NINTH ANNUAL BYTES & BYLINES KICKED OFF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS’ ASSOCIATION DINNER WEEK WITH BOLD NAMES ACROSS TECH, MEDIA, JOURNALISM IN COLLABORATION WITH GLAAD

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Friday, April 26, 2024  – GLAAD, the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization, shared photos from this year’s Bytes & Bylines, the only LGBTQ-focused annual gathering of technology, media and political leaders on the eve of the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) Dinner weekend, which was held last night at the Residence of Ireland in Washington, D.C. 

The event was co-hosted by entrepreneurs, mediaites, and politicos Susanna Quinn, Eric Kuhn, Stephanie Cutler, GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis, Adrienne Elrod, Karen Finney and Adam Rathe, with the Ambassador of Ireland, H.E. Geraldine Byrne Nason. GLAAD, Precision Strategies and Town & Country were the official sponsors.

“For nearly a decade Bytes & Bylines have kicked off the WHCD weekend by bringing together the leaders in technology, media and politics to mix and mingle,” said Bytes & Bylines co-hosts. “We are thrilled to be back at the home of the Irish Ambassador to continue this celebration of journalism.”

In 2015, Ireland became the first country globally to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote. In recognition of Ireland’s ability to make a national shift from historically conservative attitudes to a more inclusive and welcoming posture and place for all backgrounds, the Embassy of Ireland is proud to host the annual Bytes & Bylines reception, in the spirit of accelerating acceptance for LGBTQ people and issues in the United States.

The invitation-only reception gathered representatives from across the country: entrepreneurs, Fortune 500 C-Suite executives, journalists across all media outlets and publishers, actors and celebrities in town for the WHCA Dinner and ambassadors from around the globe.

Producer, activist and former GLAAD Media Award nominee, Zeke Thomas, served as the event’s DJ. The son of NBA Hall of Fame point guard Isiah Thomas, Zeke Thomas credits his success in music, bravery in the face of adversity, and magnetic charisma to simply being in his DNA. 

“Representation at GLAAD events like Bytes and Bylines has never been more critical than it is today,” Thomas said. “I stand on the shoulders of my ancestors continuing to fight for equal rights and freedom for all.”

This year’s attendees included: Alixie Peek, Ali Rubin, Annalise Myre, Andrew Zucker, Ashley Parker, Avery Miller, Cristina Alesci, Dennis Cheng, Daniel Koh, David Mcintosh, Elizabeth Thorp, Heather Podesta, Jackie Kucinich, Jackie Rooney, Jamie Dorros, Jocely Quinn, Kevin Chaffee, Laurence Milstein, Liz, Johnson, Luke Bozich, Mike Bender, Matt Dornic, Marc Paskin, Mary Alberg, Kristin Cecchi, Missy Owens, Monica Medina, Nicole Elkins, Phil Rucker, Rachel Leviton, Renee Jones, Rickie Niceta, Sara Fisher, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Zach Malamed, actor and activist WIlson Cruz, Air Mail’s Harrison Vail, ABC News’ Alok Patel, Karen Travers and Rachel Scott, CBS News’ Cecilia Vega, Major Garrett, Ed O’Keefe, and Bill Owens, CNN’s Jeff Zeleny and Sam Feist, MSNBC’s Dan Arnall and Kyle Griffin, Dr. Anthony Fauci, NBC’s Kristen Welker, WNBA Legend Alana Beard, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, Small Business Administration Administrator Isabella Guzman. Vocalist Tona Brown, FOX News correspondents Jennifer Griffin and Madeleine Rivera, Fox 5 DC’s Kenneth Moton, Scripps News’ Chris Nguyen, creator V. Spehar, Independent transgender journalist Erin Reed, White House Director of Legislative Affairs, Shuwanza Goff, and many more.

Arrival photos can be found HERE, courtesy Getty Images for GLAAD.

Event photos can be found HERE, courtesy Getty Images for GLAAD.

ABOUT THE CO-HOSTS

Susanna Quinn is the former founder and CEO of Veluxe, and is now a philanthropist, consultant and the new host of The Cancer SIGNAL podcast.

Eric Kuhn is the co-founder and co-CEO of Folk Media Group and theater producer.

Stephanie Cutler is the founder of Precision Strategies and former senior adviser and deputy campaign manager to President Obama. 

Sarah Kate Ellis is the President and CEO of GLAAD.

Adrienne Elrod is a seasoned political strategist, government affairs expert, communicator and contributor for NBC News and MSNBC.

Karen Finney is an Independent Consultant, CNN Political Commentator and thought leader working at the intersection of politics, media and cultural change. 

Adam Rathe is Town & Country‘s Deputy Features Director.

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Press Contact:
Tony Morrison, GLAAD Senior Director of Communications
tmorrison@glaad.org

ABOUT BYTES & BYLINES

Bytes & Bylines is an annual party kicking off the White House Correspondents Weekend.  The event brings together leading innovators in technology, influential policy makers and the top minds in media for an intimate gathering. Previous sponsors have included NPR, Tumblr, The Information and Cheddar.

ABOUT PRECISION

Precision is an integrated strategy and marketing agency working with companies, causes, and candidates to change people’s minds and move them to action. We bring world-class experts in each of our service areas to develop and execute campaigns that help our clients achieve bigger and better results than they’d hoped for — setting a higher standard for whatever challenge or opportunity comes next.

ABOUT TOWN & COUNTRY
Town & Country has chronicled American life since 1846, always putting an emphasis on people of style and accomplishment who give something back to the world, whether in service, philanthropy or creative endeavor. Combining the highest level of reporting with the very best photography, Town & Country is an acute observer of the broader social landscape, documenting notable weddings and parties, chronicling the pastimes and passions of leading figures and families everywhere, and casting an anthropological eye on the lives of the rich and powerful. For 175 years the magazine has been a trusted source of privileged information, taste and unpretentious fun–in short, an irreplaceable guide to the very best that the world has to offer. Town & Country is published by Hearst Magazines, a unit of Hearst, a leading global, diversified media, information and services company. Hearst Magazines, the world’s largest lifestyle publisher, has a portfolio of more than 25 powerful brands in the U.S. that inspire and entertain audiences across all media platforms. Hearst Magazines’ print and digital assets reach 150 million readers and site visitors each month — 57% of all millennials and 53% of all Gen Z adults over the age of 18 (Source: comScore/Simmons Multi-platform fusion 5-23/S23). The company publishes more than 200 magazine editions and 175 websites around the world. Follow Town & Country on Instagram at @townandcountrymag and on Twitter at @TandCMag.