Stripped-down White House correspondents dinner honours journalistic excellence

The annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in Washington was this year a stripped-down event (Jose Luis Magana/AP)

There was no president or comedian, but what remained at the White House Correspondents’ Association’s annual dinner were the journalists and the First Amendment.

The stripped-down festivities were a reflection of the somber tone in Washington at the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second term, in which he has battled with the press on multiple fronts and wrested from the association the power to decide which outlets have the most access to Trump.