PD Fellows – The Institute for Public Diplomacy and Global Communication

August 29, 2024August 29, 2024

Public Diplomacy Fellow 2022-24

Our 2022-24 fellow was Chris Teal. Previously, he was the director of the State Department’s Career Development and Assignments Mid-Level Division, heading up a 35-member team in charge of global diplomatic assignments for Mid-Level Foreign Service Officers, some 9,000 officials in total.

He also served a faculty assignment at the Inter-American Defense College at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C. There he taught graduate classes to senior-level Latin American officials on diplomacy, civil/military relations, human rights, peace keeping, and media/security policy.

Prior to that, Chris was awarded the Una Chapman Cox Fellowship, where he directed, wrote, and produced a documentary on the first African American diplomat, Ebenezer D. Bassett. The film, A Diplomat of Consequence, tells the story of this groundbreaking diplomat 150 years after his appointment.

Christopher Teal speaks on camera while seated

Overseas assignments include Consul General at the U.S. Consulate in Nogales, Mexico, and public affairs positions in Sri Lanka; Mexico; Peru; and the Dominican Republic. At the State Department, he also held public affairs positions in the European Bureau and at the Foreign Press Center.

Before joining the Foreign Service, Chris worked with award-winning journalist Juan Williams on their biography Thurgood Marshall: American Revolutionary about the former U.S. Supreme Court Justice. Published In 1998, The New York Times listed it among its most notable nonfiction works of the year. Chris also wrote a biography about Ebenezer Bassett, entitled Hero of Hispaniola, published in 2008.

Chris has a B.A. from the University of Arkansas and an M.A. from George Washington University’s Columbian College, where he graduated in 1997.

July 25, 2023July 25, 2023

IPDGC welcomes Visiting Scholar Joe Khalil of Northwestern University

Joe F. Khalil is an associate professor of global media in residence at Northwestern University Qatar. His research focuses on changes and continuities in media, with a particular emphasis on Middle East youth. He takes an interdisciplinary and transnational approach to understanding
mainstream and alternative media, probing media industries, production studies, social movements, and digital cultures. His books include The Digital Double Bind, Arab Television Industries, and Arab Satellite Entertainment Television and Public Diplomacy. He is co-editor of The Handbook of Media and Culture in the Middle East and Culture, Time and Publics in the Arab World. In addition to his academic work, Khalil remains active in professional media production and consulting, and is frequently featured as a media commentator.

His project this year, “Youth Generated Media: A Cultural Politics of Arab Youth,” offers fresh insights into the relationship between media and youth through the prism of youth generated media, which is define as the communicative ways in which youth actively negotiate the social, political, and cultural power spheres of everyday life with the intense excitement of young, dynamic movements. Drawing from a rich collection of primary ethnographic, textual, and visual sources that Dr. Khalil has gathered over 15 years, this project investigates the compelling story of how and why Arab youth engage in the development and circulation of various forms of media (both online and offline). It tells the contemporary, vivid stories of car-drifting video makers, digital activists, video collectives, rappers, and social movement actors operating locally in Lebanon, Tunisia, and Saudi Arabia, as well as trans-locally, particularly in Europe and the United States.

To arrange a meeting with Dr. Khalil, please contact IPDGC: ipdgc@gwu.edu

March 7, 2023March 7, 2023

VIDEO: PD Fellow Chris Teal on State Dept Career Panel

On Wednesday, February 22, 2023, IPDGC sponsored “Career Chat: Opportunities at State.” Undergraduate and graduate students were invited to join an informational chat about career opportunities at the US State Department. Sharing their experiences will be Christopher Teal and Sean O’Neill, Senior Foreign Service Officers currently teaching at GW. Teal is the IPDGC public diplomacy fellow. Special thanks to Teal and O’Neill for sharing their wisdom and experiences with our students.

February 13, 2023April 23, 2024

IPDGC partners up with PDCA

Programs to support public diplomacy and international relations

By Yvonne Oh, IPDGC Program Coordinator

As part of IPDGC’s collaborations with like-minded organizations, we are proud to announce our partnership with the Public Diplomacy with the First Monday Forums. These talks will be held in-person (or hybrid) at the Lindner Family Commons room in the GW Elliott School for International Affairs every first Monday of the month.

