FishbowlDC’s Matt Dornic reports CBS will host Rahm Emanuel, TV stars Julianna Margolis and Chris O’Donnell, and new Massachussetts Senator Brown’s daughter Ayla Brown at this year’s Nerd Prom.
Click here for the rest of Matt’s post.
Guest mixologist Rachel Maddow serves David and Susan Axelrod
WHCInsider has the exclusive news: Party powerhouse MSNBC, coming off an already legendary 2009 Radio and TV Dinner after party, is taking on the Bloomberg | Vanity Fair juggernaut in 2010 for the White House Correspondents Dinner on Saturday, May 1.
The White House Correspondents weekend is a time for the networks and their print counterparts to entertain their clients, show celebrity muscle, and bring Washington elites together. There is no more competitive time slot that weekend than the Saturday after party sweepstakes, dominated for years by Bloomberg.
Jason Binn’s Capitol File magazine began their own after party in 2008 to much success. With a breathtaking cover featuring new D.C. residents—Obama’s Valerie Jarrett and Desiree Rogers—Binn gathered top politicos in 2009, after hitting the dance floor in 2008.
MSNBC, which has enjoyed much ratings success and made itself a primary player in the Washington political media culture, will give everyone a run for their money this year.
MSNBC’s party will be created by top event producer, Philip Dufour, mastermind of the Radio and Television after party. If you are one of the lucky few to receive an invitation, we’ll see you at the Mellon auditorium.
MSNBC President Phil Griffin and MSNBC Star Ed Schultz
2009 White House Correspondents Garden Brunch headliners Susan Axelrod (CURE Epilepsy) and Ann Curry (NBC News) led guests in a group tweet for mothers. This year’s brunch will be given in honor of Mothers Day Every Day and CURE Epilepsy.
WHCI Garden Brunch 2009: Mothers Day Every Day from whcinsider on Vimeo.
First Lady Michelle Obama is on the cover of the latest Newsweek magazine with a shiny red apple but last week she came to the defense of the Twinkie (the cream-filled sponge cake is apparently a favorite with the Obama girls).
The First Lady spoke with Newsweek’s editor Jon Meacham at the magazine’s Executive Forum in Washington about her Let’s Move initiative to fight childhood obesity.
She’s challenging grocery companies to rework their products and wants nutritional information put on food packaging that’s easier to understand. The First Lady draws a line at putting a warning label on Hostess Twinkies or Kellogg’s Froot Loops cereal but appeals to parents to use common sense when it comes to feeding their kids.
“I’m all in favor of good snacks. We grew up with snacks and chips. But we have to exercise more. Parents have to understand what’s in the Twinkie. So we don’t need a warning, we need information that’s easy to understand.”
The First Lady Defends Twinkies from whcinsider on Vimeo.
President Bill Clinton gives First Lady Michelle Obama a thumbs up on her anti-obesity campaign. The William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association created the Alliance for a Healthier Generation in May 2005. Watch what he tells Newsweek’s editor Jon Meacham.
Clinton Anti-Childhood Obesity Campaign from whcinsider on Vimeo.
It’s going to be a throw-down the Friday before the WHCD; Time and People magazines have circulated a save-the-date for their April 30th evening bash.
WHCInsider already reported that The New Yorker has put their marker on the pre-party calendar with a rooftop reception at the W Hotel.
It’s a ritual of spring—like Punxsutawney Phil and the Capistrano swallows—the first weekend in May is the White House Correspondents Dinner. President Reagan dubbed it “Washington’s spring prom” and it has grown into a weekend of events with D.C., New York and even Hollywood’s stars.
One of those events is the annual WHCD Garden Brunch. In 2009, hundreds of guests gathered in the garden, but there was a twist. The brunch was given in honor of the Mother’s Day Every Day campaign and featured honorary brunch Chair Ann Curry of the Today Show, with special guest Susan Axelrod of CURE Epilepsy.
Mothers Day Every Day is a U.S. advocacy group for maternal health led by the White Ribbon Alliance and CARE. Their campaign for healthy moms and newborns aims to raise the political will and resources to reduce maternal mortality around the world to meet the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goal number five.
There were some incredible moments as Captain Richard Phillips, who survived the Somali pirate attack, met Homeland Security Chief Janet Napolitano and relived his dramatic rescue for the first time. T. Boone Pickens and his wife Madeleine talked to reporters about their successful campaigns for the Pickens Plan and to save wild mustangs
And “Gossip Girl” star Chace Crawford taped a Mothers Day greeting surrounded by the star-stuck, pre-teen girls volunteering at the brunch. Arriving guests loved the adorable girls who greeted them with white ribbons, which were tied around their wrists in honor of mothers everywhere.
