An ugly image that requires a mamoth task to repair

Karen Hughes was appointed in 2005 by President Bush’s Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs with the aim to improve the US image in the Muslim world. As one of President Bush's last remaining advisers from his tight circle of Texas aides, she announced recently she was leaving the administration at the end of the year. She is going back to her home state. Her resignation appears to have received very little attention from analysts in the west.

Ms Hughes’ resignation is yet another evidence of the extremely difficult challenge the US faces in order to win 'the hearts and minds’ of the Muslim world that makes up roughly a quarter of the world population.

Ms Hughes is considered to be one of the best American minds in the field of public relations and communications: indeed, her CV is quite glamorous to say the least. With a career in journalism, she became responsible for public relations for President Bush leading his election campaign that returned him to the Whitehouse as the most unpopular president ever to be elected to office, courtesy to his administration’s blunders on both the international and domestic scenes. Yet, this media expert was unable to remain in her post for more than 20 months and now with very little success to show for with regards to the winning hearts and minds mission impossible. More...