After a long pause, MountainRunner is back.  With the exception of some occasional activity in 2012, mostly in the form of guest blogs, it’s been four years since I ended my inveterate posting at the end of 2010.  In that time, the world of public diplomacy, as ambiguous as the term is, has changed substantially.  In those years my relationship with and understanding of a broad range of activities that fall under — or near — the umbrella of ‘public diplomacy’.

This blog was and continues to be about having a conversation.  For every comment that appeared on this site, there were 3-5 (or more) that were emailed.  For every visitor the statistics showed, there were innumerable others with readers distributing many posts by email and email subscribers (over 1,500 at one point) could read posts in their entirety without visiting the site.  I don’t expect the numbers return to their previous levels, and I won’t be posting with the frequency of the past, but I do hope readership will rebound somewhat for an inclusive and broad exchange of ideas.  Posts will be mine and I will begin considering guest posts later in 2015.

It bears repeating that this blog is a personal project.  It was when I began blogging over a decade ago — back when I was blogging anonymously — and it remains so today and into the future.  The opinions expressed here are my own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of any organization I work for or am otherwise affiliated with.

Because of my role with the Broadcasting Board of Governors, I expect that some readers may be disappointed with topics and issues that will not covered here.

If you’re inclined, below are two other personal social media channels that you can follow:

Twitter: @mountainrunner

Tumblr: MountainRunner-us (new!)

Stay tuned!