David Ellison, Elon Musk, Tim Cook and a host of other tech and media bosses sat down at the White House on Thursday evening for a state dinner honoring Chinese President Xi Jinping. The guest list reads like a who’s who of corporate America — and CNN was not allowed in.
Musk, Trump and Xi at the Head Table
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, took a seat at the head table alongside Trump and Xi. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Apple CEO Tim Cook were also present, though the source does not say they sat at the head table.
Ellison’s Deal With Warner Bros. Discovery
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison was also present, just days after his company reached a settlement to clear its takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery. That deal includes CNN, whose reporters were denied access to the dinner even after a federal judge reinstated their press passes to the White House complex.
The Fox News Crew
The dinner also drew a Fox News crew. Hosts Jesse Watters and Laura Ingraham, along with anchor Bret Baier, all made the cut. Podcast hosts Katie Miller — wife of White House aide Stephen Miller — and David Sacks — a tech investor and All-In co-host — were also on the list. Cheryl Hines, wife of RFK Jr., attended as well.
Who Else Came
Other attendees included:
- OpenAI CEO Sam Altman
- Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg
- Amazon’s Jeff Bezos
- OpenAI president Greg Brockman
- Google co-founder Sergey Brin and CEO Sundar Pichai
- Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella
- TikTok investor Jeff Yass
- LCMH CEO Bernard Arnault
The list also included CEOs from finance, manufacturing and other industries.
Ellison and Musk’s Possible Deal
Earlier this week, reports surfaced that Ellison may ask Musk to invest in Paramount as part of its WBD takeover. The dinner brought the two men together at the same event.
CNN’s Reporters Left Out
CNN’s reporters were left out despite the judge’s order. The network’s access to the White House complex had been restored, but that did not extend to the dinner itself.
The Contrast Between Insiders and Reporters
The contrast between the corporate insiders dining with Xi and the reporters locked out is striking. It raises questions about who gets to see the inside of the White House and who does not.
| Attendee | Role |
|---|---|
| Elon Musk | Tesla and SpaceX CEO |
| David Ellison | Paramount Skydance CEO |
| Tim Cook | Apple CEO |
| Jensen Huang | Nvidia CEO |
| Sam Altman | OpenAI CEO |
| Event Detail | Fact |
|---|---|
| Dinner date | Thursday evening |
| Guests | Corporate CEOs, Fox News hosts |
| CNN reporters | Denied access |
| Judge’s order | Restored press passes |
| Ellison’s deal | Warner Bros. Discovery takeover settlement |
The dinner brought together some of the country’s most powerful business leaders. Ellison, Musk, Cook and the rest of the corporate elite gathered around Xi while CNN’s reporters watched from outside.
The presence of Fox News hosts added another layer. Watters, Ingraham and Baier were among those invited, while CNN’s reporters were shut out. That contrast — the TV personalities inside, the journalists outside — is a detail worth noting.
Source material: “David Ellison, Tech Titans and Fox News Hosts Attend White House State Dinner Honoring China’s President,” The Hollywood Reporter.
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