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Bears, Beatles, and Zombies: An Interview with Ambassador Doug Silliman

Ambassador Doug Silliman reflects on his experiences with mentors, the Beatles vs. the USSR and his foreign service journey.


A Baylor alum is spotted in the wild – Jonathon Platt says, “Hey you, tell me a joke!” The alumnus starts out with “John Lennon and a zombie walk into a bar.” And that’s how we got this episode. 

Welcome to ‘Episode 11’ of The Baylor Line’s flagship podcast, The Green Room

Host Jonathon Platt is met with Ambassador Doug Silliman, who has led an impressive career from serving as a foreign service officer with the U.S. Department of State to being appointed as U.S. Ambassador to Iraq. He now serves as the president of the Arab Gulf States Institute. 

Doug Silliman completed his political science degree at Baylor in 1982, with an aspiration to become a diplomat after a high school teacher saw his potential. He later earned his master’s degree in international relations at George Washington University, where he used his knowledge of Russia–that he learned at Baylor, of course–to dive into the history of the Soviet Union. In fact, his master’s thesis studied how the Soviet Union did its planning for cities. 

Tune in to hear more about Doug and his career in foreign services and an exclusive story on real life zombies.

We’ll have more new episodes of The Green Room for you every Monday and Thursday – stay tuned for the incredible list of guests we’ve already lined up, namely: 

  • Kristin Diwan, Senior Resident Scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute
  • Lisa Hanna, Public Affairs and Policy Communications for Delta Air Lines
  • Molly Murchie, Librarian, District of Columbia Public Schools
  • And so, so many more. 

Oh, and to make sure you get each episode, make sure to subscribe to The Latest, The Weekly, or The Monthly newsletter from The Baylor Line. You can also follow our feed wherever you listen to podcasts — such as Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Credits: 

Our theme music is “Short Circuit” by Ryan James Carr, with special guest appearance by – yes – Abner McCall.

Our episodes are made possible by a grant from the Eula Mae & John Baugh Foundation. 

And special thanks to our managing producer, Hope Daughtry, and digital editor Kassidy Tsikitas.

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