To those outside the media industry, the White House Correspondents’ Dinner may sound about as exciting as, say, the Annual Celebration of Used Car Salesmen in the Southwest, an event I just made up.
The dinner has gained mainstream appeal in recent years, especially under the Trump administration. However, as NBC News Chief White House reporter and co-anchor Weekend Today, Kristen Welker, is keen to point out, making a splash or spawning a thousand think pieces on eye shadow isn’t the point.
“The White House Correspondents’ Dinner is about celebrating journalism and free speech,” Welker tells Glamour. “But most importantly, it’s about paying it forward.” The event, which has been lovingly dubbed “nerd prom” by some of its honored guests, takes place tonight, April 29, at the Washington Hilton Hotel. This year, the Daily Show’s Trevor Noah will host.
Welker has more than two decades of experience in broadcast journalism, and more than ten years’ experience covering the White House. Many things have changed since Welker was a Harvard graduate with a doe-eyed eye who just entered the workforce. In 2022, the news cycle will be 24-hours per days. Welker says that work sometimes begins at 4:00 a.m. regardless of whether sources are happy with it. “I’m reaching out to sources at 6:00, 6:30 a.m., waking them up,” she laughs. “I feel bad about it.”
Another aspect of broadcast news that has evolved over the years: Viewers’ relationships with the people who deliver it. Social media and the increasing number of internet and TV platforms allow anchors to connect with viewers in a way that the Walter Cronkites of television could not. Welker shared with her audience her struggles with infertility and journey to parenthood through surrogacy. It’s the kind of intimate, personal story she never imagined she’d divulge to millions of Americans.
“As journalists we are told and we are taught—and I firmly believe—we should not become the story,” she says. “I never imagined that I would open up in that way.”
Continue reading to learn more about her story, her early morning schedules and why she hates choosing on-air outfits.
Glamour: What’s your morning routine?
Kristen Welker:I have three different routines, depending on the schedule I have.
When I file for the Today ShowI get up at around 4:30 a.m. and check my phone with the producers. Then I get ready to head to the White House. I’m talking to sources a lot of that time because, as you know, the news cycle is 24/7. I often reach out to sources around 6:00 or 6:30 a.m. to get them up. It makes me feel terrible.
I file for the Today ShowYou can also find a wide range of MSNBC programs. [segments]All afternoon. Then, I swap with Peter [Alexander, co-Chief White House correspondent for NBC]. I will return to my home for the afternoon and work from home on whatever project I am working on. Today Showpiece is the next day. But then I also get to spend some time with Margot, my daughter, and John, my husband. [Hughes], who also works from home a lot. It’s a nice mixture.
Source: Glamour