Stephen Colbert, the host of CBS's The Late Show, has announced he will not attend the White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) dinner this Saturday, expressing bewilderment that many of his peers will.
"Folks, I try to remember not to be in Washington, D.C., as often as possible. But there is certainly no time I am there less than the weekend of the White House correspondents' dinner, which is why this Saturday, I will again not be," Colbert said Thursday. "But, and it's a big but ... but for reasons that are not clear to me, many others will."
This year's dinner marks the first time President Donald Trump will attend since returning to the White House. After boycotting the event last year and skipping it during his first term, Trump announced in March he would participate, with First Lady Melania Trump expected to join him. The event, which dates back to 1921, supports WHCA journalism scholarships and traditionally features a presidential address followed by comedic entertainment. This year's entertainer is mentalist Oz Pearlman.
Trump's decision to attend has sparked significant political buzz in Washington, with many viewing it as a test of the relationship between the press and an administration that has frequently targeted journalists. In a statement on Truth Social, the president wrote, "In honor of our Nation's 250th Birthday, and the fact that these 'Correspondents' now admit that I am truly one of the Greatest Presidents in the History of our Country, the G.O.A.T., according to many, it will be my Honor to accept their invitation, and work to make it the GREATEST, HOTTEST, and MOST SPECTACULAR DINNER, OF ANY KIND, EVER!"
Colbert, who served as the featured entertainer in 2006, described the dinner's atmosphere as "lighthearted" but offered a darker take. "And, in my personal experience, stare in dead-eyed silence at the performer while the president mentally orders a hit by SEAL Team 6," he said. He also suggested the president is "planning to attack the press and target publications he has accused of writing negatively about his administration."
The comedian's criticism of Trump intensified last summer after CBS announced it would cancel The Late Show in 2026—a move that sparked backlash from Colbert, Democrats, and other late-night hosts. Trump celebrated the cancellation and has frequently praised Paramount Skydance, CBS's parent company, as well as CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss.
Hundreds of journalists signed an open letter in April, urging colleagues to use the dinner to demonstrate opposition to Trump's efforts to undermine press freedom. WHCA President Weijia Jiang, a CBS News senior White House correspondent, defended the event in a statement to The Hill. "As we mark America's 250th birthday, our choice to gather as journalists, newsmakers and the president in the same room is a reminder of what a free press means to this country and why it must endure," she said. "Not for the media or the president, but for the people who depend on it."
Colbert's absence highlights a broader tension within the media over how to engage with an administration that has repeatedly attacked the press. While some see the dinner as a vital tradition that reinforces First Amendment values, others view it as an inappropriate normalization of a president who has threatened journalists. The WHCA has also faced questions about its choice of entertainment, with Trump enlisting a comedy team for his return, a move that some critics say blurs the line between satire and propaganda.
