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Katty Kay              

Award-Winning Journalist & Anchor; NYT Bestselling Author; U.S. Special Correspondent for BBC & MSNBC Contributor

Katty Kay is an award-winning journalist and news anchor who brings an instinctively global perspective to her observations on American politics and global affairs – a result of having grown up living and traveling all over the Middle East, as well as reporting from Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the U.S. throughout her career. During her nearly 30 years with BBC News, she was a reporter and then news anchor, bringing important news from America and around the world to a huge global audience from her studio in Washington, D.C. Kay has reported on six U.S. presidential elections, Washington politics, financial crashes, world trouble spots, sex scandals, global affairs, and much more.

She is a regular contributor and substitute host of "Morning Joe" on MSNBC, a guest panelist on "Meet the Press" on NBC, and "Real Time with Bill Maher" on HBO. She also co-hosts The Rest is Politics U.S. with Anthony Scaramucci. Kay has also appeared on "The Chris Matthews Show" and "Larry King Live" on CNN.

Kay also writes on the art and science of self-assurance in women and girls. She is co-author, with Claire Shipman, of four New York Times bestselling books: "Womenomics," "The Confidence Code," "The Confidence Code for Girls," and "Living the Confidence Code." Their most recent work is "The Power Code: More Joy. Less Ego. Maximum Impact for Women (and Everyone)."

"Womenomics: Write Your Own Rules for Success" examined the workplace revolution and inspired women to take control, dream big, and discover a different way of weaving work into their lives – and, in the process, create more profitable companies with happier and more productive employees. They followed up with "The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance—What Women Should Know," which inspired women to understand that confidence – the lynchpin of success – is a choice.

After "The Confidence Code" was released, parents everywhere asked about confidence and girls. That led to three more books co-authored by Kay with Claire Shipman and Jill Ellyn Riley. "The Confidence Code for Girls: Taking Risks, Messing Up, and Becoming Your Amazingly Imperfect, Totally Powerful Self" was released in April 2018 and debuted at the #1 spot on The New York Times bestseller list. The empowering, entertaining guide gives girls the essential yet elusive code to becoming bold, brave, and fearless. The follow-up, "The Confidence Code for Girls Journal: A Guide to Embracing Your Amazingly Imperfect, Totally Powerful Self," is based on their in-depth research and helps teens and tweens tackle any challenge.

"Living the Confidence Code: Real Girls, Real Stories, Real Confidence" debuted at #1 on The New York Times bestseller list (Children’s Middle Grade) and is a collection of 30 true stories of real girls pursuing their passions, struggling, and stumbling, but along the way figuring out how to build their own special brand of confidence.

Kay settled in Washington, D.C., in the mid-90s, where she lives with her husband and has four grown children. She is a board member at the International Women's Media Foundation.

Speech Topics

MODERATOR, DISCUSSION LEADER & INTERVIEWER

Katty Kay has interviewed scores of political dignitaries and business leaders for her news broadcasts and at top live events. The skills, grace and humor she brings to the live stage as a panel moderator, discussion leader and interviewer help create memorable experience for the audience.

THE POWER CODE – MORE JOY. LESS EGO. MAXIMUM IMPACT FOR WOMEN (AND EVERYONE)

New research shows women don't want power - the cost of getting it is too high and power itself looks unappealing. But companies do better with more women in leadership. Countries do better with women in political office. Everyone does better with more women in power. So, what will it take for women to overcome their reluctance and take the reins? Rather than women changing themselves, Katty Kay suggests we need to change the meaning of power and the routes that lead to it. When we do that – when women can focus on using power to make positive changes, with a clear understanding of why power is important – power becomes more accessible, appealing and impactful for women. This new model, designed by and for women, empowers women to become their most powerful selves and lead fuller and more satisfying lives, and helps men do the same.

THE CONFIDENCE CODE

Confidence! With it, we can take on the world; without it, we don’t ask for raises, request that important meeting or take risks. In the success equation, research shows that confidence is even more critical than competence. But what is confidence? Where does it come from? Are we born with it or do we acquire it? And why do women have less of it than their talents deserve? This speech can be tailored to women or girls/parents and is based on Katty’s two bestselling books on the subject. Katty Kay inspires audiences with the latest scientific research and anecdotes from her own career and the many women and girls she interviewed. “Neurologists have isolated a ‘confidence gene,’” says Katty “and when I was tested, I learned I am not genetically predisposed to being confident.” Her experience is like that of so many women, even senior women, whose lack of confidence is what really holds them back. But confidence is also art – impacted by how we choose to live with our genes. The good news then is that being confident is a choice. Katty’s talk inspires audiences to take action – to go outside their comfort zones, to try new hard things, to take risks, to be prepared to fail and to discover the secret to success.

A GLOBAL UPDATE

The pandemic arrived three years after America began pulling back its global influence. New alliances formed in the vacuum and then the virus further reset relations between nations and within nations. The shift in global power structure caused by COVID-19 cannot be overestimated. Nationalism, already a force before the pandemic, increased not just in America but in most developed nations. Leaders and political systems were under the spotlight and authoritarian politicians used the crisis to seize control. It also accelerated the tense trade stand-off between China and America. Meanwhile, Russia was Europe’s biggest concern. Katty Kay has covered the drivers of global political change for her BBC broadcast audience for over two decades. She regularly interviews policymakers, business leaders, and other experts from around the world. This talk unpacks insights that help audiences understand more clearly the forces at play around the world and how they will impact their future.

WASHINGTON FROM A DIFFERENT ANGLE

America has been rocked by COVID-19, the economic shock it created, and political polarization so deep it’s hard to imagine coming together on a way forward. The Biden administration will have a decidedly different approach to these challenges than Donald Trump. What are the odds President Biden will bridge the gap and make progress on the most important issues: jobs, the environment, trade, immigration, healthcare, and more? Will traditional allies consider America to be trustworthy after four years of foreign policy uncertainty? Can Congress and the new administration find a way to work together for the common good of America? As a British journalist living in Washington, DC since 1996, Katty Kay instinctively looks at these stories through a different lens than her American counterparts. The insights she provides audiences are fresh and impartial – in keeping with the standards of the BBC World News organization where she’s an anchor.

News

Katty Kay on her newest book: 'The Confidence Code for Girls Journal'
The BBC presenter, MSNBC contributor and author of the “Confidence Code” book series gives Mika Brzezinski a first look at her newest title, intended to ...
Katty Kay: Trump's 'Protectionist Party' Redefines American Politics ...
Katty Kay: Trump's 'Protectionist Party' Redefines American Politics. 0. US presidential hopeful Donald Trump was criticised last week after describing the 1989 ...
BBC’s Kay Touts Holt’s Question to Trump on Hillary’s Looks; Hits ‘Malpractice’ of Little E-Mail Time
PBS’s Charlie Rose program aired live for much of Monday night’s show recapping the first presidential debate and BBC’s Katty Kay credited debate moderator Lester Holt for his “dog whistle politics” question to Donald Trump about Hillary Clinton’s looks but hammered the “political malpractice” of Clinton barely having to discuss her e-mail scandal.
BBC’s Katty Kay: ‘Wouldn’t Be Surprising’ If Boris Johnson Is the Next U.K. Prime Minister
Friday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” BBC correspondent Katty Kay reacted to yesterday’s vote in the United Kingdom to leave the European Union. According to Kay, former London Mayor Boris Johnson, who has been what she described to be the “face” of the Brexit movement, stands to be the next prime minister of the United Kingdom.

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