Antony Blinken Tests Positive For Covid After Attending White House Correspondents Dinner

Topline

Secretary of State Antony Blinken tested positive for Covid-19 Wednesday, according to the State Department, making him the latest to contract the virus among attendees of last weekend’s White House Correspondents Dinner, which has the makings of being another high-profile D.C. superspreader event.

Key Facts

Blinken is fully vaccinated and boosted, and is only experiencing mild symptoms, State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

President Joe Biden has not seen Blinken in “several days” and is not considered a close contact, according to the State Department and the White House.

Blinken plans to “isolate at home and maintain a virtual work schedule,” Price said.

Key Background

Celebrity host Trevor Noah’s joke about the White House Correspondents Dinner being the “nation’s most distinguished superspreader event” is looking prophetic in hindsight. CNN reported Wednesday that some of its own staffers, along with employees of NBC News, ABC News, CBS News, Politico and other outlets tested positive for Covid after going to Saturday night’s dinner. According to Politico, ABC News’ Jonathan Karl was among those who tested positive. Karl sat next to Kim Kardashian at the event and shook hands with the president. White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Wednesday afternoon that Biden was tested Tuesday and the result came back negative.

Tangent

Blinken joins what is now a lengthy list of top officials who have tested positive for Covid in recent weeks, which includes Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

Surprising Fact

The White House Correspondents Dinner went on despite another A-list D.C. occasion, the Gridiron Club dinner in early April, being a superspreader event.

Further Reading

Journalists from multiple news outlets test positive after White House Correspondents Dinner weekend (CNN)

Vice President Kamala Harris Tests Positive For Covid-19 (Forbes)

Nancy Pelosi Tests Positive For Covid (Forbes)

Full coverage and live updates on the Coronavirus