Touche! - Ed.
The U.S. government decided to extend its “war of ideas” to the popular Internet sites, forums, chat rooms and blogs in the Russian segment of the global network. This was announced by the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, James Glassman, and refers to the State Department’s Digital Outreach Team program. The program has already been tested on Arabs, Afghans, and Iranians. Under this program, specially trained people go to foreign Internet websites, and debunk myths about American politics as well as, “refer people back to factual documents.”
I often talk to fellow citizens on different forums and blogs about various topics, including the United States. We discuss different issues. For example, is the war in Iraq a sufficiently convincing illustration of the American peace-loving foreign policy, or should this image be reinforced with some sort of small victorious Pakistani campaign? Or this: why is the practice of promoting democracy limited to the planet Earth? I must say that during the debate, my conversation partners often reach conclusions that the U.S. State Department would find very unpleasant. The problem is certainly caused by the fact that none of the forum’s visitors have access to “factual documents.” It’s equally caused by the fact that there are no State Department employees among us. The best we’ve got are the “fifth column” and grantees that scrounge at the American Embassy.
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