ask questions. Well open up floor for q a. Bruce warden is poised to lead Public Diplomacy through the transition. So after the formal program well invite you to join us for cocktail. So without further adieu, i would like to welcome catherine and jay to the stage. [ applause ]. Hi, im not jay. Im Catherine Brown. Thank you for coming. Im going to go through some top points of the paper rerelease on Public Diplomacy in 2017. But the paper looks at how to build alliance to dispel information from state actors. This paper was an effort by about 40 different stake holders from across government, and academia, Civil Society and through different partners to create a document of record of the progress we is seen with the Obama Administration. And to give our best description moving forward. Im going to welcome jay now up to the stage to go over the findings and those on how to dispel information from state actors and i will come back. Good after noon. Very gload o be here. As catherine mentioned, to assess the successes of pd during the Obama Administration to make recommendations for future course. The session focused on Public Diplomacy today. Building and strengthening net works which are critical to achieving goals. When Trump Administration enter into government, they will pd apparatus consumed by these critical issues. The workshop participatant aimed to identify success and provide concrete look at aspecting of themes, tools and structure. Im going to provide a broad overview of some of our findings. Stake holders agreed that the overall successes of the Obama Administration have include reaching global communities through digital platforms through the state department. Expanding Educational Opportunities through various existing Exchange Programs. Developing the exchange alum ni office to maintain net works of then of thousands of alum ni worldwide. To leverage and innovation and continuing to enhance a career path for professionals to Better Connect policy increasing advancement to pd roles. In during challenges remain for pd practicers. Confronting the gap between the foreign citizens. Domestic news its often picked up and police brutality, confronts every day. Enduring value of transparency, but at the same time undermine american tolerance with nonamerican audience. Better prepared to address and contextualize in the field rather than to stick to sanitize points that do connect with citizens. Moreover working with stymied practiceers theres sufficient strategic planning, bugging and services which we outline in the report. Study made following in addition recommendation for pd going forward. Focus on initiative that work instead of creating new ones. It is important to listen to pd practiceers at embassy empower them to be the Trump Administration must focus on professional develop and advancement within the state department. Put a premium on political impactful pd programs. Continuing to take Audience Research seriously paying close attention to research, to help Shape Program strategies with essential moving forward. Change conversation with congress, requires information, Cultural Education activities. It is essential that members emphasis Work Together and how they apply to various global and by lateral changes. Seeking partnerships with private and Civil Society organization. These general recommendation emphasize the Obama Administration. We address more targeted issues to the role of Public Diplomacy. Countering the negative influence of false narrative from activities directed by the kremlin. So i will share with you just general some of the general points for one particular area of discussion how we define state false narratives through state actors through foreign. Increasingly we are seeing state actors disinformation and cover influence campaign to u. S. And allied messages. This is meant to turn against United States. Some of the technology it is crucial to remember that u. S. Public diplomacy has respond to its history. Many elements in the the broadcasts were created to defy influence during the cold war this experience contains valuable lesson for us to think our strategies going forward. In terms of themes who we as the west stand for. It is important that american vam use such human rights be presented in terms of narrative thats not about us. Program narratives must be responsive to local audience. It should not be focused on narratives of others. Government should communicate people have right to Accurate Information and acknowledge this is battled ground ground of agenda could provide a framework. In terms of tools, pd information needs to be revamped to support resource platforms in programs most effected by this information campaign. In terms of research, the state Department Needs to do better job to understand the needs and impact of pd programs and messaging impact. Audience consistent consistently question in the process producing this content partering with local news and space in russia beyond the u. S. Embassy in moscow. It should be remembered cold war include ussr on information propaganda issue, in media become a tools policy nuan influence, United States need process that puts diplomacy at the center. Theres two things within the United States that need to improve. First the Intelligence Community dmeeds needs to do better job that demonstrates other states trying to influence political debates. Second, u. S. Government should bring together experts on this information including academic in private sector. In addition to local ngo and ask Civil Society networks overseas. The information teams with iip should be decentralize so the information is response to local audience. Needs to develop strategy with asian country to are build a common agenda for security and development and offer a vision that would inspire our friends and transform conditions that lead people position themselves at adversaries. I would ask catherine to give us an overview of the other two areas. Thank you, jay. Im going to go over difficulty. Relation that focus on upholding programs that have proven effective understanding about american history. We believe this understanding is foundational to sustaining relationships. Many think to the roughly 40 contributes to this paper. So i would like to introduce the panel and welcome mike crowley up to the stage. He currently visiting fellow at the american institute. Ben rhodes security communication, speech righter. And mike crowley senior foreign affairs. I can go on with their bios, you know who they are. Welcome to the stage, ben and mike. [ applause ] thank you catherine for that kind introduction. Were going to start with remarks were our guests. Then we will have time at the end for your questions. And ben, were going to kickoff with you. So tell us whats on your mind. I have a lot on my mind. Let it rip, please. Ill be brief. For eight years, we wrestled with this question. I would make a few point to that. First, we tried to go beyond the existing infrastructure of Exchange Programs and Public Diplomacy abrad and find new ways to reach more audiences and the principal parts of that have effort were in line with some recommendation. We asked how do we talk to people about what they want to talk about. One of the challenges is the u. S. Every day is talking about terrorism and Nuclear Weapons and the Global Security issues given our role as the super power. Thats not whats on the mind of people. We have Public Opinion analysis, they want to work with issues related to science and technology. We were not talking to audience about what they want today hear about. We tried to design programs