HEALING WITH HUMOR
B Y S T E V E S C U L LY,
P R E S I D E N T O F T H E W H C A
Less than a week before the Annual White
House Correspondents’ Association
Dinner, the television screen had the
“breaking news.” Initial reports indicated
there was a shooting on the Virginia Tech
campus. As the story unfolded, the reality of
the tragedy set in.
As president of the White House
Correspondents’ Association, I was thinking
about something that appeared inconsequential
in light of these developments: do we proceed
with our 93rd annual dinner? And if so, how
do we strike the right tone? The answer came
in a call from White House counselor Dan
Bartlett, who said the president would attend
the dinner, but skip any political humor.
He did, however, endorse the idea that
as a country we will need to move on, and
humor is often the best remedy. So David
Letterman provided a hilarious “Top Ten” list
of the president’s funniest moments from the
past year. Impersonator Rich Little chronicled
everyone from Andy Rooney to Johnny
Carson, to Bill Clinton. But “the moment”
that night came when Amie Steele, editor of
The Collegiate Times of Virginia Tech, accepted
a $5,000 check on behalf of our association
to support her student-run newspaper, and
proceeded to ask half the ballroom to chant
“We are” and the other half “Hokies.”
The White House Correspondents
Association works throughout the year to fi ght
for the access, information and tools we need
to do our job. On one evening in April, we put
aside our editorial and political differences for
a night of collegiality, while also raising money
for the WHCA scholarship program.
As Steele left the dais, she turned to me
and said, “Thank you for the opportunity.”
But rather, I thanked her. If she represents
the next generation of journalists, we are in
very good hands. |
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Scalia (good news for smokers); Jerry Brown and wife Anne Gust; Jay Carney and Claire
Shipman; co-hosts Dee Dee Myers and Todd
Purdum; and another 150 chosen few. Having
fun yet? The after party yes, the dinner no,
reported Hitchens in The Huffington Post. When
notified that The New York Times was pulling out
of next year’s dinner he replied: “I’m upset.” Lost
in translation? He wanted VF to be the first to
pull out. Washingtonian’s Garrett Grath’s take
on the NY Times pull out: “They waited in line
too long for the Bloomberg party and felt like
jilted lovers.”
The Hangover
“Bloody Mary please” was the phrase most
overheard at John and Cristina McLaughlin’s
annual brunch on the roof top of the Hay Adams |
Hotel. Michael Chertoff made the rounds with
the seersucker Bellini crowd; Giancarlo Esposito invigorated the guests and Chris Wallace insisted
he went to bed at 8 p.m. the night before. The
beauty beat was filled by Georgette Mosbacher,
Morgan Fairchild, Rita Cosby and Patricia Duff, while Patrick Buchannan and Tony Blankley kept
the political thing going alongside Eleanor Clift
and Clarence Page. Topics of the day: Sanjaya,
Sanjaya, Sanjaya with casual mention of a military
exit from Iraq. But the biggest topic? Facebook.
Huh? It’s where you post your face, profile and
photos online to communicate. “This is one of
the most significant cultural changes out there.
But I don’t want everyone knowing my business,”
Debbie Dingell said. “They even talk about who
they slept with the night before. Someday they will
live to regret it.” WRONG! BYE-BYE! |
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