American Diplomat Podcast

Real U.S. diplomats share the untold truths behind world events—what went right, what went wrong, and what you’ll never see in the news.

Want to know what it’s really like on the frontlines of international diplomacy?  Each week, Amb. (Ret.) Pete Romero and co-host Laura Bennett sit down with active and retired US diplomats to pull back the curtain on the gritty, human side of international affairs.  From dealing with foreign leaders to navigating the chaos of war zones, these diplomats share the stories that drive the headlines.  

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Latest Podcast Episodes

From an evangelical upbringing, Albertson studies in Kenya and then devotes his life to international development.  He survives three bombs in Afghanistan while working with USAID, and now leads the diplomacy advocacy organization Foreign Policy for America.
Do you know where to find a hooker in Oman?  Go to the hospital!  And what happens when your boss nixes your husband's job choice in Saudi Arabia, and you are intent on preserving your marriage?  Reposted from October 2017
Addleton shares his haunting experience as the only one left standing after a suicide bomber attacks his party while visiting a school in Afghanistan.  Was it worth it?  
In places like Pakistan where governments may not be friendly, cultural diplomacy, a form of "soft power", is power indeed.  And in Haiti, Husbands gains the nickname, "dread la ki te refize m '," or "the dread who refused me."
How does diplomacy help stem a public health crisis like Ebola?  And what can a diplomat do (and not do) to help Americans in Mexican prison?
Cormier, raised in part by her civil rights activist grandfather, identifies as African American, or, black.  So why does everyone in Pretoria tell her she's not black at all, but instead, "colored"?  And how does she persuade our government to stop considering Nelson Mandela a terrorist?  Also hear how she comes to...
Secrecy, executions, and human shields in Sri Lanka.  Our diplomats make a difference in thousands of people's lives.  
Who are the Tamil Tigers?  Hint: This is no baseball team and they aren't playing ball.

The Podcast Team

Ambassador and Co-Host

Amb. Pete Romero had a twenty-five year career as a diplomat in the US Foreign Service. In his last three postings, he was head of our embassy in El Salvador, US Ambassador in Quito, Ecuador and Assistant Secretary of the Western Hemisphere Bureau at the US Department of State.

Producer and Co-Host

Laura Bennett has written, directed, produced and edited short films that have won 11 awards and screened at 35 festivals throughout the United States. Laura speaks Spanish, French and English and has traveled in five continents, often solo and working as a volunteer.

Sound Engineer

Lorenzo Wilkins heads SD33/Art Direction and Design, focusing on identity, publication and marketing design.  His client list includes the former UPN television, Fox television, PBS, Spike Lee's 40 Acres & a Mule, the NAACP, the National Society of Black Engineers, Jane Firor & Associates, City First Bank of DC, the Education Trust and several political campaigns.

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