Thursday, November 20, 2008

The Last Three Feet

Former US Foreign Service Officer to the Middle East, John Burgess, shares this story:

Back in the early 1960s, when I was getting my first experience living outside the US, US Information Agency Director Edward R. Murrow, gave a speech in which he said, “The really crucial link in the international communication chain is the last three feet, which is bridged by personal contact, one person talking to another.”

That, in a nutshell, is the role of Public Diplomacy.

Source: John Burgess, ‘The Last Three Feet,’ Crossroads Arabia, 19 November 2008.

Dr Geoff Pound

Image: “Bridged by personal contact, one person talking to another.”