Amber Ruffin to Headline White House Correspondents’ Dinner
Known for her scorching takes on hot-button social issues, Ruffin will likely rankle Donald Trump and the White House with her bracing comedy.
Amber Ruffin has been tapped to headline the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, a gala that serves as the Oscars of the Washington press corps.
The dinner — which first began in 1921 — is intended to celebrate the First Amendment and excellence in journalism, with proceeds from the event going toward scholarships for developing journalists.
Each year, the dinner has a comedian make remarks, with past headliners roasting the current presidential administration, members of Congress, celebrities, and other prominent public figures.
Ruffin is an Emmy Award-nominated writer for NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers. The queer comic hosted her own ate-night talk show, The Amber Ruffin Show, on NBC’s streaming service Peacock in 2021.
She also co-wrote with Matthew Lopez the Broadway musical adaptation of Some Like It Hot, earning a Tony nomination for “Best Book of a Musical.”
Since September, Ruffin has been a “team captain” on CNN’s comedy news show, Have I Got News For You, alongside Roy Wood Jr. and Michael Ian Black. Ruffin guides guests through comic games and panels, testing their familiarity with current events.
Ruffin will be the second Black comic to perform at the event. Wanda Sykes was the first in 2009.
“When I began to think about what entertainer would be a perfect fit for the dinner this year, Amber was immediately at the top of my list,” Eugene Daniels, the president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, said in a statement. “She has the ability to walk the line between blistering commentary and humor all while provoking her audience to think about the important issues of the day. I’m thrilled and honored she said yes.”
Ruffin will attempt to shine in what has been described as the “toughest room in comedy,” in part due to the oversensitive nature of the gala’s guests and in part to the “tone policing” and criticism that comedians are often subjected to when Washington insiders take offense at jokes made at their expense.
For instance, in 2018, critics raked Michelle Wolf over the coals for taking jabs at President Donald Trump, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and the mainstream media.
Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt have all been invited to this year’s dinner. Trump skipped the event during all four years of his first term in office.
Asked whether Trump would attend the event, Leavitt was noncommittal.
“I have the president’s invitation on my desk,” she said. “I have the invitation for myself on my desk as well. Haven’t talked to the president about it, but when he makes his decision, I will let you all know.”
Of Ruffin, she said, “Definitely an interesting choice of a comedian. I’ll talk to the boss about it and see what we decide.”
Ruffin is known for not taking prisoners and for happily delving into issues surrounding race, racism, gender, LGBTQ issues, and other hot-button social issues, potentially putting her in the crosshairs of a presidential administration obsessed with eradicating pro-diversity initiatives, political correctness, and so-called “wokeness” from government, the private sector, and society.
Last June, Ruffin came out as queer in an Instagram post.
“In what will come as a shock to exactly zero people, I’m using the last day of PRIDE to come out!” she wrote. “Be proud of who you are, little babies! I know I am! And I can’t wait to be discriminated against for a new reason!!”
This year’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner is Saturday, April 26.
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