The White House Correspondents’ Association dinner — known for its fun albeit ferocious jabs at Washington — took a more solemn tone this year as US President Joe Biden acknowledged the several US journalists under siege in authoritarian countries around the world.
“We are here to send a message to the country and, quite frankly, to the world: The free press is a pillar, maybe the pillar, of a free society, not the enemy,” Biden said in his speech.
The president and first lady Jill Biden, upon arriving at the Washington Hilton on Saturday, met privately with the parents of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been imprisoned in Russia since March.
Photo: AP
He was charged with spying, despite strong denials from his employer and the US government.
Some guests wore buttons with “Free Evan” printed on them.
Also among the 2,600 people attending the gala was Debra Tice, the mother of Austin Tice, who has not been heard from since disappearing at a checkpoint in Syria in 2012.
US officials say they are operating under the assumption that he is alive and are working to try to bring him home.
“Journalism is not a crime. Evan and Austin should be released immediately, along with every other American detained abroad,” Biden said. “I promise you, I am working like hell to get them home.”
The annual black-tie dinner drew a wide array of celebrities and media moguls to Washington, with parties being held across the capital.
Actor and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger opened the dinner with a pre-taped video about the importance of a free and independent press, calling reporters an “ally of the people.”
While Biden spent the majority of his speech focused on the issue of press freedom, he took time to take jabs at some of his most vocal political critics.
Headlining the after-dinner entertainment was Daily Show correspondent Roy Wood Jr, who gleefully mocked Biden, 80, for running for a second term in the White House that could mean he is still president at age 86.
Wood noted recent angry protests in France against raising the retirement age.
“They rioted because they didn’t want to work until 64. Meanwhile, in America, we have an 80-year-old man begging us for four more years of work,” he dead-panned, drawing a broad smile from Biden, sitting only meters away.
“‘Let me finish the job.’ That’s not a campaign slogan, that’s a plea,” Wood said. “Say what you want about our president, but when he wakes up from that nap, work gets done.”
Biden aimed one of his barbs at media mogul Rupert Murdoch, the 92-year-old owner of conservative TV network Fox News.
“You might think I don’t like Rupert Murdoch — that’s simply not true. How can I dislike a guy who makes me look like [29-year-old pop star] Harry Styles?” Biden said.
He also targeted CNN presenter Don Lemon who was sacked allegedly after sexist and ageist on-air remarks.
“Call me old — I call it being seasoned. You say I am ancient — I say I’m wise. You say I’m over the hill — Don Lemon would say that’s a man in his prime,” he said.
The dinner institution had started to wither — first boycotted by Donald Trump, then shut down altogether to fend off COVID-19.
But this year’s event for 2,600 guests was sold out, and attended by both Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Having the president and vice president in attendance restored a tradition last observed in 2016, the final dinner before Trump entered the White House.
“Folks, it is wonderful to be back here again, proving I haven’t learned a damn thing,” Biden said.
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