New Century, Same Problems: U.S. Public Diplomacy in Context

On May 20, 2015, IWP alumna Dr. Caitlin Schindler gave a lecture on the topic of "New Century, Same Problems: U.S. Public Diplomacy in Context."

About the lecture

Practitioners, political leaders, and academics note the increased attention and importance of U.S. public diplomacy in U.S. statecraft since 9/11. Despite this, US public diplomacy continues to be hampered by the same problems faced more than decade ago: an absence of integrated strategy; a clear understanding of what public diplomacy is and what it should do; what role it should play in US statecraft; and uneven, ineffective implementation. This presentation explores past uses of foreign public engagement or public diplomacy throughout US history, to explore the origins of some of the problems confronting present day public diplomacy, as well as putting the practice in the context of US historical tradition.

About the speaker

Caitlin Schindler recently completed her Ph.D. at the University of Leeds, under the supervision of Nicholas Cull (University of Southern California) and Simon Popple (University of Leeds). Her thesis examines the history of US public diplomacy from 1776 through 1948 and how the mechanism became a recognized tool of US statecraft. Caitlin graduated from the Institute of World Politics with an MA in Strategic Intelligence in 2010. Prior to starting her Ph.D., Caitlin worked for CACI, Inc. supporting the US Intelligence Community.