NRF's Matt Shay, Washingtonian's Cathy Merrill, Vivian Salama, Margaret Brennan, Elisabeth Bumiller, Francesca Chambers, and Story Partners' Gloria Dittus
On Thursday, April 24, 2025 Washingtonian and Story Partners hosted the 12th annual Washington Women in Journalism Awards, kicking off White House Correspondents’ Weekend. More than 500 guests gathered at the Larz Anderson House to honor the 2025 award recipients, Elisabeth Bumiller, Margaret Brennan, Vivian Salama, and Francesca Chambers, for their significant contributions to the field of journalism.
The evening opened with remarks from National Retail Federation’s Matt Shay, who highlighted the essential role journalism plays in keeping the public informed. Story Partners’ Chair Gloria Dittus followed by thanking the event sponsors. Washingtonian CEO Cathy Merrill then took the stage to celebrate each honoree before presenting them with their awards.
Congratulations to this year’s distinguished honorees:
Elisabeth Bumiller, The New York Times, Hall of Fame Achievement
Margaret Brennan, CBS News, Outstanding Journalism in Broadcast
Vivian Salama, The Wall Street Journal, Outstanding Journalist in Print
We’d also like to thank our drink partners for the evening: Diageo and Edrington.
Photographs by Daniel Swartz, Sophie Macaluso, and Evy Mages.Julie Hirschfeld Davis, Punch Bowl News’ Anna Palmer, Keenan Austin Reed, and USA Today’s Susan PageThe Wall Street Journal’s Molly Ball and Ben ChangBen Dennis, USA Today’s Francesca Chambers, Michael Moroney and Jesse RodriguezNBC’s Kelly O’Donnell, Gloria Dittus, Kip Eideberg, and CBS News’ Margaret BrennanKyle Margolis and CNN’s Alayna TreeneDelta’s Lisa Hanna, Heather Wingate, and Gina LaughlinWashingtonian’s Cathy Merrill, Story Partners’ Gloria Dittus, and NRF’s Matt ShawThe New York Times’ Elisabeth Bumiller (2025 honoree) and Washingtonian’s Sherri DalphonseGuests catching up before the evening remarksAflac’s Auston Andreson, Whytne Brooks, and Arrington EvansAmazon’s Tim Doyle, Washingtonian’s Cathy Merrill, and Washingtonian’s Susan FarkasTOYOTA featured the new Lexus GX 550ACLI’s David Chavern with Suzanne ChavernNBC’s Andrea Mitchell with United Airlines’ Terri FarielloWashingtonian’s Danesha Price-Quintanilla, Raquel Martin, Kirstin Garriss, NBC’s Arielle Hixon, CNN’s Eva McKend, Nana-Séntuo Bonsu, NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe, USA Today’s Francescha Chambers, HuffPost’s Phil Lewis, USA Today’s Monica Richardson, Fox 5’s Marissa Mitchell, Ashleigh Demi, Javier Lewis, Fox 5’s Chanelle Oliver, Setota Hailemariam, and Brooklyn BassGuests enjoying the remarks from the 2025 Washington Women in Journalism honoreesMatt Rivera and CNN’s Kasie HuntMatthew Torres and Arielle HixsonWomen in JournalismThe Wall Street Journal team: Josh Dawsey, Kristina Peterson, Vera Bergengruen, Vivian Salama, Aruna Viswanatha, Janet Adamy and Molly BallAPI’s Mollie O’Dell and Bethany WilliamsGuests could take-away delicious macarons featuring our event sponsor logosCathy Merrill with Toyota’s Zachary ReedThe Washington Posts’ Carol LeonnigBeautiful floral arrangements were created by Shawn Somerville of Trebella Events LLCNBC’s Richard Hudock with MCNBC’s Hollie TraczThe featured cocktails included a Spicy Jalapeño Margarita, a Paloma and a St. James’ SpirtzThank you to our drink partners Diageo and EdringtonAPI’s Mollie O’Dell, Andrew Kovalcin, and Tony PThe Washington Posts’ Sally Quinn and Washingtonian’s Cathy MerrillMatt Glassman, NBC’s Jackie Bradford and Evelyn FarkasGuests listening to remarks from the 2025 honoreesNPR’s Mary Louise KellyDJ Franky J kept the vibes high throughout the eveningRidgewells’ served up great food throughout the eveningKelsey Walsh, Deirdre Heavy, Emma Woodhead, and Alison MainWashingtonian gave out custom branded mints to guests
