White House Correspondents Dinner Focuses on Awards, Journalism

Journalism’s big night out returned on Saturday in Washington as reporters, editors and A-list celebrities mingled at the Washington Hilton at the White House Correspondents Association Dinner, an event jokingly called the “nerd prom,” in what was a more muted soirée that, for the fourth time while he has been in the Oval Office, was not attended by President Donald Trump. This year, the WHCA opted to focus on the stellar journalism produced as the current administration charges into uncharted territory. 

With the absence of the sitting president and the decision to nix a comic brought onstage to roast the leader of the free world — a lighthearted and often funny tradition that typically follows the meal, this year’s dinner continued the event’s downward slide in relevance as a cultural moment. Previous years have seen memorable roasts of sitting presidents and stand out moments from notable names like Joel McHale and Conan O’Brien, as well as some then-up-and-coming comedians, like Michelle Wolf and Hasan Minhaj. In fact, many believe former President Barack Obama’s zinging of Trump and his racist birther conspiracy theory as he frowned in the audience at the 2011 event may have motivated him to run. 

Ahead of Saturday’s event, comedian Amber Ruffin’s scheduled performance was canceled. WHCA president Eugene Daniels wrote in a letter to organization members, “at this consequential moment for journalism, I want to ensure the focus is not on the politics of division but entirely on awarding our colleagues for their outstanding work and providing scholarship and mentorship to the next generation of journalists.”

With this, the actual reason for the event became the focus on Saturday night, which according to the WHCA, is to “acknowledge award-winners, present scholarships and give the press and the president an evening of friendly appreciation.” Though Trump’s snubbing of the event preemptively challenges that final item, it was acknowledged early in the night that this has been a tough year for the reporters covering Trump and the chaotic first 100 days of his second term amid a whirlwind of changes and controversies. 

“I know this has been an extremely difficult year for all of us. It’s been difficult for this association. We’ve been tested, attacked, but every single day our members get up, they run to the White House, plane, train, automobile, with one mission, holding the powerful accountable,” Daniels, who also serves as MSNBC’s senior Washington correspondent, told the crowd before dinner was served. 

The tumultuous relationship Trump and his administration had with the press throughout his first term returned almost immediately once he retook the presidency. Notable conflicts in the first 100 days of his second term have included the administration’s exclusion of Associated Press reporters from attending some Oval Office events because the wire service will not alter guidance and what it calls the Gulf of Mexico to the president’s day-one executive order changing the body of water’s name to the Gulf of America (the AP cites the shared borders between the U.S. and Mexico in its style guidance on the matter). More recently, the administration has wrangled control of the White House press pool, a roster that has been controlled by the WHPA for over 100 years. 

The red carpet that preceded this year’s correspondents’ dinner was notable for its lack of A-list attendees, who in previous years flocked to Washington for the must-attend event. However, some familiar faces from Hollywood were spotted among the stars of television journalism, which included CNN anchors Jake Tapper, Wolf Blitzer and Dana Bash; ABC News’ Juju Chang and Mary Bruce; and many more. Celebrities who walked the carpet on Saturday included Lynda Carter, Jason Isaacs, Michael Chiklis, Dean Norris and Tim Daly, among others. 

CNN’s Abby Phillip took to the podium to hand out the first of the night’s awards, each of which came with a $2,500 prize. ABC News’ Rachel Scott took home the award for breaking news coverage for her report on the assassination attempt on Trump as he campaigned in Pennsylvania in July of 2024. The WHCA award for presidential news coverage by visual journalists, which recognizes a video or photo journalist for uniquely covering the presidency at the White House or in the field went to Doug Mills of The New York Times for an image taken of former President Joe Biden as he wrestled with historic challenges, including international crises, amid calls for him to end his reelection campaign. The print award for reporting under deadline pressure went to the AP’s Amar Mandani and Zeke Miller for their report on White House press officials altering the official transcript of President Biden’s remarks in which he used the word “garbage” to describe Trump’s supporters.

The Aldo Beckman Award for Overall Excellence went to Alex Thompson of Axios for his reporting on former President Biden leading up to the June debate against Trump, in which Biden’s poor performance led to growing calls for him to drop his re-election campaign.

The Katherine Graham Award for courage and accountability recognizes an individual or newsgathering team for coverage of subjects and events of significant national or regional importance. Reuters took the award this year for its investigative series about the international fentanyl drug trade.

The Collier Prize for State Government Accountability Award went to the Associated Press for its report on  prisons profiting off America’s captive workforce. 

The inaugural Center for Integrity in News Reporting Award was handed out at the event to Anthony Zurcher, the North American correspondent for BBC News for his coverage of how Biden faced the diplomatic and political consequences of the Israel-Hamas war. From the stage at the Washington Hilton, Zurcher addressed the crisis that many journalists are facing now that aggressive nature of the second Trump administration has crystallized.

“Now more than ever, it’s important for those of us in the media to provide impartial and fair reporting without favor or fear,” he said after accepting the award. “When I say fear, I mean fear of the fallout from our stories, fear of what people in power may say, do or think, and maybe that’s something you learned the first day in journalism school, but I think it lands differently … I think it means something more now.”

The final award of the night, the Dunnigan-Payne Prize for Lifetime Career Achievement covering the White House went to the late Robert Monroe Ellison, who was the White House reporter for what is now the American Urban Radio Network. He was also the first Black president of the WHCA. After this award was handed to his three children, it was announced that this year, the association awarded scholarships to 30 students from 14 colleges and universities.

After the scholarship winners and future journalists stood up to wave to the gathered members of the media, Daniels returned to address the elephant in the room — or lack thereof, with Trump’s absence. Ahead of a video montage of former presidents Obama, Bill Clinton Reagan and Carter complimenting or gently joshing members of the media, he spoke on the nature of the president’s relationship to the event. 

“For more than 100 years, the White House Correspondents Association has played a vital role in ensuring that the American public has access to the truth, no matter how difficult or how complex it is. And in America, the truth is usually complex and often difficult,” Daniels said. “Our responsibility is not to align with any one party or any one agenda, but to serve the people of this country with integrity and dedication. It is a duty we hold in the highest regard, knowing that the work we do helps strengthen the fabric of our democracy.”

As the ceremony drew to a close, Daniels passed the gavel of the WHCA presidency to Weijia Jiang, the senior White House correspondent for CBS News.