That means that consultation and coordination are ever more essential. Press officers at U.S. embassies overseas say that the plethora of info technology has made them more effective. For example, they actually get more of their material placed in newspapers because when they send it out over the net, newspapers can simply paste it in without having to re-type. New technologies are heavily used, from web sites and e-mail, to teleconferencing and Worldnet television programming, each of which, in different ways, can bring the words of U.S. officials all around the world and even set up virtual meetings. In Kosovo, one impediment to reaching an agreement is the division among Kosovars and the difficulty of getting accurate information through.
Journalists can pose their questions directly to U.S. officials sitting in a studio in Washington.
Two days ago, Secretary Albright and Senator Dole used this resource to directly contact the Albanian public over Kosovo. Others say info technologies have not much changed their work because they are still not a factor in many countries. One question under consideration at this seminar is how the USG can get its message across when there are so many information sources available. Press officers assigned overseas say they do not feel threatened by competing news sources because the U.S., by and large, retains its credibility as a news source. I look forward to the consolidation of USIA with the State Department.