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The 'Ugly American' fights
back
By James Borton
WASHINGTON - Anyone who
has lived or traveled abroad from the US knows that the
language and shape of anti-Americanism is getting uglier
each day. With the September 11 memorial approaching,
the US State Department announced this week a gathering
of select American studies scholars to come up with
solutions to help shape a new image tor America to sell
overseas.
With modern technology advancements
achieved through satellite television, the internet and
even expanded shortwave radio access, the poorest
mountain dwellers in the Himalayas to villages in
western China and even citizens in Kabul are bombarded
by various forms of propaganda and mixed messages from
the West, and of course, the Arab media.
Many
policy observers along Pennsylvania Avenue accept the
notion that "they only hate us because they don't know
us". This seems to be an increasing global
communications phenomenon as Arabs and Muslims charge
the Western press with equal distortion of their image.
At first blush, it appears that the State
Department's public diplomacy campaign might benefit
from a closer reading of American literature instead of
turning to the usual boilerplate of American
unilateralism and cultural imperialism. Perhaps one of
the literary scholars at this week's two-day program
might even suggest that the novel, The American
authored by Henry James before the turn of the century,
be translated into Arabic and read over the airwaves.
James, born in New York, spent much of his life
in London. His character, Christopher Newman, embodied
many strong ideals of America: trust, energy, naivete
and natural virtue. These values were sharply contrasted
with Europe's jaded, decadent and morally ambiguous
life. As a novelist and even correspondent for the New
York Tribune, James was a cultural and literary diplomat
and attempted to bridge two worlds on a collision course
with one another.
"The purpose of this
conference is to explore various manifestations and
roots of anti-Americanism around the world, and how the
US may address it," said Richard Boucher, State
Department spokesman.
Twenty leading scholars
from the US and abroad, and an audience of about 50 US
government attendees meeting this week in Washington
will attempt to map out answers to a variety of
questions all related to the American character, and
will seek some specific answers to the pervasive
question, "Why do they hate us?"
The conference
is organized by the State Department's Bureau of
Intelligence and Research to hear from non-government
specialists and exchange ideas.
The academics
may be addressing some of these virulent questions: Is
the US hated because the country represents the values
of pluralism and freedom? How does America
counter-attack or answer its history of cultural
imperialism? What does the US say to Africa and the
Muslims about racial profiling today and in the past?
How does America interpret its perceived arrogance?
It is no coincidence that in the past month
Secretary of State Colin Powell has appeared on Arab
television on a regular basis, and the State Department
has started working with Arab newspapers in London. To
some degree, the US seems to be following the footsteps
of Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair, who since the
first of the year has engaged the Arab press in scores
of interviews.
Meanwhile, the measured State
Department counteroffensive includes bringing
journalists from other countries, including Pakistan,
Uzbekistan and Indonesia, to the United States in an
effort to educate them on American policies and
traditions.
All this is part of a packaged
program laid out by Undersecretary of State for Public
Diplomacy and Public Affairs Charlotte Beers, the former
chairwoman of two of the top 10 worldwide advertising
agencies - J Walter Thompson and Ogilvy & Mather.
In an exclusive interview with Asia Times
Online, Harold Pachios, chairman of the Advisory
Commission on Public Diplomacy, created by Congress to
evaluate US government programs in other countries,
spoke about the committee's scheduled recommendations to
be presented to the US Congress on September 18.
Pachios, a non-government employee, has traveled
extensively to US embassies all over the world -
including those in Croatia, Kosovo and Macedonia - to
meet with ambassadors and foreign journalists.
"Our committee members are recommending to US
Congress and President [George W] Bush the creation of a
cabinet-level position, a White House Global
Communications Director," says Pachios.
The US
Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy is a private
citizen group, created by Congress in 1948, responsible
for assessing public diplomacy policies and programs of
the US State Department, American missions abroad and
other agencies. The commission's responsibilities extend
to international exchanges, US government international
information programs and publicly-funded
non-governmental organizations.
Pachios was
nominated and confirmed as a member of the commission in
1993, and designated chairman by president Bill Clinton
in 1999. He is hopeful about being reappointed by the
Bush administration.
"Our view is that the
greatest mitigating force against authoritative and
oppressive government is the free exchange of
information and many regions of the world simply need to
have a better understanding of America," Pachios said.
Of course, there are some American critics who
do not believe that the present course directed by the
Office of Public Diplomacy is successful. "I think
public diplomacy is doing more harm than good," said
Sheldon Rampton, editor of the Center for Media and
Democracy's PR Watch, a liberal non-profit outfit that
investigates the public relations industry. "Sometimes
this approach is referred to as the "hypodermic" model -
an attempt to inject your message into the minds of
others," says Rampton.
As the US pragmatically
engages small-town America support in preparation for a
military campaign against Iraq's Saddam Hussein, there
is an increasing awareness on the part of Washington
that they must effectively wage a concerted "campaign to
win the hearts and minds" of the Arab communities abroad
as well at home.
As part of this campaign, the
US Congress invested this spring over US$35 million to
fund Radio Sawa, which means "together" in Arabic, a pop
music channel directed to a listenership of more than 65
percent Arabs under the age of 30. Radio Sawa is the hip
replacement for Voice of America's now-defunct Arabic
service in the Middle East.
Pachios is an ardent
cheerleader for the FM transmitted service that mixes
the latest Arabic tunes with light American rock for 50
minutes every hour. "I am impressed with the success and
impact of this station to date," says Pachios.
Historically, Radio Free Europe and even the BBC
also jammed the airwaves in the late 1930s and 1940s to
get their freedom messages across and to counter Nazi
influence.
Today, Arab communities, through a
group of Saudi businessmen, plan to spend $160 million
to operate a private satellite television station
targeted at audiences in Western Europe and America.
Maybe, with all this airwave babble, it's no
wonder only the broadcasters are listening.
(©2002 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All rights
reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com
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