Tara D. Sonenshine, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy & Public Affairs, U.S. Department of State

The USC Center on Public Diplomacy was pleased to host a conversation with Tara D. Sonenshine, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of State and moderated by CPD Director, Philip Seib.

The Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs leads America's public diplomacy, which includes communications with international audiences, cultural programming, academic grants, educational exchanges, international visitor programs, and U.S. Government efforts to confront ideological support for terrorism.

This dialogue with USC students and the public allowed the Under Secretary Sonenshine to hear suggestions about increasing the effectiveness of U.S. public diplomacy.

Press
USC Daily Trojan's cover story on Tara Sonenshine's visit to the USC Center on Public Diplomacy can be found here.

About Tara D. Sonenshine
Tara D. Sonenshine was sworn in as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs on April 5, 2012.

Tara was formerly Executive Vice President of the United States Institute of Peace. Prior to joining the United States Institute of Peace, she was a strategic communications adviser to many international organizations including USIP, the International Crisis Group, Internews, CARE, The American Academy of Diplomacy, and the International Women’s Media Foundation. Ms. Sonenshine served in various capacities at the White House during the Clinton Administration, including Transition Director and Director of Foreign Policy Planning for the National Security Council and Special Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Communications for the NSC.

Tara has had a distinguished career in communications and government, with high-level experience in broadcast, print, and online media. She has produced news programs for network television and authored numerous articles for national print and online media. She is the recipient of 10 News Emmy Awards and other awards in journalism for broadcast programs on domestic and international issues.

Tara graduated from Tufts University in 1981 Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in political science. She has remained active at Tufts on boards and advisory committees including the Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service.

Her broadcast career began at ABC News in New York, working with David Burke, then vice president of ABC NEWS. Ms. Sonenshine went on to become editorial producer of ABC News’ Nightline, where she worked for more than a decade. She was also an off-air reporter at the Pentagon for ABC’s World News Tonight. A former contributing editor for Newsweek, Sonenshine is the author of numerous articles on foreign affairs published in the New York Times, Washington Post, and other newspapers.
 

All photos taken by Gus Ruelas.