The Dissent Channel, Elizabeth Shackelford
The Dissent Channel, Elizabeth Shackelford
List: $27.99 | Sale: $19.59
Club: $13.99

The Dissent Channel
American Diplomacy in a Dishonest Age

Author: Elizabeth Shackelford

Narrator: Suehyla El-Attar

Unabridged: 10 hr 40 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: PublicAffairs

Published: 05/12/2020

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included

Synopsis

A young diplomat's account of her assignment in South Sudan, a firsthand example of US foreign policy that has failed in its diplomacy and accountability around the world.

In 2017, Elizabeth Shackelford wrote a pointed resignation letter to her then boss, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. She had watched as the State Department was gutted, and now she urged him to stem the bleeding by showing leadership and commitment to his diplomats and the country. If he couldn't do that, she said, "I humbly recommend that you follow me out the door."

With that, she sat down to write her story and share an urgent message.

In The Dissent Channel, former diplomat Elizabeth Shackelford shows that this is not a new problem. Her experience in 2013 during the precarious rise and devastating fall of the world's newest country, South Sudan, exposes a foreign policy driven more by inertia than principles, to suit short-term political needs over long-term strategies.

Through her story, Shackelford makes policy and politics come alive. And in navigating both American bureaucracy and the fraught history and present of South Sudan, she conveys an urgent message about the devolving state of US foreign policy.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Wes on June 28, 2020

Shackelford weaves a personal narrative of her time as a foreign service officer (FSO) on station in Embassy Juba, South Sudan, during the start of the new country's civil war. Her experiences as the political officer responsible for human rights oversight, as well as her doublehatting as the small......more

Goodreads review by Sophie on January 17, 2024

Super interesting book about a subject near and dear to the heart (American foreign policy and diplomacy). Part of what made this so engaging was that it discussed a much more granular scale of diplomacy than most people tend to interact with. A junior consular officer in South Sudan just wouldn't b......more

Goodreads review by K.T. on July 18, 2021

The majority of this book is background/Shackelford’s personal experience of the Civil War in South Sudan since independence. Not what I was expecting from the title but an interesting glance at her experience being a baby diplomat at a post she certainly was not ready to staff. She comes off as nai......more

Goodreads review by Hannah on January 28, 2021

I wanted to go into the Foreign Service in the past—that is, until the previous administration took over. I realized then that I would have to support the U.S. even if I didn’t agree with the government’s values. Shackelford’s telling of her time as an FSO illustrates the frustration of the intersec......more

Goodreads review by Merricat on September 10, 2021

This book feels like a few different books, and those different books are successful to varying degrees. As a history of South Sudan’s birth and rapid descent into ethnic cleansing and civil war, it’s somewhat shallow--the significant historical material could fit into a long-ish magazine article--b......more

Quotes

"An honest accounting by a patriot seeking a deliberate national discourse on what actually makes America great."—Kirkus Reviews

"The Dissent Channel represents an important read for those seeking to reckon with the longer-term shortcomings of American foreign policy, particularly as they concern South Sudan."—Global Policy Journal

"Her keen and empathetic eye brings into sharp relief the disastrous consequences of derelict foreign policy against the brutal backdrop of a fledgling, war-torn country."—Seven Days VT

"Shackleford's book is a damning chronicle of the naivety and gullibility of Western governments. Rather than making good on their expressions of concern, they continued to pour money into South Sudan."—Independent Catholic News

"At a time when many Americans are wondering if a values-based foreign policy is either desirable or feasible, Elizabeth Shackelford offers a passionate and detailed account of the risks of not having one, under the challenging circumstances faced by the Obama Administration in South Sudan. In presenting one side of a complex story, Elizabeth reveals why it is imperative now more than ever that dissenting voices, particularly from those closest to the ground, be heard and answered"—Anne-Marie Slaughter, CEO, New America

"In these norm-shattering times, we urgently need to examine and learn from mistakes of the past. This beautifully written, personal story exposes uncomfortable truths about the costs of America's foreign policy approach and, without cynicism, offers some hope for a better way forward—Yara Bayoumy, National SecurityEditor, The Atlantic

Add to Cart
Add to Wish List