22 U.S.C. § 2732 — Public diplomacy responsibilities of the Department of State

(a) Integral component. The Secretary of State must make public diplomacy an integral part of planning and carrying out United States foreign policy. (b) Coordination and strategy. The Secretary must make every effort to: (1) coordinate Federal agencies’ public-diplomacy activities under the President’s direction; and (2) coordinate with the Broadcasting Board of Governors to (A) create a comprehensive, coherent strategy for using public-diplomacy resources and (B) create and state long-term, measurable public-diplomacy goals. (c) Objectives. The strategy must target developed and developing countries and both particular and general audiences. It must use suitable media to explain United States foreign policy to those countries’ governments and people, increase support for United States policies, and provide news and information. The Secretary must use the most effective methods to counter misinformation and propaganda about the United States, and must continue explaining freedom, democracy, and human rights as basic principles of United States foreign-policy goals. (d) Identifying United States foreign assistance. Working with USAID and other public and private assistance organizations and agencies, the Secretary should widely distribute information about foreign assistance provided by the United States, United States nongovernmental organizations, and private entities, especially where practicable in the countries and regions receiving it. Where practicable, the Secretary should ensure that USAID projects not involving commodities, including projects carried out by private voluntary organizations, are identified as provided by the people of the United States.