Visited countries
U.S. downplays extremism in foreign outreach
The Obama administration is shifting the focus of U.S. public diplomacy efforts to play down the past emphasis on countering violent extremism in order to avoid offending foreign audiences opposed to terrorism.
Judith A. McHale, undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, said in an interview with The Washington Times that “a very narrow segment” of the world’s population is at risk of turning to extremism, and the policies adopted by the Bush administration should be broadened. “Looking back, there was such a focus on countering violent extremism that everything got swept into the same category or the same bucket,” Ms. McHale said.
McHale on Obama’s public diplomacy
Nicholas Kralev talks to Judith A. McHale, undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, about the Obama administration’s outreach to foreign publics and what it’s doing differently from the Bush administration.
Who gets first meal choice on board?
Meal choices in first and business class are hardly a concern for most air travelers, who have much more basic things to worry about these days, such as never-ending extra fees. Still, premium fliers are essential for an airline’s well-being, and they have certain expectations from the product they pay for.
It’s true that many passengers end up in the front cabins — especially on domestic U.S. flights — thanks to free upgrades, but they get them because of their loyalty to the respective carrier. Of course, there are also people who pay to sit up front — as few as they may be — so those cabins deserve serious attention…
State plans new public diplomacy posts
The State Department plans to create seven new senior positions to ensure that a public-diplomacy perspective is always “incorporated” in policy-making around the world, as well as to respond quickly to negative coverage of the United States in foreign media.
In an ambitious strategy that goes beyond any previous efforts to reach out to other countries, the Obama administration “seeks to become woven into the fabric of the daily lives of people” there, its top public-diplomacy official said Wednesday. “We must do a better job of listening, learn how people in other countries and cultures listen to us, understand their desires and aspirations, and provide them with information and services of value to them,” said Judith A. McHale, undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs.
‘Tweaking’ airlines’ yield management
Have you been accused by airline agents of trying to “game the system” by asking if they could open up for mileage redemption seats they obviously won’t sell for cash? Now a top airline executive is encouraging fliers to alert agents when the system fails in its predictability, so it can be “tweaked.”
Before you do that, however, make sure you know what you are talking about — learn all booking codes used by the respective carrier, if you haven’t already, and be able to access and understand its inventory data. Just because there are dozens of open business-class seats months before a flight doesn’t mean you are entitled to an upgrade or an “award” ticket…
‘On the Fly’ Column
LATEST: Swiss Air overplays ‘mistake fare’ excuse
Airlines sometimes make mistakes when filing fares — it’s human and understandable. But when major carriers keep erring and then punish paying customers by unilaterally canceling tickets days or even weeks after their issuance, that raises questions about competence and responsibility. In late September, Swiss International Airlines filed a First Class…
BROWSE COLUMNS BY DATE
2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008
AUG 31: ‘Gardening’ your airline reservation
JUL 03: How airlines could make more money
JUN 19: Is the airline market really not working?
MAY 22: How to recognize and fight airline tricks
MAY 15: Why airline alliances are good for fliers
APR 30: American tries to entice top United fliers
APR 17: Rare airport luxury, almost wasted
MAR 27: Diplomats decry new United pet policy
MAR 07: Did United choose the best rez system?
FEB 15: Round the world in a week, without pain
JAN 17: Rethinking government air travel costs
JAN 09: DOT keeps false ‘each-way’ airfare ads
2011
DEC 20: Fighting airlines’ attempts to overcharge
DEC 14: FareCompare guts airfare search tools
DEC 07: Airlines still think customers are stupid
NOV 22: Questioning conventional airfare wisdom
NOV 11: India tries to blackmail Star Alliance
NOV 02: Carriers lose appetite for Tokyo Haneda
OCT 26: Airlines neglect non-flying experience
OCT 18: U.S. fares now filed four times a day
OCT 05: The benefits of non-airline credit cards
SEP 19: Consider options before giving up airline seat
SEP 14: How much slack do the airlines deserve?
SEP 06: Is the travel-agency model sustainable?
AUG 23: Is media coverage of air travel helpful?
AUG 08: Air India had no chance with Star Alliance
AUG 02: United steps up fake ‘direct’ flights
JUL 26: 17 hours of tax-free airline tickets
JUL 13: ExpertFlyer boosts airfare transparency
JUL 05: British Air, Iberia’s dysfunctional merger
JUN 21: My book ‘Decoding Air Travel’ is out
JUN 08: DOT cracks down on airfare advertising
MAY 25: Should airline booking codes be secret?
MAY 18: British Air loses bags on $12,000 ticket
MAY 04: American’s antiquated ticketing process
APR 27: Airlines, want better GDS model? Unite!
APR 19: Singapore Air’s inept agents, dark side
APR 14: What are your hotel pet peeves?
APR 07: American wins first battle in data war
MAR 30: Proper airfare advertising comes to U.S.
MAR 23: Hilton tries hard to lose my business
MAR 16: Kralev International launches website
FEB 24: Delta SkyMiles needs new leadership
FEB 14: US Airways denies StarNet blocking
FEB 10: GDS travel-booking model faces change
FEB 01: Wyndham today, Sheraton tomorrow
JAN 12: The risks of third-party airline bookings
JAN 04: When airfares jump on you for no reason
Photo essay from Bulgaria
Nicholas Kralev and photographer Astrid Riecken traveled to Bulgaria in October 2009 as part of a trip to Eastern Europe, which also included Germany and Poland, to produce a special section in the Washington Times on the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall’s fall.
U.S. has ‘no desire’ to ease airline ownership rules
American carriers can relax — their freedom to fly anywhere in the European Union is no longer threatened by Washington’s refusal to allow foreign control of U.S. airlines. That was the biggest news from last week’s agreement to expand the 2007 U.S.-EU Open Skies accord.
When the deal was first negotiated, carriers from both sides of the Atlantic were permitted to fly between any two cities without the previous government restrictions. However, those rights could have been lost next year, unless European companies could own controlling shares in U.S. airlines…