Updated 3 hours ago - Politics & Policy
What's happening during White House Correspondents' Dinner weekend 2026
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The White House Correspondents' Association Dinner weekend is back and busier than ever this year, with new outlets, companies and political powerbrokers looking to make further inroads in Washington.
Why it matters: The dinner hasn't seen this much momentum since the Obama era.
Zoom in: President Trump will attend this year's event for the first time as a sitting commander in chief.
- The WHCA has hired mentalist Oz Pearlman as the evening's entertainer, instead of a comedian.
- The dinner's headliner last year, comedian Amber Ruffin, was dropped a month before the event following pushback from Trump allies.
Between the lines: Administration officials are expected to have a much bigger presence at parties and events this year — prompting more corporate interest and sponsorships.
- Companies like Boeing, Amazon and Meta will support various events.
New to the party scene this year is MS Now, which has officially split from NBCUniversal and NBC News.
- MS Now will host an after-dinner party competing with NBC News on Saturday night at Dupont Underground, an arts venue in a former trolley station.
- MAGA moguls will host a party Friday night at the glitzy Executive Branch club in Georgetown that charges a $500,000 membership fee. Nelly is the featured performing artist.
- Grindr will host a party as well on Friday night, marking its WHCD debut.
Fun fact: Nine events this year are being hosted by media startups less than 10 years old: Punchbowl News, Axios, Semafor, Beehiiv, Substack, Puck, Status, NOTUS and Crooked Media.
- Their ascent to the Washington political scene shows how the D.C. market has grown more lucrative and competitive over the past decade.
What to watch: The WHCA each year presents awards for outstanding White House coverage at the dinner.
- This year's winners are the Wall Street Journal's Josh Dawsey, the Associated Press' Aamer Madhani and Zeke Miller, CNN's Kaitlan Collins, Getty Images' Andrew Harnik, the New York Times' Tyler Pager and KARE 11 Minneapolis.
- Notably, the WHCA awarded the Wall Street Journal the Katharine Graham Award for Courage and Accountability for its story describing a "bawdy" birthday letter bearing the president's name that was reportedly given to Jeffrey Epstein.
- A federal judge on Monday tossed President Trump's defamation lawsuit against the Journal over that story.
Below is the full calendar of confirmed events so far.
Wednesday, April 22
- Event: A Toast to Press Freedom
- Host: Washington Association of Black Journalists
- Location: National Association of Broadcasters
- Time: 6–9pm
Thursday, April 23
- Event: Courageous Voices in Journalism Reception
- Host: International Women's Media Foundation and Embassy of Sweden
- Location: Embassy of Sweden
- Time: 4–6pm
- Event: NBC News presents Common Ground
- Host: NBCU and Comcast
- Location: Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center
- Time: 4–6pm
- Event: 13th annual Washington Women in Journalism Awards Ceremony
- Host: Story Partners and Washingtonian
- Location: Larz Anderson House
- Time: 6–8pm
- Event: Diplomacy at 250
- Host: YouTube, Meridian and C-SPAN
- Location: Meridian International Center
- Time: 6–9pm
- Event: Off the Record: White House Correspondents' Dinner Kick-off Party
- Host: European Union and WHFPG
- Location: Residence of the European Union
- Time: 7–10pm
- Event: Status Party
- Host: Oliver Darcy
- Time: 8–11pm
Friday, April 24
- Event: Axios Live's annual WHCD weekend kickoff brunch
- Host: Axios
- Location: Venue details provided to confirmed attendees
- Time: 9–11:30am
- Event: Punchbowl News WHCD Weekend Kickoff Event
- Host: Punchbowl News
