The Foreign Service Journal, December 2015

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | DECEMBER 2015 15 That’s according to the 2015 Com- prehensive Annual Report on Public Diplomacy and International Broadcast- ing Activities issued by the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplo- macy on Sept. 22. This recommendation is making a repeat appearance—it was in last year’s report, as well—despite some progress on building capacity to measure and evaluate program outcomes. The report has traditionally been used to itemize major PD and international broadcasting activities at State and the BBG. This year, the numbers show the two agencies spent a combined $1.8 billion, or 3.53 percent of the international affairs budget in fiscal year 2014. The post with the largest PD budget was Afghanistan, at $56.5 million; the costliest BBG language service was MBN Alhurra (Iraq), at $28.1 million; and the most expensive educational and cultural exchange programwas the International Visitor Leadership ProgramDivision, at $1,138 per day. An analysis section gives kudos to the Bureau of International Information Programs for its increasingly strategic approach to managing American Spaces, the consistently high performance of the Bureau of Public Affairs’ media hubs, and the innovative programming by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural The First Foreign Service Day I t was nine o’clock, Friday, November 12, in the wood- paneled and glass-roofed main floor conference room in the State Department. Only five minutes to go before the opening of the First Annual Foreign Service Day Conference. …At nine the attendance count stood at 206. More arrived later. The count of ambassadors was 40. … In came the Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, in a beaming mood. He was marked down for “Welcome” and he did not fail to welcome all the guests. He discussed the world we live in, its problems and the outlook. It was no cursory briefing, it was an incisive analysis. According to subsequent comments of the listeners, it was precisely the kind of thing they had been hoping for. There were also analyses by other senior officers. …All these were on a level with the Secretary’s: thoughtful, candid exposés of the shifting world situation. They were intended for that room only and hence not even a summary will occur in this compte-rendu. … After lunch the conference got down to practical affairs. …The first speaking was William J. Crockett, deputy under secretary for administration, who said: “This is the homecoming of the Foreign Service. …We want this day to be symbolic of the fraternity that exists between active and retired Foreign Service officers. …We are beholden to you; the present hangs heavily on the past you created. …The American Foreign Service is second to none in the world.” “How,” asked Mr. Crockett, “can retired officers help the department?” The answer: “In maintaining their interest in the Service and in foreign policy.” “In taking part as retired officers in the life of their community.” “In giving support to the concept that some change is inevitable.” A talk by Richard I. Phillips, deputy assistant secretary of State for public affairs, brought out the fact that many radio stations need speakers on foreign affairs and ways will be studied to establish contact between the stations and retired Foreign Service officers. Many participants were interested in establishing liaison between the department and the foreign policy associations that exist in many American cities. … William B. Kelly, director of the College Relations Program, asked the help of retired Foreign Service officers in the recruitment of potential entrants to the Foreign Service. … The first Foreign Service Day was an indubitable success. If some participants had originally contemplated the day merely as a chance to meet old friends, they rapidly expanded their view. …The whole burden of the program was ways and means of encouraging retired officers to aid the department through diverse activities in their own communities. This will be the fundamental theme for all future plans. —From “The First Foreign Service Day,” a report in The Foreign Service Journal , December 1965. 50 Years Ago