Roy Wood Jr., host of the White House Correspondents Dinner, stopped by the second annual Politics & Inclusion Dinner in DC on Friday night ahead of his esteemed Saturday night hosting performance.
Co-organized by CNNs Abby Phillip and ColorComm founder and CEO Lauren Wesley Wilson, the event celebrates diverse voices in political journalism, gathering established journalists of color and the rising stars for an intimate, invite-only dinner in the nation’s capital.
The event took place on the eve of the official correspondents’ dinner and attracted more than 50 guests from different networks, providing an opportunity to engage in dialogue and build relationships.
CBS morningsGayle King, 60 minutesCecilia Vega and DC bureau chief for DeGrio April Ryan was among the big names in the news and media to appear in DC on Friday night, where she also served on the Politics & Inclusion Dinner guest committee.
April Ryan, Jonathan Capehart and Laura Jarrett at the Politics & Inclusion Dinner.
Courtesy of ColorComm Media Group
They were joined at the event by fellow members Jonathan Capehart (The Washington Post, Weekends with Jonathan Capehart); (Political playbook); Rachel Scott (ABC news); and more. Other notable guests included ABC News president Kim Godwin, The view‘s Sunny Hostin and NBC newsLaura Jarrett.
This marks the second time that several attendees, including Hostin and King – who spoke at last year’s inaugural event to remind that “you stand on the shoulders of people you don’t even know” – have attended for the second time appeared on the weekend dinner of White House correspondents. Last year, Ana Navarro and Jim Acosta were also present.
During the evening, the dinner – which has made mentorship one of the core ethos – served to inspire the next generation of leaders in political journalism. This year, two ColorComm HBCU NextGen Fellows from Howard and Hampton University were invited as part of the evening, where they were introduced to the wider journalism world and supported by on-the-ground mentorship.
From left: Eugene Daniels, Laura Marquez, Sunny Hostin, Jonathan Capehart, Astead Herndon, Abby Phillip, Geoff Bennett, Omar Jimenez, and BJ Coleman.
Courtesy of ColorComm Media Group
Sponsored by Google, Walmart and Moët Hennessy USA, the evening returned to the Michelin-starred Masseria, which began with a private reception featuring Moët’s signature cocktails – the “Downtown Abby” and the “L-Dubya-Dubya” – which were named in honor of the dinner co-hosts. Then the guests dined on a prepared three-course meal by Masseria’s chef Nick Stefanelli.
