The 2009 Smith-Mundt Symposium: a Discourse on America’s Discourse

July 14, 2010January 14, 2021 ~ Matt Armstrong ~ 1 Comment

2009 Smith-Mundt Symposium The 2009 Smith-Mundt Symposium brought together public diplomacy and strategic communication practitioners from the State Department, the Defense Department, the Agency for International Development, and other governmental and non-governmental groups, including academia, media, and Congress for a first of its kind discussion. The goal to have a frank and open discussion on … Continue reading The 2009 Smith-Mundt Symposium: a Discourse on America’s Discourse

Smith-Mundt Alert: USC magazine cites VOA

May 19, 2010 ~ Matt Armstrong ~ 3 Comments

Found on page 7 of the Spring/Summer 2010 issue of USC College Magazine is a violation of federal law, specifically the Smith-Mundt Act of 1948, as amended. This magazine contains a quote from the Voice of America, a US Government broadcaster that is not permitted to be disseminated within the territory of the US (see … Continue reading Smith-Mundt Alert: USC magazine cites VOA

On Smith-Mundt, Part III

February 16, 2010 ~ Matt Armstrong

The following is Part III of a discussion between Jeremy Berkowitz and Matt Armstrong on Jeremy’s paper "Raising the Iron Curtain on Twitter: why the United States must revise the Smith-Mundt Act to improve public diplomacy" (PDF, 415kb). Part I is Matt Armstrong’s critique of the paper and Part II is Jeremy’s response. Below is … Continue reading On Smith-Mundt, Part III

Berkowitz responds, discussing the Smith-Mundt Act

February 4, 2010 ~ Matt Armstrong ~ 2 Comments

The following is Part II of a discussion between Jeremy Berkowitz and Matt Armstrong on Jeremy’s paper “Raising the Iron Curtain on Twitter: why the United States must revise the Smith-Mundt Act to improve public diplomacy” (PDF, 415kb). Part I is Matt Armstrong’s initial response to Jeremy’s paper available here. My response to the below, … Continue reading Berkowitz responds, discussing the Smith-Mundt Act

Comment on “Raising the iron curtain on twitter: Why the US Must Revise the Smith-Mundt Act to Improve Public Diplomacy”

February 2, 2010 ~ Matt Armstrong

This is the first of two parts. The second part will be a response by Jeremy Berkowitz to be posted shortly. This post will be updated with that link when it is available. “Raising the Iron Curtain on Twitter: why the United States must revise the Smith-Mundt Act to improve public diplomacy” (PDF, 415kb) is … Continue reading Comment on “Raising the iron curtain on twitter: Why the US Must Revise the Smith-Mundt Act to Improve Public Diplomacy”

Recalling history: the 1947 Smith-Mundt CODEL to Europe

January 10, 2010 ~ Matt Armstrong

For two months in the Autumn of 1947, a Congressional delegation (CODEL) traveled Europe. Their purpose was to study America’s current information and educational exchange service, the conditions affecting it, with the goal of formulating recommendations to shape and make more effective US programs which “can fully implement US foreign policy.” Led by Congressman Karl … Continue reading Recalling history: the 1947 Smith-Mundt CODEL to Europe

Smith-Mundt Symposium: A Discourse to Shape America’s Discourse

November 24, 2009 ~ Matt Armstrong

A report on a January 13, 2009, frank and open discussion among a diverse group of stakeholders, practitioners, and observers from Congress, the Departments of State, Defense, and Homeland Security, and outside of government, many of whom never had a reason to be in the same room with one another before.

In America? Smith-Mundt means no SMS updates on the President’s Ghana speech for you!

