The U.S. Tries to Repackage What’s Effectively a Zoom Call Into Secretary Antony Blinken’s “Virtual Travel to Africa”

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will “embark on his first virtual trip to Africa” on Tuesday as part of an effort to reach out with young people in Kenya and Nigeria.

Even though the State Department wants to portray this even as something other than, well, a glorified Zoom call, it’s a bit hard to take their announcement seriously given that meeting virtually with people cannot credibly be called “a virtual trip.”

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