Katty Kay
Lead Anchor, BBC World News America and bestselling author
Katty Kay: Biography highlights
Washington, D.C.-based British news anchor Katty Kay brings a fresh perspective to the reporting of American politics and global affairs. Katty’s insights reflect a global mindset that is a natural offshoot of having grown up in the Middle East and worked as a journalist in Europe, Africa, and Asia before coming to Washington in 1996.
Full biography
The award-winning journalist is currently co-anchor of Beyond 100 Days, a one-hour news program that covers Washington politics and its impact globally. The show airs to an enormous audience worldwide. Katty is also a regular guest and substitute co-host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe program.
When she’s not busy making sense of the news from Washington and around the globe, Katty writes on the art and science of women and self-assurance -helping them turn thoughts into action to master a more confident mindset. She is co-author (with Claire Shipman) of three New York Times bestsellers: The Confidence Code; The Confidence Code for Girls; and Womenomics.
Beyond 100 Days was launched when the first 100 days of the Trump administration made clear this President was operating from a different set of rules that would impact American and global politics in unprecedented ways. Prior to assuming the co-anchor role on that program, Katty served as anchor of 100 Days, which covered the first 100 days of the Trump administration. Before that, she was anchor of BBC World News America’s weekday broadcast, also seen worldwide. The award-winning anchor for BBC News anchor has reported on five U.S. presidential elections, financial crashes, wars, sex scandals, and much more. Katty is proud of the fact that the day after the Brexit vote in the U.K., she wrote an article on the five reasons Trump would win the Presidency. She is less proud of the fact that the day he declared his candidacy in June 2015, she said that would be the high point of his campaign.
Katty is co-author of two New York Times bestsellers about women, success, and work. The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance—What Women Should Know inspired women to understand that confidence –the lynchpin of success –is a choice; and 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.
After The Confidence Code was released, parents everywhere asked Katty and her co-author Claire Shipman about confidence and girls. That led to three more books co-authored by Katty 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 will help teens and tweens tackle any challenge. And finally, Living the Confidence Code: Real Girls, Real Stories, Real Confidence will be released in April 2020.
On the fun side, Katty had the distinction of being immortalized in pop culture in 2018 when her name was the answer to a question on the Jeopardy game show. In the same week, she was portrayed in a skit on the legendary Saturday Night Live show which satirized a moment from MSNBC’s Morning Joe program.
Katty settled in Washington, DC in the mid-90s where she lives with her husband, four children, two cats, and a dog.
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Watch Katty in action
NABCA
ACSA
Gibson Dunn
Drug, Chemical & Associated Technologies Association
HR Policy Association
“She may have been our best speaker (ever), delightful and substantive and a pleasure to work with, our members just loved her.”
Great Western Bank
“Katty did an amazing job!”
Florida Public Pension Trustees Association
“Thank you for being such a great keynote speaker. Your presentation touched our entire membership. The way you set the table with your message of where America fits in today’s Global Economy, was quite skilful and eye-opening for those attending. They felt reassured that the USA was still the world leader that they all grew up believing and yes, better days are on their way!”
NMS Management
Ruzek Management
PRMC Foundation
Business Development
SAE
“Wanted to let you know that Katty was fantastic!! Great way to end the conference session today. She is such a great speaker and her Q&A session was great and we could have gone on forever if she didn’t have to catch a flight. She had a lot of interesting questions.”
National Association of REALTORS®
“We are still getting high praise from our members (and staff) on Katty Kay’s presentation. She definitely was one of the highlights of the conference and I have let my colleagues know that they should definitely consider her as a speaker for any future events.”
Penske
“Thanks to Katty the event was very successful. We have gotten back a lot of positive feedback from the group. She was fantastic at the event and the topic was something all of the women could relate including me. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting Katty and listening to her. She is a very down to earth person who brings a lot of knowledge and experience to any group that she has the pleasure to speak to their group.”
Katty's speaking topics
Washington From A Different Angle
The election of Donald Trump has turned the American political world upside-down. His presidency continues to be just as unpredictable. President Trump’s way of doing things is unconventional – and that’s going down well in some quarters; not so well in others. And it doesn’t fall just along party lines. How is it playing out? What’s next? What do administration insiders say in private moments? How does the rest of the world view it? Can Congress – and members of the president’s own party – find common ground to make progress? Will the White House be able to overcome the increased levels of polarization? As a British journalist in Washington, DC, Katty Kay looks at Washington from a different angle. She offers a perspective on the latest drama of American politics that only an outsider can provide. The veteran BBC anchor has the experience and sources to reveal the story behind the headlines and provide valuable context for her audience. Katty tailors this speech to suit the interests of each audience, delivering solid insights with charm and understated humour.
Womenomics
At the World Economic Forum in Davos, IMF Chief Christine Lagarde called the advancement of women the greatest economic opportunity of our time. She was recognizing what Katty Kay calls Womenomics, the extraordinary value of women in the workforce. Global studies show that companies who employ more senior women make more money. But too many women in their mid-thirties hit the brick wall of kids vs. career and decide to leave the workforce. We can’t afford to keep losing them. Katty marshals evidence from employers large and small to show how it’s possible to help women meet the demands of family and career and keep these valuable contributors in the workforce. What starts as talent retention initiative becomes a profit bonus any company would be happy to have. Katty’s talk inspires women and provides a practical guide to employers.
A Global Update
Global times call for global perspective. As someone who has lived in and reported from North America, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Europe, Katty Kay’s observations and insights reflect that rich experience. The world is changing at lightning speed and Katty looks deep into the global news making headlines right now. So many big issues to be dealt with simultaneously: the disruption in the EU, trade disputes, immigration issues, terrorism, political isolationism, and the potential for political and economic tensions to erupt into armed conflict at any moment. Understanding the complex issues at play requires a constant refresh of perspective. It’s a world where big challenges abound and the landscape changes on a daily basis. Where is it headed? Katty asks that question of the political and business leaders she speaks to every day as U.S. anchor for BBC World News America. She brings those insights to her audience in this talk.
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.
Photo Gallery: Katty Kay
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