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====Telegraphs centralized power in the State Department====
[[File:The_first_telegram.jpg|left|275px|thumbnail|[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375401288/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0375401288&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=5b30ec5b5bcba79640af84324249d670 Professor Samuel Morse ] sending the first telegram which said "What hath God Wrought" on May 24, 1844]]
Telegraphy increased the centralization of foreign ministries. When ambassadors were months away from their political superiors, they were often forced to take pressing and important decisions before they could receive their instructions. In such circumstances, they exercised enormous power, sometimes even acting as policymakers in their own right. In contrast, telegraphy circumscribed the independence of diplomats. It reduced the pressure of difficult decisions, which diplomats had previously faced without ready access to advice from their superiors.