The Foreign Service Journal, December 2011

D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 13 I n his 1964 opinion in the case of Jacobellis v. Ohio , U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart de- livered a quote that lives in infamy — or at least a fragment of it does. Un- able to formulate a specific definition of pornography, Stewart asserted that “I know it when I see it.” The Department of State currently follows this conveniently vague ap- proach in regard to Foreign Service blogs and the use of social media by employees and family members. William Bent’s letter in the September Foreign Service Journal (“Bloggers Beware!”) expresses a similarly am- bivalent stance on the private use of social media by Foreign Service per- sonnel. Bent begins by assuring us that he supports social media for professional and personal use, noting that he is on Facebook and Twitter, and has written in the Journal about using social media for consular outreach. It is “the mix- ing of the two uses that concerns me,” says Bent. I think we can all agree that identi- fying yourself as a Foreign Service of- ficer, particularly by name, when openly challenging or even defying of- ficial U.S. government policy is ab- solutely inappropriate. But the specific examples of mate- rial Bent describes as “troubling” do very little to clarify the department’s position on what is objectionable. We’ve all at one time or another had to represent policies with which we did not agree. But as Foreign Service members, we all have an obligation to do our utmost to promote the success of that policy to the greatest extent pos- sible. For those who cannot do so, both the Dissent Channel and resigna- tion are options. On the other hand, most of us would consider some of the examples Bent cites to be simply cases of poor taste or exercises in bad judgment. But between the extremes of the silly and the subversive exists a vast gray area that, to date, the department has seemed unable to navigate. As Bent does in his commentary, State raps the knuckles of those who pen entries it feels cross the line. Yet when asked for a clear definition of where that line is, the department flounders. Damned If You Do Anyone who has been called on the carpet for blogging — especially those who have been summoned more than once — can tell you that the only con- sistent aspect of the department’s feed- back is inconsistency. Blogging is encouraged by some el- ements within the department and is even discussed on the official page, www.careers.state.gov, complete with a substantial set of links to popular For- eign Service-related blogs. Yet even bloggers listed there are sometimes tar- geted for official harassment by other elements within the department for having a blog in the first place. One colleague informs me that an A-100 orientation instructor warned his class of new FSOs not to blog — but turned out to be doing so himself. Some individuals have been warned that their careers could be harmed by their or their spouse’s blog—but when they press on this in subsequent meet- ings, their hair is blown back by the force of the wind generated by the back-pedaling. Others have asked whether it would be better to shut down their blogs entirely, only to be told that they would never be asked to do that. Secretary of State Hillary Rod- hamClinton, after all, is a big supporter of social media. As usual, the department is about a century behind the times. Its decidedly FS Blogging: An Opportunity, Not a Threat B Y M ATT K EENE S PEAKING O UT State should give FS bloggers and users of social media clear guidance, not make them afraid to post anything.