Journalists and attendees from Saturday night's White House Correspondents' Dinner have started testing positive for COVID-19, the Daily Mail reported.
During the event, President Joe Biden gave a speech declaring: "We're here to show the country that we're getting through this pandemic. Plus, everyone had to prove they were fully vaccinated and boosted."
"So if you're at home watching this, and you're wondering how to do that, just contact your favorite Fox News reporter. They're all here! Vaccinated and boosted! All of 'em," Biden said to a cheering crowd.
But, after the event, outlets soon started reporting surges of COVID-19 infections. CNN reported Tuesday some of its own staff, as well as media types from ABC News, NBC News, CBS News, and Politico started testing positive after the event. One such journalist was Jonathan Karl with ABC News, who was seen briefly interacting with the president.
"[Karl] tested positive for COVID Monday night," after the event, "but tested negative on Saturday afternoon before the White House Correspondents' Dinner by medically supervised staff," a source told Politico. "He had no symptoms on Saturday. Jon is currently isolating and participating in contact tracing."
The Mail added, while proof of vaccination was required, "it wasn't always checked."
The president of the White House Correspondents' Association Steven Portnoy told the Mail that 24-hour protocols had been put in place before the event as well as an advisement to get boosted.
"We worked hard," Portnoy said, "to publicize our protocols and encouraged those eligible to get booster shots in the weeks leading up to the dinner. Our event implemented protocols that went beyond any guidance or regulation issued by the CDC or the D.C. Health Department."
Taking to the podium right after Biden, comedian and host of the Daily Show Trevor Noah quipped the dinner might turn into a "superspreader" event.
"It is my great honor to be speaking tonight at the nation's most distinguished superspreader event," Noah said.
"For real, what are we doing here?" he asked. "Did none of you learn anything from the Gridiron dinner? Nothing? Do you read any of your own newspapers?
"You guys spent the last two years telling everyone the importance of wearing masks and avoiding large in-door gatherings, then the second someone offers you a free dinner, you all turn into Joe Rogan.
"I mean Dr. Fauci dropped out; that should have been a pretty big sign," Noah continued. "Fauci thought it was too dangerous to come tonight. Pete Davidson thinks it's OK."
"And we all went with Pete."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.