RIYADH: Former White House correspondent Bill Connor has praised the opportunities and potential available for media training in Saudi Arabia.
A seasoned media professional with more than 20 years of experience, the CEO of Three Media Consultancy appeared on episode two of the latest season of The Mayman Show, where he announced his latest project — working with the next generation of aspiring media professionals to hone their presentation skills.
In partnership with Spacetoon, a pan-Arab, free-to-air television channel specializing in animation and children’s programs, Connor has created Smart Speakers for the Spacetoon Education division.
“We are going to launch — I don’t know when the show is going to air — but we are launching it in May 2025, around the same time as you and I are talking right now,” he said.
The program is for high school teachers and students, teaching them to communicate effectively and confidently at school, in life and, eventually, in their chosen careers.
“So it’s going to be spacetoon.edu.com, as a matter of fact the website is open right now. you can look at it. We think it will be pretty beneficial for teachers and for students as well,” Connor said.
Connor has helped countless people around the world to master the art of presenting, making speeches and giving media interviews, including government officials and high-level corporate figures within the Kingdom.
Aside from spending quality time with his family, since stepping aside as a White House correspondent, Connor said his favorite thing was to travel to Saudi Arabia to help professionals hone their skills.
It all began with a chance meeting in the US with Saudi media professional Ahmed Al-Amri, he recalled.
“In 2012 I was at a conference in Washington D.C. Ahmad walked up to me and introduced himself and he said, would you be interested in coming to Jeddah to work with my CEO and the executive team at my corporation? I said, that sounds fascinating, I would love to do that.”
Connor’s training approach focuses on creating real-life situations to show people how to be disciplined, colorful and charismatic in their communication. He also teaches them how to break free of some traditional conventions often practiced when delivering a speech or presentation, during interviews, or while handling difficult situations and questions.
“So many people in leadership think that because they’re talking about something that’s really important, whether that is Vision 2030 or their own business or whatever it happens to be … that they have to be very serious,” he said, adding the secret of his training methods was to build skills beyond conveying a message: “It’s about figuring out how to tell your story credibly while still dealing with some questions that you might not want to deal with.”
When asked how he thought the current US administration was handling matters, including providing timely and accurate information about presidential events, making public statements and barring major media outlets from press briefings, he said: “Every presidency is different. The media strategy of every president is different. I will say President (Donald) Trump’s strategy is totally different from every other president that came before him. And that obviously presents a lot of challenges for journalists. But by and large, journalists work really hard and they’re trying to do the right thing.”
Connor has traveled to Saudi Arabia every six weeks or so for the past 13 years, visiting around 70 times.
He said he appreciated the work opportunities available to him in the Kingdom, which allowed him to work with “extraordinary” professionals and enjoy warm friendships.
He added his journalistic approach to media training had been well received.
“My style, which I suppose is a very American kind of style, has really been embraced here. I mean they keep asking me back. So I think the clients are reasonably happy,” he said.
