Two years later: The 2008 White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner

In case you missed it… Craig Ferguson spoke at the 2008 WHCA Dinner this past Saturday night, headlining the final such gala of the current Bush administration. The Washington Post has a recap of the evening, which – as always – reads like a slightly schizophrenic list of ‘who’s hot’ in 2007-2008. Editor & Publisher also takes a look at the 2008 dinner plans, and reminisces about Stephen’s performance in 2006.

Star Power Lights Up Correspondents’ Dinner
Hollywood Trumps Beltway Insiders At Annual Event
Jose Antonio Vargas
April 27, 2008

The lasting image of President Bush at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner may be this: bouncing slightly off-beat with a gleeful smile on his face and a baton in his hand last night as he conducted “The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band through a medley of patriotic songs.

Leave it to Bush to shake up an event that, after 93 years, has become as traditional, perhaps even formulaic, in its trappings as a recipe: Start with Hollywood glamour. Add heaping spoonfuls of bona fide Beltway celebrity, and stir. Top with the president of the United States. Place in an overly warm hotel ballroom for several hours, then serve.

. . .

As in years past, official Washington fretted over the night for weeks, consumed by details such as who is invited to which after-party (Bloomberg News held its oh-so-exclusive soiree at the Costa Rican Embassy, while writer Christopher Hitchens and former White House press secretary Dee Dee Myers co-hosted Vanity Fair’s very VIP event), which stars are attending, and whether Stephen Colbert would be headlining again.

As for the last, not a chance, not after his appearance two years ago, when Colbert, appearing as his conservative alter ego, drew nervous laughs as he chastised the audience. “I have nothing but contempt for those people,” Colbert said of the media.

Instead, the more mild-mannered Craig Ferguson, of CBS’s “The Late Late Show,” was this night’s main act, going on after Bush. The Scottish comedian, newly naturalized, was warmly received, particularly for his description of the “feud” between Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly and MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann. “What I see is sexual tension,” Ferguson quipped.

But it was Bush who received the night’s loudest laughter, as he poked fun at Clinton and Obama’s absence (“Senator Clinton couldn’t get into the building because of sniper fire, and Senator Obama is at church”), and who received a rousing ovation as he and the Marine Band finished.

Read the entire article here.

Two Years Ago: When Stephen Colbert Mocked the President — and the Media — After Dinner
Editor & Publisher, Greg Mitchell

Tonight, George W. Bush will enjoy or endure his final White House Correspondents Association dinner. His aides report that he will be in self-mocking mode, even using some jokes he discarded last year because of the Virginia Tech tragedy. Craig Ferguson is this year’s comic relief.

At E&P yesterday we revealed that The New York Times is skipping the event, on principle, having belatedly come to the conclusion that this social mingling of reporters and the people they cover is a little unseemly.

This seems like an apt moment to recall Stephen Colbert’s now-famous routine at this dinner two years ago. It was so critical, and effective, that the association reacted by trotting out Rich Little, who most people thought had passed away, for last year’s dinner, which was a total flop.

What most forget is that Colbert pointed daggers at the press as well as the president — and many in the media responded by panning his performance in the days that followed.

Read the entire article, and the original 2006 article, here.

• No related posts.