These events fit well with the Institute’s mission goals to support academic excellence in global communication and public diplomacy, as well as provide opportunities for professional development.

The first of the First Monday Forum was held on Feb 6 with a virtual screening of the documentary “A Diplomat of Consequence” The film by Christopher Teal is about Ebenezer Basset, the first American black diplomat. Teal is a Senior Foreign Service officer with the U.S. State Department and currently, also the Public Diplomacy Fellow for IPDGC.

https://youtu.be/ASalp-IJ-tw

More information on the upcoming First Monday Forums to come.

November 1, 2022April 23, 2024

Career talk: Opportunities at the State Department

By Yvonne Oh, IPDGC Program Coordinator

Senior Foreign Service Officers Christopher Teal and Sean O’Neill share information about the opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students looking to have careers in Civil or Foreign Service as officers or specialists. Teal, who is also the Public Diplomacy Fellow with IPDGC, and O’Neill are both on detail to the George Washington University.

Teal (left) teaches Public Diplomacy at the School of Media and Public Affairs. O’Neill is with the Department of Organizational Sciences and Communication, Columbian College of Arts and Sciences.

Both talked about their motivations for joining the Service, and about their experiences at assignments overseas and in the US. They explained the various programs available for students to have those experiences – internships, fellowships, study abroad – and how these help a person determine if they are ready for a profession to represent the United States overseas.

Teal pointed out that there was also a Civil service track for professionals who work stateside in all areas of the Department – providing the same support for U.S. citizens and interests overseas.

The event was well attended by both graduate and undergraduate students from different programs, with a lengthy Q&A session to cover their queries.

Many students stayed after the presentation to speak with Chris and Sean about their experiences in Foreign Service and the programs offered by the State Department.

October 7, 2022April 23, 2024

Recognizing a forgotten hero in US diplomatic history

Flier for "A Diplomat of Consequence" film screening event

IPDGC screens documentary on Ambassador Ebenezer D. Bassett

By Yvonne Oh, IPDGC Program Coordinator

The film, A Diplomat of Consequence, tells the story of a groundbreaking diplomat and pioneer on international human rights and examines the legacy of racial diversity today, 150 years after his appointment. This documentary was written, directed and produced by Christopher Teal. He is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the U.S. State Department and currently a Public Diplomacy Fellow with IPDGC at the George Washington University.

Ebenezer Don Carlos Bassett was appointed United States Ambassador to Haiti in 1869. He was the first African-American diplomat and the fourth U.S. ambassador to Haiti since the two countries established relations in 1862. Bassett was appointed as new leaders emerged among free African Americans after the American Civil War.

Collage of 4 photos and drawings of Ebenezer Don Carlos Bassett

The documentary explores Bassett’s roles as He was an educator, abolitionist, and civil rights activist.

He was among the earliest advocates to promote human rights in foreign policy. His courage in the face of threats during his tenure place him among the greats of diplomatic and American history. Along with public archives on Bassett’s life, newly found information from family members and never before seen material from his four-decade relationship with Frederick Douglass are explored in the documentary.

This is not just an historical documentary, however. Bassett’s legacy demonstrates to broader audiences what diplomats have accomplished and what they do in today’s complicated environment. Bringing in contemporary voices of minority diplomats is a crucial component of why diversity in foreign affairs still is imperative for successful engagement today.

FILM SCREENING: A Diplomat of Consequence; Tuesday, October 18,

IPDGC, in collaboration with LEAP and the Office of Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and student organization, Young Black Professionals in International Affairs (YBPIA), invites you to the screening of the film, A Diplomat of Consequence.

Following the screening will be a panel discussion with the filmmaker Chris Teal, Stacy Williams Deputy Director of the Haitian Affairs Office, State Department, and Celeste Robertson, retired USAID Officer. The discussion will be moderated by Dr. William Youmans, Director of IPDGC.

Event Details:

Tuesday, October 18; 5-7pm

Lindner Room 602, Elliott School, 1957 E St NW, Washington, DC 20052

Pizza and sodas are provided. RSVPs required for the event.