that are more affirmative. So much of the focus is on countering other narratives but if we fall into trap of doing that were not putting forth alternative narrative. Sometimes the most powerful message that doesnt have to directly take on a terrorists narrative. Its one that lifts up the things people care about in other countries. Entre pru knewal work, youll look at the United States and you see people who are your age who are accomplishing enormous things and creating the tools changing your lives. We want to take entrepreneurs around the world. So that embassy can use that as tool to engage with entrepreneurs around the world. Even sense of grievance they may have in terms of improving their own lives. Our traditional programs are good but they are expensive. What we can use is online net works that have several hundred thousand people in Southeast Asia and latin american to use that to include Fellowship Program to bring people her. People in africa new that president obama care about young people and interested to what they have to say. Then those people became their own network so if a crisis took place like the ebola la crisis we have people working together without us to mobilize a Public Health response. Its an entry point to engaging audience so the Young Leader Initiative became a forum pulling people together. We dont have to begin the conversation by saying we want you to come down to the embassy to talk about why i so was wrong. We want you to talk how to start a business or start Civil Society invocation. A conversation relevant to their lives. Negative narrative whether it comes from the state or nonstate actor. So we sought i wont go on because i want get to the discuss. I think its important that we do not lose sight of affirmative programming that helps people, that can be utilized in many different ways. When we talk to participate pants in the programs, one of the things they got out of it was meeting each other. There could be someone in nigeria who trying to bring mobile medicine to he develops an app that could be used pi young leader in nigeria so u. S. Has convening power that no other country has. Given the enormous apparatus of our government and we need to use it. Theres a significant digital component. Briefly on russian propaganda, which is at the forefroent, part of it is racing awareness around issue, part of it what we said about the need to be faster with information, or just knocking down narrative. Ill give you an example, we did what responsible people do. We waited gathered evidence even though we know what happened months later, the investigation is played public. In that time, the russians have propagated ten different narratives about what happened with that plane, who did it where it was done. We have to be faster in dealing with people who lie. They dont care about whether their information checks out. Their story changes daytoday. Thats not the point. Theyre point is not just its no doubt about that. About whats real and whats not. We can talk about that all morning. On extremism, i think what is required is to not to not pate tronizing tone how we talk to audience about this. Everyone come back to reveal what the reality of iso is. How bad these guys are. People who are traveling to syria and iraq does not know what its like to be there. Part what were able to do is publicizing what its like to live under iso. The nature of governance in isocontrolled areas. To getting out the real story of what happened. Youre not speaking to people in the United States that understand this youre conveying with other countries. You have to be willing to work with people we disagree with about a lot of other things. I used to get Speakers Program the vetting inquiry from a journalist why this guy being sent abroad to a mosque to a guy who said this 20 years ago. If you want to work with people, you have to be able to take risk in building a network of parters you have be able to reach people where they are. You have to be able to lift up other peoples voices, not just our own. We have to understand that the most Success Program maybe the one that doesnt have the u. S. Government as the chunt kat on this but u. S. Resources to lift up other credible voice to encourage other countries to do the same what we can do to bring to bare you need capabilities you need Technical Capability and lessons learn from experience from around the world. Great. Thank you. Jim. Thank you, michael. I want to thank shannon, catherine, jay for the paper. Shannon for building this program. Thank you am ambassador warden for being here. Great. I got into the Public Diplomacy racquet 13 years ago by accident because i was asked to be on commission that on Public Diplomacy for iraq world. We look at it much broader way, mostly academic and me i did most of the writing but i learned a lot. So i want to read you one of our conclusions. At a critical time in our nations history, apparatus diplomacy has proven inadequate. The fault lies not with the men and women at the state department, around the world with a system thats become out mold lacking Strategic Direction and resource. I would say that those are words you request write today. That was in 2003. Very little has changesed despite effort of the Bush Administration and Obama Administration which has done a lot of good work. The paper that catherine and shan thon and jay have written, said the Trump Administration will inherent apparatus. That is like the comment we conveyed in the group. The fault is not with the people doing the work. The fault is defining what the work is how it relates to the rest of the government, thats the problem thats not been resolved. Let try to resolve it. I strongly believe that Public Diplomacy should be strategic. Thats a word thats become quite hack mied it mean a lot of different things. Diplomacy must use tools of nonviolent persuasion to reach a specific end. There needs to be specific goals. I was on task force, joseph and i father of the concept bipartisan policy, when i raised this issue, he said Public Diplomacy does three things, you can define category. In the short term i never thought about this. In the short term it explain u. S. Policy. In the longterm it gets people to like us better, not just because we like it whether People Like Us but it makes us easier for us to achieve our policy goals. In the in the median term, i think thats the most important, and thats kind of one to five years a president ial term and over this period Public Diplomacy needs to be mobilize to accomplish ete National Diplomacy and policy end. For example helping countries mount a defense against russian aggression, potential russian aggression. Encourage iranian public to oppose building of Nuclear Weapons. Helping to brings cuban to democracy through showing power of choice in interprur ship. Public diplomacy should explain. Am though i am not one of those who believes that countering is felktive. I think we have heard some of that earlier. That is to say you need to refute lies, but dont expect that that rep mags is goi reputation is going to get you that far. The median term s is and several officials here today, but i lost. The broadcasting board of governors even with the new legislation it sits out as new entity. Broadcasting representing half of Public Diplomacy and it must be part of the Public Diplomacy process. I think marching to its own drummer, i think bbg has done a good job of trying to be more connect with the foreign politician apparatus, that was goal and that was good. Legally its not. I think thats the big problem. Undersecretary gill son does not cont