- Location: Venue details provided to confirmed attendees
- Time: 12–2:30pm
- Event: The Renegade Women's Cocktail Party
- Host: Meghan McCain, Jessica Reed Kraus and Vanessa Santos
- Location: The Graham Rooftop
- Time: 4-7pm
- Event: Beehiiv and Shinola's "Celebration of Journalism"
- Host: Beehiiv and Shinola
- Location: Shinola Logan Circle
- Time: 5–7pm
- Event: Crooked Media Pre-WHCD Party
- Host: Crooked Media
- Location: Venue details provided to confirmed attendees
- Time: 5:30–8pm
- Event: YouTube's White House Correspondents' Dinner Party
- Host: YouTube
- Location: Floreria Atlantico
- Time: 5:30–8pm
- Event: Embassy of Australia and DC Magazine Pre-Dinner Soirée
- Host: Embassy of Australia and Modern Luxury DC Magazine
- Location: The Embassy of Australia
- Time: 6:30pm–8pm
- Event: Semafor House Party
- Host: Semafor
- Location: Private residence of Justin B. Smith
- Time: 8–10:30pm
- Event: Executive Branch Party
- Host: Executive Branch
- Location: Executive Branch Club
- Time: 8–10:30pm
- Event: CAA's White House Correspondents' Dinner Kickoff Party
- Host: CAA and Vanity Fair
- Location: Residence of the Belgian Ambassador
- Time: 7:30–10:30pm
- Event: UTA's Celebration of American Journalists Party
- Host: UTA
- Location: Osteria Mozza
- Time: 9pm–1am
- Event: Brunswick and Daily Mail Reception
- Host: Brunswick and Daily Mail
- Location: The British Ambassador's Residence
- Time: 7–10pm
- Event: Grindr Inaugural WHCD Party
- Host: Grindr
- Location: Venue details provided to confirmed attendees
- Time: 6–8pm
- Event: Washingtonian/Embassy of Qatar VIP Soirée
- Host: His Excellency Ambassador Meshal Al Thani, and Cathy Merrill, CEO of Washingtonian
- Location: Four Seasons
- Time: 8–11pm
- Event: Motion Picture Association and America250 White House Correspondents' Reception
- Host: Motion Picture Association, America250
- Location: MPA headquarters
- Time: 5:30–8pm
- Event: The Creative Coalition
- Host: The Creative Coalition
- Location: PubKey
- Time: 7:30–10pm
Saturday, April 25
- Event: Annual White House Correspondents' Weekend Garden Brunch
- Host: Tammy Haddad, Kevin Sheekey, Mark and Sally Ein, David Urban, Franco Nuschese and Jon Banner
- Location: Beall-Washington House
- Time: 11am–2pm
- Event: Puck Penthouse Pre-Party
- Host: Puck
- Location: The Hepburn Rooftop
- Time: 5:30–7:30pm
- Event: The WSJ Reception
- Host: WSJ
- Location: Washington Hilton
- Time: 5:30–7pm
- Event: ABC News White House Correspondents' Pre-Dinner Reception
- Host: ABC News
- Location: Washington Hilton
- Time: 5:30–9pm
- Event: Washington Post Cocktail Reception
- Host: Washington Post
- Location: Washington Hilton
- Time: 6–7:30pm
- Event: CBS News and Politico Pre-Dinner Party
- Host: CBS News and Politico
- Location: Washington Hilton
- Time: 6–9pm
- Event: The New Media Party
- Host: Substack
- Location: Renwick Gallery
- Time: 8–11pm
- Event: MS Now's Democracy After Hours — The Underground After Party
- Host: MS Now
- Location: Dupont Underground
- Time: 11:30pm-–2am
- Event: The After Party
- Host: NBC News
- Location: The Residence of the Ambassador of France to the U.S.
- Time: 11:30pm–2am
- Event: Swiss Ambassador's White House Correspondents' Dinner After-Party
- Host: Swiss Ambassador Ralf Heckner and TIME
- Location: Swiss Ambassador's residence
- Time: 11pm
Sunday, April 26
- Event: NOTUS and Politico Brunch
- Host: Allbritton Journalism Institute, Robert and Elena Allbritton
- Location: Home of Robert Allbritton
- Time: 11am–2pm
- Event: CNN's WHCD Weekend Finale Reception
- Host: CNN
- Location: Venue details provided to confirmed attendees
- Time: 12:30–3:30pm
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect Crooked Media's event is on Friday. This list is developing and will be updated with additional details.
