21st Century Statecraft: Continuing the Conversation

Posted by Alec Ross / February 01, 2012

Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs Mike Hammer, center; responds to #AskMike questions from the Department’s official Spanish Twitter feed, @USAenEspanol, on January 24, 2012. Also pictured: Director of the Office of International Media Engagement Abigail Dressel, left; Specialist Assistant Mireille Zieseniss, third from right; Public Affairs Specialist Sarah Goldfarb, second from right; and Acting Director of Digital Communications Center Ed Dunn, right. [State Department photo by Ben Chang/ Public Domain]

Technology and new innovations are changing the world in which we live. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is responding to these challenges by adapting our foreign policy agenda to leverage new innovations in service of our diplomatic and development goals. This is 21st Century Statecraft -- complementing traditional foreign policy tools with newly innovated and adapted instruments of statecraft that fully leverage the networks, technologies, and demographics of our interconnected world.

Today marks the end of "21st Century Statecraft Month" at that State Department -- an entire month dedicated to using new tools and engaging new networks in pursuit of addressing today's challenges. During the month, I had the privilege to speak with a group of journalists and bloggers… more »

Posted under: Behind the Scenes

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The Year in 21st Century Statecraft

Posted by Alec Ross / January 09, 2012

Secretary Clinton speaks at TechCamp Vilnius, Lithuania, June 30, 2011. [AP Photo]

Reflecting on 2011, it is obvious that connection technologies are playing an ever-greater role in shaping the world around us. The beginning of the year witnessed the events of the Arab Spring, with political movements organized and accelerated with the help of social media. This past fall, the world watched videos online that were captured on smart-phones by Syrian activists, documenting attacks on peaceful protests. The world watched as hundreds were injured and killed by their government for exercising their universal rights. And just weeks ago, demonstrations in Russia were organized online to protest allegations of election fraud, with social media influencers playing important roles.

As information networks become more ubiquitous and powerful, new movements and power structures are forming, others are being disrupted, and the speed of communications is making… more »

Posted under: Policy

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