White House Correspondents’ Association Cancels Plans to Feature Comedian Amber Ruffin at Annual Dinner

variety.com:

Pat Saperstein Deputy Editor The White House Correspondents’ Association has canceled plans to have comedian Amber Ruffin perform at its annual dinner on April 26, a new sign of the pressures being brought to bear on news organizations during President Donald Trump’s second term.

The journalism group, which has seen its control over interactions with Trump eroded in recent weeks, made the decision after Taylor Budowich, a White House deputy chief of staff, raised comments Ruffin has made in the past that are critical of Trump.

Ruffin, who first came to notice as a writer and contributor to Seth Meyers’ “Late Night” on NBC, has in recent years hosted her own program on NBC’s Peacock streaming service and, most recently, worked as a featured player on CNN’s “Have I Got News For You,” a topical comedy program that airs on Saturday nights. “The WHCA board has unanimously decided we are no longer featuring a comedic performance this year.

At this consequential moment for journalism, I want to ensure the focus is not on the politics of division but entirely on awarding our colleagues for their outstanding work and providing scholarship and mentorship to the next generation of journalists,” WHCA president Eugene Daniels wrote to members in a statement. “For the past couple of weeks, I have been planning a re-envisioning of our dinner tradition for this year,” he added. “As the date nears, I will share more details of the plans in place to honor journalistic excellence and a robust, independent media covering the most powerful office in the world President Donald Trump will not be attending the dinner.