White House Correspondents Insider

Behind the scenes of the most powerful city in the world — Washington, D.C. — and those who cover it.

Today’s WHCD 2015 Round Up

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CBS nabs real, fictional secretaries of State for WHCD
“Two secretaries of State — a real-life former one, Madeleine Albright, and the Hollywood version, Téa Leoni, — will attend the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner this weekend. Albright and Leoni, who plays the fictional title role on “Madam Secretary,” will both be guests of CBS News at the April 25 festivities in Washington.”

Gov. Kasich takes flirtation with White House run to next level, creates ‘New Day for America’ fund
“Kasich will be traveling to Washington, D.C. later this week for a number of stops including the White House Correspondents Dinner and an appearance Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation.””

Listen Up, D.C.! Here Comes the White House Correspondents’ Jam.
“Leavell recruited five correspondent-fronted bands — Fortune Senior Editor-at-Large Brian Dumaine, Esquire scribe Tom Junod, CNBC Senior Economics Reporter Steve Liesman, New Yorker Editor David Remnick and Vanity Fair Contributing Editor Mark Rozzo are all slated to play with their respective outfits — to blow the doors off the Fairmont Hotel (2401 M St. NW) on April 24 from 7 to 11 p.m.”

Téa Leoni, Gina Rodriguez, Tim Daly Join WH Correspondents’ Guestlist
“The network is also bringing actress Gina Rodriguez and her actor boyfriend, Henri Esteve; “Madam Secretary” actor Tim Daly; Virginia Sen. Mark Warner; former CBS newsman and now NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence & Counter-terrorism John Miller; Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro; Texas Rep. Joaquin Castro; Lebanon Ambassador to the U.S. Anotine Chedid; and former U.S. Ambassador to Italy David Thorne.”

Funny Girl Gig: Cecily Strong Fourth Female Entertainer at White House Correspondents’ Dinner
“Strong follows Wanda Sykes (2009), Elayne Boosler (1993) and Paula Poundstone (1992).”

How To Stream The White House Correspondents’ Dinner Live, Because It’s The Hottest Place To Be Saturday Night
“The cast of Modern Family is expected to attend, as well as Michael Kelly, Gina Rodriguez, Gabourey Sidibe, and Naya Rivera. We’ll see you Saturday night.”

‘SNL’s’ Cecily Strong Promises Hard Laughs at White House Correspondents Dinner
“She said that it “felt like the right year” to do the dinner as President Obama also has Chicago-area roots. “It was really sort of like, ‘Well, it’s now or never,’” she says of taking the gig.”

April Ryan: We Miss Sam Donaldson

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White House correspondent, April Ryan, headlined the Washington Women Technology Network breakfast. In an interview with White House Correspondents Insider editor, Tammy Haddad, she described the push and pull of being a White House correspondent and lamented the days when Sam Donaldson was there and all you had to do was shout and raise your hand to get a question in. She reviewed the race record of Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama, and told stories from her new book, The Presidency in Black and White: My Up-Close View of Three Presidents and Race in America.

She addressed reporters’ concerns that they are not in the room with the President at some events and that this White House often makes announcements on Twitter instead of talking first to the reporters in the briefing room. Co-hosted by Hilary Rosen and Connie Milstein, guests included Robin Sproul, Betsy Fischer Martin, Anita McBride, Karen Appleton, Kelley McCormick, Heather Podesta, Ceci Connolly, Didem Nisanci, and Emily Goodin. The Washington Women Technology Network is comprised of women leaders from technology, media and politics.

Jeremy Bernard stepping down as WH Social Secretary

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Jeremy Bernard and Jill Zuckman

White House Social Secretary Jeremy Bernard will be stepping down from his post next month following the Japan State Dinner. His replacement will be announced in the coming weeks.

Statement from Mrs. Obama: “For the last four years, Jeremy has worked tirelessly to open the doors of the White House to as many people as possible and to make each and every event in the White House one to remember, not only for Barack and me, but for the tens of thousands of guests who pass through our doors each year. I was lucky to have such a talented individual on my team, and I am equally lucky to have made a lifelong friend in Jeremy. Jeremy will be missed, and Barack and I wish him the very best in all of his future endeavors.”

Statement from Jeremy Bernard: “It has been an honor to serve the President and Mrs. Obama as Social Secretary for the last four years. From State Dinners to Student Workshops to celebrating the holiday season, Mrs. Obama has welcomed every guest to the White House with her signature warmth, grace and style. I feel so privileged to have worked for such an extraordinary President and First Lady.”

Jeremy Bernard to step down as White House social secretary

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Jeremy Bernard and Hilary Rosen

“One of the White House’s most beloved staff members has been telling close friends the buzz is true: He is leaving the East Wing. Jeremy Bernard, White House social secretary, bon vivant, party maestro and trusted member of the Obama inner circle is set to officially announce his departure in the next few weeks.”

Read more via politico.com: Jeremy Bernard to step down as White House social secretary

New White House Briefing Room seating chart

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seating_chart_with_logosThe White House Briefing Room seating chart was released Tuesday by the White House Correspondents’ Association. USA Today White House reporter, Gregory Korte, created this visualization of the room.

“The White House Correspondents’ Association recently made adjustments to the briefing seating chart, promoting some news organizations and instituting seat-sharing arrangements for others. The calculus that goes into the assignments is part tenure, part audience and part commitment to the White House beat. News organizations that don’t show up every day will find another reporter sitting in its seat; miss enough briefings and the seat may be lost permanently.”

One of the biggest updates: “Newcomers Buzzfeed and Al Jazeera get partial seats through seat-sharing arrangements with Scripps-Howard News Service and the Chicago Sun-Times, respectively.”

Read more via USA Today: Here’s the new White House briefing room seating chart

Madonna goes to Washington?

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The 57th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Backstage & Audience

“This week, Us Weekly scored something of a coup, nabbing Madonna – whose Rebel Heart is now on sale – for the “25 Things You Don’t Know About Me” feature, and she did not disappoint. But perhaps the most revelatory of all the “things” was No. 7: “The person I most want to meet is President Obama. When the heck am I going to meet him? He just needs to invite me to the White House already. He probably thinks I’m too shocking to be there. I’m serious. If I was a little bit more demure…or if I was just married to Jay Z. Hey, if Jay would only take me as his second wife, then I’d score an invitation.”

Read more via vanityfair.com: Madonna Says She’d Be Invited to the White House if She Were “Married to Jay Z”

The White House​ wants girls to learn more

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The Obama Administration has announced that it is expanding its efforts to help adolescent girls worldwide attend and complete school through an initiative called Let Girls Learn.

“Let Girls Learn is a government-wide effort that will leverage the investments we have made and success we have achieved in global primary school, and expand them to help adolescent girls complete their education. A key part of Let Girls Learn will be to encourage and support community-led solutions to reduce barriers that prevent adolescent girls from completing their education.”

Carney to Amazon

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Former White House press secretary, Jay Carney, joins Amazon on Monday as senior vice president for Worldwide Corporate Affairs. The new position brings the e-commerce giant’s worldwide public relations and public policy shops into one department under Carney. He’ll split his time between Seattle HQ and the D.C. office, where Amazon veteran Paul Misener will continue to run the company’s lobbying efforts. Misener and P.R. chief Craig Berman will now report to Carney, who in turn will report directly to CEO Jeff Bezos. Carney will give up his post-White House perch as a senior political analyst on CNN to focus full time on Amazon.