Thread by @moira

A little thread on this and #publicdiplomacy. Hopefully @StateDept, especially @shareamerica are paying attention.

Here's the thing: this is a big opportunity for America and for the White House to embrace from a diplomatic standpoint. 1/

https://twitter.com/NPR/status/1030069160724684806

Context: one of the top stories about America that our embassies tell is about Martin Luther King. And they don't just tell the "I have a Dream" part. They tell the Selma and Memphis parts too. This is a critical message for our country. 2/

Because MLK protested against his government. He fought to change his government. That is the American story: Standing up against your government. There is almost no other part of the world you can do that without fear of losing everything. 3/

But it isn't just in the distant past. I had to help shape our message on things like a Koran burning in Fl and race riots in St. Louis and help global audiences understand how a country with a black President was letting this happen. 4/

The message: We don't like it but we embrace it. And take a look at the coverage. Look at the people speaking out against horrible things and being given voice. That's America too. 5/

I truly loved being able to present those things--warts and all--to the world. Sure, I hated that those things were happening and was happy to say that my country had work to do bit the key was, this opposition was part of what it meant to be American. 6/

So now 300 papers are using their voice to stand up for the Constitution. And not just any Right: the one they very deliberately put First. I hope the Administration will embrace it as being emblematic of what this country stands for. 7/

Now, I'm not naive. I don't think that will happen. But we should expect it. And when we don't we should realize that we're moving to complacency and we too should hear the message these editors are sending. 8/

We should also realize what a BFD this is in the media industry. Many of these folks report on democracies and have written stories analyzing the moment when a free media turns to become part of the institutions resisting authoritarianism. We have reached that moment. 9/

What happens next should be part of our national story. I hope @VOA_News @shareamerica and others will tell it. Because we join arms with other champions of democracy around the world. And that's good for us to communicate that. 10/

But I also don't know how this is going to go, so I hope @onthemedia and others dig into this big time because the biggest mistake so far: these papers did this in August when they know no one is paying attention. 11/

The world is watching & we do best when we communicate our true self. Warts and all. The admin will be tested on this in the coming weeks and I hope they prove us wrong and praise this effort. It just might make America...great. again. 12/12