The Gridiron Club is the oldest and most selective journalistic organization in Washington, D.C.

History

:"an elitist social club of sixty print journalists" —

Hedrick Smith Hedrick Smith is a Pulitzer Prize-winning former ''New York Times'' reporter and Emmy award-winning producer and correspondent. After serving 26 years with ''The New York Times'' from 1962-88 as correspondent, editor and bureau chief in both Mos ...

, ''Power Game: How Washington Works'' February 1988

Random House Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the foll ...

Frank A. De Puy (1854–1927) was one of several who met January 24, 1885, at the Welcker's Hotel in Washington, D.C. – 721 15th Street, N.W., between New York Avenue and H Street – to form the Gridiron Club. De Puy was the last surviving founder of the club. Its 65 active members represent major newspapers, news services, news magazines, and broadcast networks. Membership is by invitation only and was historically almost exclusive to prominent newspaper men, including newspaper Washington bureau chiefs. For most of its history, the Club bylaws excluded women from becoming members or even guests at its annual dinner. Although the National Press Club began admitting women in 1971, the Gridiron was reluctant to follow suit. Women were first permitted as guests in 1972: several prominent women including several members of Congress, Coretta Scott King, and Katharine Graham, publisher of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'', were invited. The Gridiron Club elected and admitted the first woman journalist members in 1975: Helen Thomas of

United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...

and Frances Lewine of the

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. Thomas would become the club's first woman president in 1993. Eventually, the club began expanding beyond print journalism to include broadcast media figures such as Tim Russert of

NBC News NBC News is the news division of the American broadcast television network NBC. The division operates under NBCUniversal Media Group, a division of NBCUniversal, which is itself a subsidiary of Comcast. The news division's various operations r ...

, Bob Schieffer of

CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio broadcaster CBS. It is headquartered in New York City. CBS News television programs include ''CBS Evening News'', ''CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs ''CBS News Sunday Morn ...

, Mara Liasson of

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

, and

Judy Woodruff Judy Carline Woodruff (born November 20, 1946) is an American broadcast journalist who has worked in local, network, cable, and public television news since 1970. She was the anchor and managing editor of the ''PBS NewsHour'' through the end of 20 ...

of PBS. The club merged with its charitable arm, the Gridiron Foundation, in 2008 to form the Gridiron Club and Foundation, a

501(c)(3) organization A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

. The Club and Foundation make annual charitable contributions and provide scholarships to a number of journalistic organizations and colleges, including the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

, and

Norwich University Norwich University is a private university in Northfield, Vermont, United States. The university was founded in 1819 as the "American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy". It is the oldest of six senior military college, senior militar ...

Officers

The presidency of the club rotates annually. Carl Leubsdorf of the ''

Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation in 2022 of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885, by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ' ...

'' served as president in 2008, and Susan Page of ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

'' in 2011, making them the first married couple to have each served as Gridiron president. Chuck Lewis of Hearst Newspapers served in 2013. Tom DeFrank served in 2022.

Gridiron Club Dinner

The annual Gridiron Club Dinner is all off-the-record, and traditionally features the United States Marine Band, along with remarks by the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

and satirical

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

skits by the club members, and by the representatives of both political parties. The skits and speeches by the politicians are expected to "singe but not burn", be

self-deprecating Self-deprecation is the act of reprimanding oneself by belittling, undervaluing, disparaging oneself, or being excessively modest. It can be used as a way to make complaints, express modesty, invoke optimal reactions or add humour. It may also be ...

or otherwise sharply comedic. Through 2020, every U.S. president since 1885 except

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...

has spoken at the dinner. (President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

attended the 2011 dinner after missing both the 2009 and 2010 dinners. In addition, he sang as a senator in 2006.) Bill and

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

have both spoken at Club dinners, and the 2008 dinner marked the sixth time that President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

attended during his presidency. The 2013 dinner was the 125th Gridiron Club and Foundation Dinner, but technically only the fifth Club and Foundation dinner (following the 2008 merger of the Club and the Foundation into one entity). The dinner is held in the spring, usually in March. Between 1945 and 2006, the dinner was held at the Capital Hilton. In November 1967, the club held its dinner and skits in

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. It had a population of 15,425 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern par ...

