First Lady Melania Trump is set to accompany President Donald Trump to what could be one of the most awkward evenings of his presidency—the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday, April 25, where journalists who have been targets of his lawsuits will receive top honors for their reporting.
The President will deliver a speech at the black-tie event, marking his first appearance at the dinner as commander in chief. Trump has boycotted the annual gathering every other year he’s been in office, despite receiving invitations each time. His last attendance was in 2015, when Barack Obama was still president and Melania also accompanied him.
This year’s dinner promises to be particularly uncomfortable, as The Wall Street Journal will receive the Katharine Graham Award for Courage and Accountability for its bombshell reporting on a lewd letter allegedly bearing Trump’s name that was included in a 2003 birthday album compiled for the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The letter, which features text framed by a hand-drawn outline of a naked woman and includes an imagined conversation between the two former friends, concludes with: “A pal is a wonderful thing. Happy Birthday—and may every day be another wonderful secret.” Trump’s signature was reportedly placed just below the hips of the drawing.
Trump has vehemently denied writing the letter and sued the Journal for $10 billion in defamation damages. However, a federal judge dismissed the lawsuit on the same day the White House Correspondents’ Association announced the award. The Journal’s parent company, Dow Jones, applauded the ruling, while Trump has vowed to refile the “powerful” case by April 27.
The President traditionally shakes hands with award winners, setting up a potentially humiliating photo opportunity that Melania will witness firsthand. The First Lady made her own headlines earlier this month by delivering a rare statement from the White House denying any relationship with Epstein or his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, despite photographs and emails suggesting otherwise. Epstein was found dead in his jail cell in 2019 of an apparent suicide while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Trump’s decision to end his years-long boycott came with characteristic bravado. “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 the Country, the G.O.A.T., according to many, it will be my Honor to accept their invitation,” he wrote on Truth Social in March.
The awards ceremony will be particularly pointed, as several other honorees are journalists Trump has attacked or news organizations he has sued. CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, the network’s chief White House correspondent and anchor of The Source, will receive the association’s award for excellence in presidential news coverage under deadline pressure for her broadcast reporting. Trump has called Collins “stupid” and “nasty,” and publicly berated her for not smiling when asking questions about Epstein’s victims.
The New York Times’ Tyler Pager will also be honored with the Center for Integrity in News Reporting award for White House coverage that “has the courage not to fear and the discipline not to favor.” Trump has sued The Times, along with ABC News and CBS News.
Trump became the first president in 36 years to skip the dinner when he boycotted the 2017 event. The last president to miss it was Ronald Reagan in 1981, who was recovering from an assassination attempt but still managed to phone in and crack a joke about the shooting.
Melania’s recent public appearances have been marked by their own awkward moments. The couple attended the opening night of Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., last June, where audience members mixed boos with cheers and MAGA-rally-style chants as they took their seats. Trump has committed to eliminating “woke” programming at the Kennedy Center after dismissing its prior leadership and being elected chairman of its board by his handpicked trustees.
During a Presidents’ Day interview aboard Air Force One on Feb. 16, Trump struggled when asked about Valentine’s Day and whether he’d gotten Melania flowers. “I better not tell you that, goodbye everybody. That’s the toughest question,” he said with a sheepish laugh. He quickly pivoted to promoting her documentary, calling it “a tremendous hit.”
However, the Melania documentary suffered a massive 62 percent drop in box office attendance in its third weekend. Despite Trump’s claims of success, the film grossed approximately $16.7 million worldwide—a fraction of the estimated $75 million Amazon spent on acquiring distribution rights and marketing.
The First Lady also experienced an embarrassing technical malfunction during a November visit to Lejeune High School in Jacksonville, North Carolina, with Second Lady Usha Vance. While addressing military students and their families in the school gymnasium at Camp Lejeune, her microphone began emitting loud feedback, forcing her to stop and hand it over for repairs.
As Saturday’s dinner approaches, the White House Correspondents’ Association said it was “happy” Trump accepted the invitation, though the group faces external pressure to push back against a president who has repeatedly denigrated journalists and reduced press access. With multiple award recipients representing news organizations Trump has sued or reporters he has personally attacked, the evening promises to test both the President’s and First Lady’s ability to maintain composure during what could be an extensively photographed and scrutinized event.