Since becoming the Trump administration’s top spokesperson, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has had her share of run-ins with the mainstream media.
She’ll have the night off from such opposition when White House correspondents gather for their biggest annual event, though.
As Fox News reported, Leavitt recently confirmed that she won’t be in attendance:
Leavitt made the announcement during a podcast appearance with Sean Spicer, who served as President Donald Trump’s White House press secretary for the first six months of 2017.
ADVERTISEMENT“I will not be in attendance at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, and that’s breaking news for ‘The Sean Spicer Show,’” Leavitt said.
Leavitt said the WHCA “has truly become a monetized monopoly over the White House and the coverage of the president of the United States in America.”
“This is a group of journalists who’ve been covering the White House for decades,” she said on the podcast published Friday. “They started this organization because the presidents at the time were not doing enough press conferences. I don’t think we have that problem anymore under this president, so the priorities of the media have shifted, especially with this new digital age.”
It wasn’t the first time Leavitt has addressed the upcoming event:
Reporter: The WHCA announced Amber Ruffin who has called the president a toddler with his pants pulled down will be the entertainment for this year's correspondents dinner. Does the white house have reaction to this choice, will the president be attending this year?
Leavitt:… pic.twitter.com/SF1e03O0ay
— Acyn (@Acyn) February 5, 2025
Her announcement about skipping the dinner earned significant social media praise:
Remember what they did to Sarah Huckabee Sanders?
I don’t blame her.
— Nurse Patriot (@LABeachGal1) March 15, 2025
They should do one for new media at the same time/date – with like Tim Pool, Valuetainment, Joe Rogan, Jimmy Dore, etc
— Aunt Artica 🇺🇸 ✝️ (@auntartica) March 15, 2025
The move comes after a first term in which Trump skipped every White House Correspondents’ Dinner, as the Daily Beast noted:
The April event traditionally invites a comedian to perform a roast of the sitting president and their administration. It’s the main source of revenue for the WHCA, which supports journalists covering the president.
ADVERTISEMENTPresident Donald Trump didn’t attend any of the WHCA dinners during his first term, deviating from a tradition that goes back numerous administrations.
Leavitt’s news follows the Trump administration’s controversial move to select which journalists make up the White House press pool. In February, the administration barred the Associated Press from the corps for refusing to refer to the “Gulf of Mexico” as the “Gulf of America” after Trump renamed the body of water in January.
Other traditional outlets like Bloomberg and Reuters no longer have a permanent spot, while right-wing media outlets like Blaze and Newsmax have been included. These “well-deserving” new players will help spread “President Trump’s message,” Leavitt said in February. She added that it was “time for the pool to reflect the media habits of the American people in 2025.”
Here’s a recap of the Trump administration’s new approach to selecting reporters for the White House press pool:
Join the conversation!
Please share your thoughts about this article below. We value your opinions, and would love to see you add to the discussion!