, outside Washington. In 2007, it moved to the Renaissance Washington DC Hotel. It is one of the few remaining large-scale, white-tie affairs in Washington. In 1933,

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...

held a "Gridiron Widows' party" in the East Room of the White House for Labor Secretary

Frances Perkins Frances Perkins (born Fannie Coralie Perkins; April 10, 1880 – May 14, 1965) was an American workers-rights advocate who served as the fourth United States Secretary of Labor from 1933 to 1945, the longest serving in that position. A member o ...

and those women whose husbands attended the Gridiron Club Dinner, as her first protest against Gridiron exclusion of women and by 1935, the annual event had grown into a "full-blown imitation". Until 2011, the Gridiron Club and Foundation's annual show was strictly invitation only. In 2011, the Gridiron Club and Foundation's annual show offered invites through the Harvard Club of Washington, D.C. for a Sunday afternoon post-dinner reception and performance, for March 13 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., one day after the dinner. In 2017, the Gridiron Club and Foundation's annual show sold up to five tickets to the National Press Club members at $70 each, held 5 March 2017 in the Washington Renaissance Hotel, 999 Ninth Street NW, with a reception that began at 2 p.m. and the reprise (show) that began at 3 p.m. and ended at 5 p.m. It claims to offer a neutral ground on which political operatives, members of the press and elected officials can break bread together. The Gridiron Club Dinner has been subject to criticism that it encourages journalists to engage in undue coziness with the political officials they are supposed to fairly cover, and also that the public spectacle of "playing footsie" with reporters' main subjects is bringing the political press into disgrace. This is also true of the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner and the Radio and Television Correspondents' Association Dinner. In 1970, after the press's " sophomoric" skits

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

and

Spiro Agnew Spiro Theodore Agnew (; November 9, 1918 – September 17, 1996) was the 39th vice president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1973. He is the second of two vice presidents to resign, the first being John C. ...

performed '' Dixie'' to the ire of the one black attendee. At the 2007 dinner,

columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Column (periodical), Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the ...

Robert Novak impersonated Vice President

Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American former politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He has been called vice presidency o ...

while satirizing the Scooter Libby case, which Novak helped initiate. President

attended the 2011, 2013, and 2015 Gridiron Club Dinners. President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

attended and addressed the 2018 Gridiron Club Dinner. The Gridiron Dinner was not held in 2020 and 2021 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. The 2022 dinner on April 2 became a COVID superspreader event when at least 72 people tested positive, including

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

Merrick Garland, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. Proof of vaccination was required for entry, and no cases of serious illness were reported as resulting from the dinner.

Gridiron Club Dinner remarks in the press

:Reporters in the audience do file stories live, but the event's visuals and sounds are not recorded for publishing.
Dick Cheney's Gridiron remarks

Gridiron Club dinner

Remarks by President Biden at the Gridiron Clu and Foundation dinner March 16, 2024

Jokes From the Gridiron Club's Annual Dinner

Gridiron greatest hits

Here are President Obama’s full remarks from the Gridiron Club Dinner

President Obama jokes about Clinton's Emails, Scott Walker and Marijuana at Gridiron Club dinner

Gridiron Club

Presidential one liners Gridiron Club

Gridiron Club jokes congressional edition
* * * *

References

External links

The Gridiron Club, explained
''Political Theater'' Podcast, Episode 283, rollcall.com
MP3

Presidential Documents referring to ''The Gridiron Club''
at The American Presidency Project founded by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley at the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

. * https://www.c-span.org/organization/?2665/Gridiron-Club ;Papers
Gridiron Club of Washington, D.C. records, 1885-1906
Guide at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

Libraries Special Collections Research Center
Gridiron Club (Washington, D.C.) records, 1885-2021
at

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...