Photo credit: Janet Donovan
Some call it insider trading. In Washington, we call it the Nerd Prom – an annual event where White House Correspondents mix their martinis with Congressional & Cabinet Members, White House staff – the very same people they cover on a daily basis. Is that a conflict? We asked a few reporters that have been there, done that at the Washington Premiere at E Street Cinema.
Patrick Gavin – Photo courtesy of PG
“The Correspondents Association has been fighting for White House access for a hundred and one years and this dinner has been a fun event since 1921 with Presidents attending,” said former president of the Association George Condon. “It’s just a fun thing.” We spoke to George prior to the screening where he also gave us a few tidbits on Presidential attendance. Do they ever not attend? “Of sure,” he said. “Jimmy Carter skipped one and Ronald Reagan got shot and didn’t attend in 1981 but he called in from Camp David that night, a live phone hook up. He got shot March 31st and the dinner was a month later. I’ve attended every dinner since 1982. You don’t go there for the food, but for the camaraderie.”
George Condon, Carl Cannon, Ann Compton with her husband Dr. Bill Hughes
“I’ve seen the movie and I have been in Washington twenty years,” political commentator and talk show host Bill Press told Hollywood on the Potomac. “I’ve gone to twenty White House Correspondents’ Dinners and I am not sorry about it at all.”
Bill Press
Short Synopsis:
It’s a cruel irony: During a time in which Americans’ approval of their representatives and reporters in Washington stands at embarrassing lows, the single biggest event in the United States’ capital each year is not one filled with civic-mindedness and public service. Instead, it is an unadulterated self-celebration known as the White House Correspondents’ Association’s annual dinner. What began in 1921 as a one night dinner affair has escalated into a five day celebration each spring that consists of nearly two dozen parties, and the dinner and these parties represent the hottest and most sought after tickets in town as well as the single most important opportunity for those trying to influence Washington’s power players. While the Association attempts to frame the weekend as being about the important and increasingly difficult work of White House correspondents, the festivities have taken on an entirely different purpose.
Annie Groer, Carl Cannon and George Condon
Hollywood on the Potomac sat down with Patrick Gavin prior to the screening:
The Trailer:
