If you’re tapped into the world of politics at all, you may know a little something about the White House Correspondents Dinner. The event, which takes place each year, generally offers the sitting president and their current administration a moment to laugh at themselves, show some humility and engage in a healthy celebration of journalism as an institution. This year, the WHCD was supposed to feature Amber Ruffin as the keynote speaker, but the White House Correspondents Association unceremoniously cancelled her planned appearance just a few weeks before the scheduled event. Never one to back down from a controversial topic, the 46-year-old recently appeared on an episode of Late Night With Seth Meyers to set the record straight, offering some harsh words for President Trump and the media figures who support him.
In order to understand exactly why Amber Ruffin’s set was cancelled ahead of the event, we’ll first have to examine the history of the White House Correspondents Dinner, the state of political comedy and unpack some of Ruffin’s grievances with the Trump administration. With no further preamble, let’s dive right in and see what we can learn about the annual gala and the shifting priorities of those who organize it.
What Is the White House Correspondents Dinner?
For those not in the know, the White House Correspondents Association has been hosting an annual dinner since 1921. The event, generally held on the last Saturday in April at the Washington D.C. Hilton Hotel, aims to celebrate the relationship between the open press and the sitting president. The dinner is also meant to secure funds for scholarships and grants, which are then disbursed to a small group of gifted students in college journalism programs. Since the early 1980s, the event has been traditionally headlined by a popular comedian. This often means that the president and his constituents are given an opportunity to accept humorous jabs at their gaffs and controversies, which strengthens their affability while presenting a humble front to the public.
Donald Trump is the only sitting president in over 100 years to never attend one of these events. Instead, the New York native has repeatedly boycotted the WHCD, while arguing that both the press and the comedians present at the dinner are puppets of a nebulous leftist movement. Trump’s contentious relationship with the press has been the source of a few deeply partisan speeches, especially the 2018 presentation from Michelle Wolf, which saw the former Daily Show correspondent railing against the twice-impeached felon for his involvement in a number of ongoing scandals. Other highlights over the years include speeches from Conan O’Brien, Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart. Barack Obama also famously brought Keegan-Michael Key on stage in 2015, allowing him to perform as his recurring character Luther, the Obama Anger Translator from Key & Peele.
Amber Ruffin’s Cancellation
After Michelle Wolf’s scathing remarks in 2018, the White House Correspondents Association pressed pause on the entire concept of bringing a comedian on-board. The following year saw the Association handing hosting duties over to journalist Ron Chernow, before the event went off the air due to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. When things resumed in 2022, the Joe Biden administration went to great lengths to restore some sense of Obama-era normalcy, which included a return to the comedic format, and the president’s attendance on the stage. Now that Donald Trump is back in the White House, most viewers likely assumed he’d resume his personal tradition of skipping the event, though the question of who would host was quite prevalent.
Therefore, it came as quite a surprise when the WHCA selected noted anti-Trump comedian Amber Ruffin to speak at the dinner back in February. In the months since Ruffin was selected, she has made her stance clear on the settling administration, especially with her work on segments for Late Night With Seth Meyers, and a number of other performances. On Mar. 29, Correspondents Association president Eugene Daniels announced that Ruffin had been let go of her hosting duty, “to ensure the focus is not on the politics of division.”
In classic Amber Ruffin fashion, the comedian joined an episode of Late Night to respond to Daniels’ announcement, quipping “You have to be fair to both sides.” Offering a satirical example of a news story, Meyers argued, “When people are objectively terrible, we should be able to point it out on television,” prompting Ruffin to respond, “I thought that too… on Friday. But today is Monday. And Monday’s Amber Ruffin knows that when bad people do bad things, you have to treat them fairly and respectfully. When you watch ‘The Sound of Music,’ you have to root for the singing children and the other people.”
Does Amber Ruffin Still Have a Show?
If you’re a big fan of Amber Ruffin’s recurring segments on Late Night, you may be wondering where you can find more of her work on a consistent basis. The prolific writer has credits on a wide array of comedy programs, including Detroiters and A Black Lady Sketch Show. Ruffin also hosted the self titled Amber Ruffin Show on Peacock for three seasons, though the late-night program came to an end in 2023. Today, Amber can be seen working as a panelist on the CNN panel show Have I Got News For You, hosted by Roy Wood Jr. Though Ruffin is not a focal point of the political comedy series, her fingerprints are all over it and her inclusions are very reminiscent of her recurring bits with Seth Meyers.
At this time, there’s no word on who will be taking over keynote duties for Amber Ruffin at the correspondents dinner. All we know for sure is that there will be no stand-up comedy performance whatsoever, after White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich slammed the WHCA for choosing Ruffin in the first place. For those that enjoy seeing Trump and his cabinet lambasted into oblivion, it appears as though the correspondents dinner will not be the place to tune in. Instead, be sure to check out Amber Ruffin, or any number of comedians, who can be found on a variety of primetime cable networks and rarely if ever on C-SPAN.
