The projection onto the front of the hotel made Trump’s difficult relationship with the media be looked at again. This dramatic display increased the arguments about Trump being at the dinner for the press, and how responsible someone in his position should be on an important night like this.
What happened outside the Washington Hilton
The protesters showed photos, documents and video on the hotel, saying they proved Trump was connected to Jeffrey Epstein, who was convicted of sex crimes and is now dead. Included in the images were documents from something called The Epstein Files, and someone read emails out loud as part of the projection.
Lots of people gathered on the opposite side of the street as the images changed throughout the night. Those organizing the protest said it was a demand for openness from the government, before the dinner where politicians and the press get together and are very closely watched.
A group that was involved with the protest said they projected the images on the Washington Hilton specifically before Trump arrived, and asked for anyone hiding anything to stop.
Trump’s attendance raises the stakes
This year is more important because Trump is attending as the current president. His relationship with the press has been difficult, and he often calls news ‘fake news’ which has caused discussion in newsrooms and among politicians.
Trump recently wrote on his social media that ‘the press was extremely bad to me,’ which shows how strained things are. The White House Correspondents’ Association always invites the president to their party celebrating a free press. Trump didn’t go to the dinner during any of his four years in office and didn’t go in 2025 either.
Newsroom criticism and press freedom concerns
Because of the invitation, people have complained. Hundreds of journalists signed an open letter, saying people at the dinner should ask the president directly about how his administration has limited the press. This included lawsuits against news organizations, and stopping certain reporters from being part of the main press groups.
Those who signed the letter pointed to the fact that big news organizations, including the Associated Press at the White House and the Pentagon, haven’t been allowed to cover things. Despite all this, Trump still talks directly to reporters, often calling them and speaking during press conferences.
Key points raised in the letter include:
– Question the president directly on press restrictions
– Address lawsuits against media organisations
– Challenge limits on key press pools, including AP
What comes next at the dinner
The dinner is where journalists, politicians and people in the media who report on the President come together. For Washington’s journalists, their teams and important business people and celebrities, it’s a long-standing event with a lot of glamour.
This year, the event will show how the press will handle a very public night with the protests and continuing worries about being able to get information. People who are going have been told to make holding people accountable the main part of the evening, even though the dinner is meant to celebrate reporting.
Trump did go to the dinner in 2011 as a guest, but this will be his first as president. The people who arranged the dinner say inviting him is part of tradition, but the protest outside the Hilton has already created a tense atmosphere for a night that everyone will be watching.
The immediate thing to think about is whether the speeches, interviews and conversations during the evening will deal with the demands in the open letter and the message from the protesters. With the images from the projection still in people’s minds, the dinner could be a place for direct, and possibly challenging, conversations about the press being free and the president being responsible for what he does.
