After the United State’s invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001 in response Al Qaeda’s attacks on September 11, leadership in Kabul switched over from the Taliban to an interim government whose head of state, Hamid Karzai, backed by the United States, remains president today of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The war has had a few successes and many failures.

Beyond the harsh rhetoric on who is to blame for 9/11, this appearance on BBC Persian has a few notable implications for U.S. public diplomacy apparatus in general and its policy towards Iran in particular.

In his exclusive interview with the BBC Persian Television, President Obama responded not only to the Iranian president's remarks at the UN General Assembly, but also to some of the concerns of Iranians and Afghans with regards to his administration's foreign policy. Beyond the harsh rhetoric on who is to blame for 9/11, this appearance on BBC Persian has a few notable implications for U.S. public diplomacy apparatus in general and its policy towards Iran in particular.

This week, Walter Isaacson, chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, gave some remarks (PDF, 41kb) at the celebration of sixty years of Radio Free Europe. Walter, with his long history in the media business and the author of biographies of Benjamin Franklin and Einstein.

Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) Chairman Walter Isaacson tonight announced a new direction for U.S. international broadcasting that "seizes on the latest media tools and technology to stay one step ahead of those who seek to repress free information around the world."

If competition is healthy—most conservatives believe it is—the challenge presented by China and other nations in the field of public diplomacy ought to be a wakeup call to the U.S. government.