Journalists, politicians, tech titans, and Hollywood celebrities converged for a weekend of events surrounding the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in Washington Friday to Sunday. The so-called “nerd prom” saw a number of events from traditional and digital media, each highlighting a different message.
Many media companies celebrated their staff through decor. The New Yorker’s Friday-night reception printed several political-theme cartoons on cocktail napkins. The next night at Yahoo and ABC’s joint pre-dinner reception at the Washington Hilton, the decor featured framed portraits of familiar on-air talent such as Katie Couric. And CNN’s Political Hangover Brunch on Sunday had clever hand-drawn signs that portrayed hosts Jake Tapper and Wolf Blitzer at work alongside elephant and donkey characters.
Meanwhile, tech brands highlighted their innovation to a crowd of media elites and government officials. Google co-hosted a Friday-night party with The Atlantic in a tent in Constitution Gardens on the National Mall. Called the Art of Inspiration, the event featured messages such as “Create” made from long fluorescent lights, which were also used to create graphics on the bar. Later that evening, Event Farm’s New Media Party drew sponsors such as Microsoft and AOL for an evening of interactive activations.
Other media companies—such as Bloomberg and Vanity Fair with their joint after-party and MSNBC’s massive after-party Saturday—held chic and stylish events meant to reinforce their brands or promote philanthropic efforts.
Here are a selection of some of the most creative and inspiring brunches, receptions, after-parties, and more from the weekend.
A cocktail reception co-hosted by CBS News, the National Journal, and The Atlantic took over the Washington Hilton’s Courtyard and Gardens. Design Foundry designed the event, which included a bubble-like arrivals wall. Téa Leoni, who plays a fictional secretary of state in the CBS drama Madam Secretary, attended the event with real-life former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.
A highlight of President Obama’s remarks was a bit with Keegan-Michael Key, who served as Luther, his “anger translator.” The character comes from a recurring sketch on Peele’s Comedy Central show Key & Peele.
Yahoo and ABC co-hosted a reception at the Washington Hilton Saturday before the dinner. The decor, designed by Hargrove, celebrated the journalists who work at both media companies, including Katie Couric and Michael Isikoff. Guests were invited to pose for photos in a matching oversize frame.
Guests could relax on white tufted couches and oversize ottomans with silver accent pieces.
The annual event returned to the W Washington, D.C.’s recently renovated POV rooftop lounge. At one end of the venue, liquor bottles were cleared away to create a champagne bar for sponsor Louis Roederer. Bottles of the bubbly were artfully arranged on shelves and buckets.
Drinks were served atop cocktail napkins printed with political cartoons from the magazine. Sue Bluford Floral Design created the all-red arrangements.
As the event came to an end, guests were given to-go boxes of District Doughnut adorned with stickers featuring the magazine’s noted character Eustice Tilley.
At the Vanity Fair and Bloomberg White House Correspondents’ party Saturday evening, a neon light installation was at the entrance to the residence of the French ambassador.
MSNBC moved its annual after-party to the U.S. Institute of Peace. For the seventh year, MSNBC’s Dana Haller planned the event with producer Philip Dufour of Dufour & Company to create a “clean and chic” event for 1,200 guests. Atmosphere Lighting created a number of projections that rotated throughout the night and played off the venue’s many surfaces.
The centerpiece of the main room was an angular central bar structure topped with an elevated booth where DJs Funkmaster Flash and Chelsea Leyland performed sets. Created by Design Foundry, the mirrored structure complemented the angles and planes of the venue. “You have to respect the space,” Haller said. Other design features included mirrored bars that served Grey Goose cocktails, gardens of white roses embedded with LED lights, and silver and white furniture. Occasions Caterers created a menu with global influences including a dumpling bar, a bevy of pizzas, and a soft-serve ice cream station with a selection of toppings.
A digital arrivals wall featured logos for MSNBC, the event itself, and sponsor BMW. The design included square mirrors that previewed the mirrored elements that would be used throughout the event, including in several bars. A glittery, silver carpet finished the space. Next to the arrivals area was an area devoted to the evening’s philanthropic beneficiary. For every guest who attended the Saturday-night party, MSNBC donated $5 to the K.I.N.D. program to buy desks for schoolchildren in Malawi, a program started by MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell with Unicef.
