Of an open letter by documentary producer Sidney Blumenthal calling on Hughes to persuade the administration to change its policy, she suggested it would be more appropriate to address such a letter to "our opponents" who are "beheading people."

Hughes said there are two key misperceptions she faces in the Muslim world. Muslims worry that the war against terrorism is a war against their religion. And, she added, there is offense taken regarding American critics who say that Muslims don't speak out against terrorism, but "they do speak out all the time."

Hughes said she's taking measures to counteract negativism about America in steps such as "aggressively engaging the international media."

She's started blogs in Arabic that correct misinformation about America, and has worked to bring hundreds of clerics to the United States to see the nation firsthandfirst-hand, and to the same end has worked to rebuild the student visa program.

She's also looking at a project to collect the stories of real Americans, pointing to University of Utah geneticist Mario Capecchi, who recently won the Nobel Prize for Medicine. Capecchi nearly died as a young boy, when he was turned out on the streets while his mother was interred in a concentration camp in Nazi Germany.

Seeing Americans first-hand helps to build understanding, Hughes said, urging Friday's audience to travel abroad or take in a foreign exchange student.

"We must work for a greater understanding and respect for different faiths and cultures," she says. "Together we have the opportunity to imagine a better and safer world. I hope you will take the opportunity to seize it and bring it out."

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E-mail: dbulkeley@desnews.com