Reading Today: The Ugly American

Nearly every diplomat will tell you that one of America's chief foreign policy objectives is to "win hearts and minds" overseas.  It sounds simple enough; America is an expert fundraiser, PR girl, and campaign manager.  So why does it also seem to be our most elusive goal? 

The State Department's 2012 budget includes $637 M allotted to "Educational and Cultural Exchange Programs," aimed at tackling this issue at the roots: sending American students abroad to gain perspective, and carving out programs throughout the states to streamline the visa process and make education and employment accessible to enterprising students from around the world.

Photo:NYTimes

Like so many other instruments of international diplomacy, budget and political support can only go so far; today's NYTimes tells a tragic tale of how the careless implementation of one such program turned into "misery" for participants.   While this story will probably never draw large scale attention or reaction, it is but one tale of how, for several hundred students and their families and friends back home, America's advertised promises turned sour.

I recently finished The Ugly American, a classic compilation of vignettes based on the interactions of American civilians and foreign service officers with individual communities around the world.  The power of seemingly isolated experiences throughout Cold War posts in Asia, becomes apparent as the vignettes unfold.  For me, the book's authors revealed the power that individual people and personalities hold in shaping America's image - and ultimately our history- overseas.

Reading Julia Preston's well-done article was a startling reminder that in the more than five decades since the book was published, far too little has changed.