The Kennedy Center Honors Are So Hot, Even The New York Times Is Clamoring To Get In

WASHINGTON—In a town where access is everything, if you want to be influential, you have to go to all the right events.

It’s why people lined up for hours in the freezing cold to get into last year’s Inaugural Balls. It’s why, as we speak, congressional staffers and think tank flaks are jockeying to get invites to all the swankiest Christmas parties. And it’s why a couple of legacy media outlets are reportedly spinning their wheels to get invited to this Sunday’s Kennedy Center Honors.

The Associated Press and New York Times “are scrambling and begging” for press credentials just days before the event, Kennedy Center Vice President of Public Relations Roma Daravi wrote on X this week.

“The date didn’t sneak up on anyone,” she added. “They knew it was coming. They just didn’t bother.”

The @AP and @nytimes are scrambling and begging for @kencen Honors press credentials at the last minute. 3 days before the show…

It’s the 48th Honors. The date didn’t sneak up on anyone. They knew it was coming. They just didn’t bother.

— Roma Daravi (@romadaravi) December 4, 2025

This year’s class of honorees includes Michael Crawford, the Tony Award-winning singer who originated the titular role of the Phantom of the Opera on Broadway; disco legend Gloria Gaynor and country music star George Strait; “Rocky” star Sylvester Stallone; and the band KISS.

The Kennedy Center Honors are always a star-studded affair, and this year is no exception. Expected guests include Tommy Hilfiger, Kurt Russell, and Garth Brooks, The Daily Caller reported this week. Inside-the-Beltway VIPs include House Speaker Mike Johnson, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

President Donald Trump will host this year’s honors in lieu of a celebrity master of ceremonies. First Lady Melania Trump is also expected to be in attendance.

This year also marks the debut of new medals for honorees, designed exclusively for the Kennedy Center by Tiffany & Co.

This year’s honors, which will air on CBS on December 23, come at a pivotal time for the Kennedy Center. Trump has made overhauling the cultural institution a priority in his second term, as The Daily Wire has chronicled extensively. Trump and Kennedy Center Director Richard Grenell have pushed to rectify the Kennedy Center’s financial situation and revamp its offerings.

The Trump administration’s reform efforts have made the Kennedy Center a political flashpoint. Recently, Democrat Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (RI) claimed that the Center was “being looted to the tune of millions of dollars in foregone revenue, cancelled programming, unpaid use of its facilities, and wasteful spending on luxury restaurants and hotels — an unprecedented pattern of self-dealing, favoritism, and waste.”

“The press and the Senator should be ashamed of the lies they print and reprint — we want a cultural center for all Americans but they push lies to sow division amongst Americans for their selfish moment in a headline,” Daravi said in response to Whitehouse’s allegations.

Sources close to the matter tell The Daily Wire that the Times and the AP claim they missed the email inviting them to apply for press credentials. While neither outlet responded to a request for comment, Daravi addressed the missed email claims, saying simply, “They’ve had 48 years to prepare.”

Full disclosure: The Daily Wire will be in attendance at the 48th Kennedy Center Honors. We didn’t miss the email.