Saudis Spend $7.3 Million On Six Months of PR

Qorvis Communications received $7.3 million from Saudi Arabia during the six-month period ended Sept. 30 for promoting the Kingdom's "commitment to the war against terrorism and peace in the Middle East," O'Dwyer's PR Daily reports. "The Washington, D.C.-based firm arranged one-on-one interviews with media luminaries, such as CNN's Wolf Blitzer, NBC's Tim Russert, CBS' John Roberts, NPR's Diana Rehm and Fox News' Tony Snow. Qorvis drafted letters to Congress, conducted surveys, prepared ads and created the www.aboutsaudiarabia.net for the Saudis. The Patton Boggs affiliate also arranged a 'road show' for Kingdom officials that featured stops in Los Angeles, Kansas City, Dallas, Seattle, Detroit, Chicago and Richmond."