Daniel Pipes blows the whistle on Saudi Arabia’s underhanded public relations campaign, in which they secretly fund speakers with distinguished credentials to shill for the royal family: The Saudis’ Covert P.R. Campaign.

Saudi funding for opinion makers has been known but not its exact specifics. I can for the first time expose how the Saudis manage their covert publicity campaign in America thanks to a Saudi-employed public relations firm having incautiously contacted a senior professor at a major research institution. Although the professor did not accept the offer of the speakers, he showed enough interest to document the proposed transaction and then made the details available to me.

An employee at a leading public relations firm in Washington offered the professor Saudi-funded speakers for the lecture program he runs, doing so as part of a program to provide ongoing education to communities around the country about “the importance and value of strong U.S.-Saudi relations. … One of our campaign components is to implement a speaker’s bureau program on behalf of the Kingdom that reaches into target markets across the nation. I think there is a wonderful opportunity,” she gushed, “to develop a very stimulating event with [your speakers’ series].”

The letter invites further inquiries, with the p.r. employee adding eagerly that she is “available to come speak with you in person if possible.” The letter then lists five lecturers ready to speak on the Saudi tab. They make for an interesting group.