WHC Insider presents the first annual WHC Weekend Insider Awards to highlight the great deeds of the famous and infamous who came to Washington to party, schmooze, and most importantly – be seen – at the events surrounding the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.

It’s the biggest weekend in Washington, second only perhaps to Inauguration, which you clever kids know from civics class only comes once every four years (and without as many brunches).

So, here it is, the best of the fetes, as we scour the tables at the Washington Hilton to find someone not represented by Bob Barnett.

BEST OUTREACH BY A GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL

Obama Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. No one walks in LA, but apparently Hollywood hottie and “Entourage” star Adrian Grenier was making his way on foot to the Bloomberg/Vanity Fair after party when he was spotted by none other than Rahm Emanuel. The White House Chief of Staff’s brother, Ari Emanuel, was the inspiration for the high-strung, heavyweight agent portrayed by Jeremy Piven on the hit HBO show “Entourage.”

Rahm immediately had his motorcade pull over and Adrian hopped in. Now that’s taking it to the people!

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WHC Insider Awards Adrian Grenier, Anna Kendrick, Bloomberg, Bob Barnett, Boone Pickens, Bradley Cooper, Candice Crawford, Carol Blue, Carolyn Weyforth, Chace Crawford, Christopher Hitchens, Dan Pfeiffer, Elena Allbritton, Greta Van Susteren, Joe Mazzello, John Coale, Jon Meacham, Jonas Brothers, Katie Couric, Kim Kardashian, Matthew Morrison, Morgan Freeman, Politico, Rahm Emanuel, Robert Allbritton, Rosario Dawson, Sara Olson, Tony Romo, Vanity Fair, WHCA, WHCA Dinner, White House Correspondents Association Dinner

Vanity fair, co-host of the hottest party of the weekend has come with their own White House Correspondents Mad Lib. Bravo!

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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

gtruong WHCD 2010 Guests, Washington Events Bloomberg, Capitol File, Desiree Rogers, Jason Binn, MSNBC, Phillip Dufour, Valerie Jarrett, Vanity Fair, White House Correspondents Dinner

Beltway Boys from Vanity Fair article: Jim VandeHei, John Harris, Robert Allbritton, Mike Allen. Photograph by Gasper Tringale.

Don’t miss Michael Wolff’s great article in Vanity Fair.

On the surface, a paean to Politico: “Four old-media veterans may have solved the future of news with the Politico Web site.”

But arguably a look at Washington’s Fourth Estate and the problems facing general interest newspapers, which are losing readers and revenues at a fast clip. The irony? Politico’s print edition is what has edged their business model out of the red and closer to black.

From the article:

“Politico puts its current traffic at 6.7 million unique visitors per month (down from a high of more than 11 million during the campaign), yet it still can’t support its staff of about 100 on the Internet’s low advertising rates (although, with its agenda-moving audience and its preponderance of advocacy advertisers, it manages to get a higher rate than most sites). But one effect of its Internet traffic and notoriety and the ensuing attention of cable news shows is that the original Allbritton idea for a Capitol Hill paper-one that now largely reprints Internet content-has become, with its special-interest-size circulation of 32,000, a major success. Internet cachet, in other words, has enabled a tabloid-size print version of Politico (also called Politico) to thrive and more than double the company’s revenues-which, just about evenly split between Internet and newspaper, will, it appears, be more than $15 million in 2009-meaning, according to C.E.O. Fred Ryan, that Politico, paying its staffers at nearly the level that The Washington Post pays (starting salaries for reporters at the Post are about $45,000 per year), has hit breakeven.”

lrozett News Media Michael Wolff, Politico, Vanity Fair, Washington Post

After the tour de force from President Obama, it didn’t seem like the night could be any more magical. But as guests walked up the circular drive for the Bloomberg | Vanity Fair after party at the French Ambassador’s residence, the magic continued. It was the ultimate insiders affair: no red carpet or paparazzi gauntlet, just Owen Wilson lounging near the front door talking quietly to a few Washington admirers.

With Donald Rumsfeld, who lives down the street, stopping by for a drink, it was a night, a location, and a crowd where anything could happen. Mayor Mike Bloomberg and Vanity Fair Editor Graydon Carter, joining party forces this year, welcomed the exclusive guests.

The brave captain of the Maresk Alabama, who offered his life in exchange for his mates, was Bloomberg’s special guest for the weekend. That followed getting the keys to New York City from Mayor Bloomberg the day before. Captain Richard Phillips shrugged off the compliments of celebrities (Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore) and politicos who lined up to shake his hand, but he did pose proudly with another real-life Captain America, Chesley Sullenberger, who safely piloted a US Airways jet onto the Hudson River.

Earlier in the day, Phillips and his wife, Andrea, met with President Obama in the Oval Office, after a private tour of the White House. The unflappable captain told Bloomberg it was an “honor to meet the President. He’s a very amazing man and he’s a very down-to-earth man.” His wife agreed, “It was very overwhelming, surreal to actually, be inside the Oval Office … I was so deeply excited to have met the President like that.”

After being introduced to the Commander-in-chief, Phillips admitted it was hard to get excited about meeting anyone else after being introduced to the Commander-in-Chief.
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