Bin Salman’s two week tour of the US comes in quick succession to his maiden voyage to the UK. Despite a positive print media and billboard campaign claiming, “He is bringing change to Saudi Arabia,” complete with hashtags such as #ANewSaudiArabia and #WelcomeSaudiCrownPrince, the future leader was met with protests upon his arrival in Britain.There doesn’t appear to be as obvious a billboard campaign in the US, but this could be the result of the mockery the UK efforts invited. Instead, people are commenting on the $14 magazine called ‘The New Kingdom’ dedicated to promoting Saudi Arabia and produced by the company behind the National Enquirer, American Media Inc.
Bizarrely, the Saudis claim they don’t know anything about it, despite the close to 100 pages of ad-free content bursting with laudatory comments. Five President Donald Trump photographs are peppered among the pages.Before the crown prince arrived in the US, CBS had already been to Riyadh to interview him for a perfectly-timed episode of 60 Minutes, which aired on the eve of his arrival and was promptly criticized for its failure to press bin Salman on substantial issues.
The kingdom is no stranger to securing multimillion-dollar contracts to counter the negative press it is often the subject of. From quashing lawsuits on Saudi involvement in 9/11, to denying accusations of war crimes in Yemen, Saudi Arabia counts on international PR firms to do its bidding, and has ramped up its efforts as the country attempts to diversify its economy and attract foreign investment as bin Salman prepares to ascend to the throne.
Podesta Group
The Podesta Group was founded by longtime Democratic operative and former Hillary Clinton campaign chair John Podesta and his brother, Tony. The Saudi royal court renewed a $1.7 million annual contract with the group on January 1, 2017.
The Podesta Group’s work has included sending pro-Saudi material to congressional staffers and analysts. In September, Podesta employee John Anderson sent around an article from Al Arabiya, which was also published by the Saudi Press Agency, titled ‘National Society for Human Rights expresses its condemnation of the insult of Qatari citizen Hamad al Marri.’ The email was sent to a 14-page-long list of journalists, from ABC to Al Jazeera, and to think tanks like the Brookings Institute.Since becoming embroiled in the Mueller Russia investigation, thanks to client Paul Manafort’s indictment, the Podesta Group folded, with former chief executive Kimberly Fritts establishing Cogent Strategies to take its place. Before it wrapped up, it entered a $150,000 three-month contract with the Saudi American Public Relation Affairs Committee (SAPRAC) to provide “public affairs services on behalf of SAPRAC.”
Saudi American Public Relation Affairs Committee (SAPRAC)
SAPRAC is a US lobby group founded in March 2016. Salman al-Ansari is founder and president, and appears in the media to commend the kingdom. SAPRAC says its funding comes from organizations and events. Because it has been set up in a similar fashion to the prominent American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) lobby group, it doesn’t have to register as a foreign agent, despite it pushing the same agenda as the kingdom.
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