Since the garden brunch’s start 17 years ago, when Barbra Streisand made a surprise guest appearance, Hollywood stars in town for the dinner have made the Saturday morning event part of their itinerary. Last year’s star power included Kerry Washington, Ludacris (escorting his own lovely mother), Christian Slater, Val Kilmer, Matthew Modine, Tim Daly and Dana Delany.
Click HERE for last year’s garden brunch photos.
Washington’s own stars—Ben Bradlee, Sally Quinn, Andrea Mitchell, John King, David Gregory, Betsy Fischer, Greta Van Susteren and John Coale, Luke Russert, Gordon Peterson and Norah O’Donnell—turned out in force to mingle with the year’s top newsmakers: Todd Palin, Alan Greenspan, and Rep. John Dingell. Last, but not least, there was a who’s who from the Obama administration in the crowd: Austan and Robyn Goolesbee, Mona Sutphen, Melody Barnes, Bill Burton and Katie McCormick Lelyveld.
Media and opinion leaders from around the country gathered including Newsweek’s Jon Meacham, Time’s Richard Stengel, Arianna Huffington, and Walter Issacson. And L.A. media mogul and agent provocateur Andrew Breitbart brought father-in-law Orson Bean, a crowd favorite. Politico’s Mike Allen posed with nephews and fans while reporters swarmed Val Kilmer to ask whether he would make a run for governor.
This year’s brunch will again honor the Mothers Day Every Day campaign, which is led by advisory committee co-chairs Donna Shalala and Ann Veneman, and co-founders Dr. Helene Gayle and Theresa Shaver. WHCInsider will supply live coverage on Saturday, May 1st, as the first guests arrive.
It’s sure to draw another stellar “cast” of characters who will enjoy a morning drink and conversation with expected—and unexpected—guests. The spring blossoms, the fun, and the gossip, are sure to get everyone in the mood for the White House Correspondents Dinner on that evening.
HBO’s The Pacific Honors Veterans in D.C. from whcinsider on Vimeo.
Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks brought their new HBO mini-series, “The Pacific,” to the White House for a screening with President Obama. The mini-series begins this Sunday on HBO and tells the story of the Marines in the Pacific Theater during WWII.
Pete Souza took this shot of Obama, Spielberg, Hanks and other guests in the Family Theater in the White House.
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
The Beeb is stepping up its game in the former colonies by getting into the After Party sweepstakes in the Washington, D.C., dinner season. All the top radio and TV correspondents will gather on March 17 for the RTCA dinner; President Obama is a no-show, but Vice President Biden will appear and he’s always been a favorite of broadcasters for his commentary.
BBC has hired top party guru Philip Dufour to capture the media stars, their guests, and the accolades for 2010.
Dufour also worked on MSNBC’s 2009 after party. The event, held at the Washington Historical Society, was unforgettable. The evening included a Starbucks “Morning Joe” coffee bar and a celeb mixologist, Rachel Maddow.
Check out WHCInsider’s coverage of the 2009 party.
Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Flash video.Word on the street has it that The New Yorker has entered the pre-party, post-party sweepstakes, with a bash before the White House Correspondents Dinner on Friday, April 30. Gawker reports the event, “to which you’re not invited,” will be on the rooftop of the W Hotel.
Washington media members cheered the news of new competition for high profile guests on a night traditionally “owned” by Time and People magazines. Bloomberg is the undisputed king of the after party on Saturday (and hosts a private dinner at Café Milano pre-WHCD). Will Time Warner challenge Conde Nast? We’ll investigate, but in the meantime, give us your tips on party plans and guest lists as they develop.
In the meantime, check out some photos from last year’s pre-dinner receptions.
Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Flash video.WHCInsider favorite Kevin Sheekey 
announced he’s leaving Bloomberg politics and returning to Bloomberg business this spring, after serving as one of Mayor Bloomberg’s closest advisers for 13 years.
A Washington legend through his work as chief of staff to New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Sheekey played a critical role in the development of the super-select Bloomberg after party following the White House Correspondents Dinner.
Kevin Sheekey and Rev Al Sharpton spoof Meet the Press in the Betsy Fischer birthday video last week.
As the story goes, when Vanity Fair stepped down from hosting the exclusive after dinner party, Sheekey made the Russian Trade Ministry an offer they couldn’t refuse. And when the cast of NBC’s “West Wing” TV show arrived on candidate John McCain’s bus, the Straight Talk Express, a new Washington monument was born.
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