Capitol File magazine hosted a welcome reception on Friday night that featured Cecily Strong, the Saturday Night Live comedian who performed at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner as well as appeared on the cover of the magazine’s spring issue. Syzygy Events International designed the decor, with florals by MultiFlor.
The annual People and Time cocktail reception on Friday night returned to the St. Regis Hotel with a mid-century modern look from designer Marielle Shortell of Silver Lining Design Group. Oversize covers of each magazine flanked the bar.
Politico hosted its annual Sunday brunch at the home of publisher Robert and Elena Allbritton in Georgetown. Amaryllis Floral & Event Design designed the event, which had design inspired by the colors and architecture of Morocco.
Orchids, roses, and topiary figured into the centerpieces from Amaryllis. Wolfgang Puck’s the Source provided catering with support from Design Cuisine and the Gourmet Basket.
The New Media Party, returning for its second year, featured several inventive uses of technology at events. Produced by Event Farm, the party incorporated sponsors such as Vntana, which created holograms of guests that were then projected onto the walls of venue Carnegie Library. Other sponsors included Lyft, Microsoft, AOL, and Yelp, which created a listing for the event and allowed guests to post reviews and photos.
Another new activation at the event was the Audio Bar. At the custom-fabricated bar, guests could choose the type of music they wanted to listen to and then local mixologists Owen Thomson and Jason Strich created cocktails inspired by the vibe of that music. Guests kept the headphones on while they waited for their drinks and listened to recorded tracks of songs or scripted dialogue. “At events, everyone listens to the same soundtrack yet we’re eating different foods and drinking different cocktails,” Event Farm C.E.O. Ryan Costello said. “We wondered, can we mix cocktails based on the audio mood you’ll tell us you’re in?” Since the bar had space for just 20 guests at a time, there were traditional bars set up elsewhere in the venue to keep service flowing.
At the annual garden brunch, guests were invited to write thank-you notes for American servicemen and women. The notes were posted in multiple spots throughout the Beall-Washington House and were to be sent to troops in Afghanistan. The event honored two military-related organizations: Blue Star Families, which supports military families, and Dog Tag Bakery, a bakery in Georgetown that teaches business skills to veterans.
The event design featured black-and-white graphic prints on bar fronts and buffet stations. One of the tents had an open side to let the property’s landscaping serve as a natural backdrop.
Outside of the tent, a mirrored backyard bar was nearly camouflaged. Sponsors Veuve Clicquot and Belvedere served traditional brunch beverages such as bloody Marys and mimosas as well as drinks created for the event.
Among the dishes served at the brunch from Design Cuisine were mini skillets that contained corned beef hash, crème brûlée French toast, and scrambled eggs with cheese, peppers, and mushrooms.
Hand-drawn signs from CNN’s graphics staff directed guests to the network’s Political Hangover Brunch on Sunday morning. As advertised, the event included games from WOW Entertainment such as beer pong.
Events by André Wells designed the event, which included furniture from Design Foundry and flowers from Amaryllis. It took place in the bilevel Toolbox Pilates Art Studio in Dupont Circle.
The gift bags were in keeping with the hangover theme and included sunglasses for the bleary-eyed, breath mints, a dose of Advil, a bottle of water, and a reusable cup designed in the style of a Solo cup—all in CNN’s signature red brand color.
Chuck Leavell, a keyboardist for the Rolling Stones and founder of the environmental news organization the Mother Nature Network, held the network's first gathering during the event-filled weekend. The White House Correspondents’ Jam featured performances from five bands that count journalists as members, from Esquire’s Tom Junod to New Yorker editor David Remnick. The event logo featured an image of the White House on a tie-dyed background.
Decor from Design Foundry at the event, which was held at the Fairmont Washington, D.C., Georgetown hotel, included music-theme furniture including a table with a keyboard decal and a drum and oversize drum sticks that served as a side table.
Three Top Chef favorites—Jen Carroll, Mike Isabella, and Spike Mendelsohn—served dishes at Thomson Reuters’s brunch at the Top of the Hay rooftop lounge at the Hay-Adams hotel. Carroll’s dish, called Breaking the Glass Ceiling, was inspired by Senator Kristen Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, and included cold glass noodles, kimchi, radish, and calamari broth.
Classic long-stemmed pink roses provided a pretty centerpiece to a fruit and pastry buffet station.
