Another Voice / Foreign relations
Private sector can play bigger role in public diplomacy
Updated: 08/18/08 6:56 AM
The next U. S. president, whomever he may be, faces a crisis in America’s standing abroad that must be addressed with new ideas and vigor if we are to regain leadership and influence in the world. Both presumptive nominees, Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama, recognize this and have expressed their desire to improve U. S. “public diplomacy” — government-speak for the art of understanding, engaging, and influencing the other 6z billion people in the world.
But the challenge will require some out-of-the-box thinking. It’s not as simple as “fixing” U. S. foreign policy, although dissatisfaction with — or misunderstanding of — our intentions abroad is certainly an element in the growing frustration and anger at the United States. Nor is it a problem that government alone can solve. This latter article of faith — the primacy of government as “fixer” — is the hardest one for Washington, Democrats and Republicans alike, to let go.
Poll after poll continues to show that people around the world admire, value and want American culture, products and know-how, none of which is in the dominion of the U. S. government. Instead, we should encourage the private sector to do a greater job of exporting these goods and ideas to those who want and need them.
The power of American brands must be better leveraged abroad. Many multinational companies, such as Coca Cola and McDonalds, make feeble efforts to blend in to their host country, instead of leveraging their uniquely American brand appeal. These are missed opportunities to tie local jobs and consumer value into America. It’s silly to think that American companies can hide their “Americanism”; rather, they should embrace it.
The next president should use the tax code to spur public diplomacy. Many of America’s colleges and universities would be willing to locate resources abroad if tax abatements and other incentives were provided to help offset the costs. It’s worth noting that some of America’s most prominent educational exports — five major U. S. campuses in Qatar, Weill Cornell Medical School and Georgetown University School of Foreign Service among them — required foreign funding in order to happen.
There are countless acts of public diplomacy being engaged in every day by NGOs, companies, cultural, religious and athletic organizations. But as a strategic matter, it has been a scattershot approach. The next U. S. president should make an effort to consolidate and guide these measures under a single roof that should span government and the private sector.
I endorse a public-private Institute for Public Diplomacy that puts public diplomacy resources where they are most needed and where they can most amplify American messages and values.
Jay T. Snyder is a member of the U. S. Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy, a bipartisan panel appointed by the president, and a principal of HBJ Investments, LLC.