July 9, 2009 ~ Matt Armstrong ~ 9 Comments

To let the American public get updates to the President’s speech via SMS is dangerous and, presumably, equivalent to Al Qaeda and Taleban propaganda. No wait, those messages come through just fine so it must be worse than that and even Iranian, Russian, and Chinese Government propaganda

Report on the Smith-Mundt Symposium

April 9, 2009January 10, 2022 ~ Matt Armstrong ~ 1 Comment

The report on the Smith-Mundt Symposium of January 13, 2009, is available. Download the 437kb PDF here. Feedback is appreciated. See also: A few pictures from the Symposium

Smith-Mundt Symposium in the Blogosphere +

January 22, 2009 ~ Matt Armstrong

The Smith-Mundt Symposium in the blogosphere and “formal” media. VOA News Blog by Alex Belida (link) VOA Director David Jackson, a panelist at the symposium, did make a couple of points we believe are worth repeating here. First of all, he stressed that all those working in the VOA headquarters in Washington are journalists. He … Continue reading Smith-Mundt Symposium in the Blogosphere +

Smith-Mundt Symposium in Pictures

January 16, 2009 ~ Matt Armstrong

Briefly, over 260 people signed up for the Symposium. About 180 attended. Some people left because they had other appointments and few of those returned. A year ago, it was hard to imagine 50 people would be interested in a discussion about the Smith-Mundt Act. Tuesday’s event was well attended through to the end, 8.5 … Continue reading Smith-Mundt Symposium in Pictures

The Smith-Mundt Symposium

January 14, 2009 ~ Matt Armstrong

The 2009 Smith-Mundt Symposium was last night. The goal was to foster an interagency, inter-tribal, and cross-governmental discussion on the fundamentals of America’s global engagement. While the organizing principle was the Smith-Mundt Act of 1948, it was really an act of subversion to have a discourse on shaping America’s discourse. My desired outcome of the … Continue reading The Smith-Mundt Symposium

Smith-Mundt Symposium: Updates

January 8, 2009 ~ Matt Armstrong

Below are a couple of brief updates on the Smith-Mundt Symposium that will take place this coming Tuesday, January 13 at the Reserve Officers Association. Congressmen Paul Hodes (D-NH) and Adam Smith (D-Wash) are confirmed for the fourth panel Several documents have been added to the Symposium’s Library William P. Kiehl has been added to … Continue reading Smith-Mundt Symposium: Updates

Following Up on the Smith-Mundt Symposium’s Media Roundtable

January 7, 2009 ~ Matt Armstrong

Yesterday Two days ago (already) was the media roundtable pre-event in advance of the Smith-Mundt Symposium that will take place next week, January 13, 2009. I am grateful to AOC for arranging and hosting this event and for Ken Miller’s hard work in setting it up, as well as a special thanks to Joel. On … Continue reading Following Up on the Smith-Mundt Symposium’s Media Roundtable

Media Event: Journalist Roundtable on the Smith-Mundt Symposium

January 5, 2009 ~ Matt Armstrong

A media roundtable in advance and on the subject of the January 13, 2009, Smith-Mundt Symposium

Quotes from the past: the purpose of Smith-Mundt, the bill

December 24, 2008 ~ Matt Armstrong

it is so annoying when history repeats

Smith-Mundt Symposium Update

December 23, 2008 ~ Matt Armstrong

A few quick announcements and reminders related to the upcoming Smith-Mundt Symposium. A media advisory and a PDF with the bios of the panelists and moderators may be found at the Symposium’s media page. A roundtable with “traditional” and new media in advance of the Symposium will take place January 6. For more information, including … Continue reading Smith-Mundt Symposium Update

Persuasive Politics: Revisit the Smith-Mundt Act

December 19, 2008 ~ Matt Armstrong

Persuasive politics: Revisit the Smith-Mundt Act by Matt Armstrong, 19 December 2008, in The Washington Times. “Repairing America’s image” is a popular mantra these days, but discussions on revamping America’s public diplomacy are futile if the legislative foundation of what we are attempting to fix is ignored. A sixty year old law affects virtually all … Continue reading Persuasive Politics: Revisit the Smith-Mundt Act

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