Brand-new British Foreign Secretary David Miliband is concerned that his new department is seen as "stuffy". He is launching a crusade to change that image. First of all, he is going to require ambassadors and diplomats take up blogging. No, really, he is.
He intends to establish his credentials as a modernising Foreign Secretary by insisting that ambassadors and other senior Foreign Office staff take up blogging in order to make Britain's international case more widely read.
The initiative is being dubbed "Our Man in Blogistan," by insiders.
"The days when we communicated mainly by telegram are over," Mr Miliband said. "Communication has to be for the masses now, not just elites. We want to take what we are doing to a much wider audience."
Mr Miliband will launch his own Foreign Office blog tomorrow. He was the first Cabinet minister to take up a regular internet slot as environment secretary and is in the vanguard-of Labour's battle to match the Conservatives for web presence.
Some ambassadors are thought to have expressed reservations about addressing a wider audience.
But one source said that the plans would not be compulsory. "We think there will be good takeup with people keen to tell more people what they do so we don't need to make it a command from on high."
(Wait until they find out how much work blogging actually is!) But wait! There's more. Much, much more. To help kick off the changes he is planning, Miliband is bringing in some expert help with high name recognition! That's right, he'll be launching the newly revamped Foreign Office website with none other than Angelina Jolie!
He is planning to make a joint appearance with Angelina Jolie on a revamped FO website this week – the actress is the goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Human Rights Commission.
Afterward, Ms. Jolie will really give the FO a boost by adopting them all. Well, unless her dark side comes out.
