What happened
President Donald Trump Wednesday announced the latest picks for the Kennedy Center Honors, naming actor Sylvester Stallone, singer Gloria Gaynor, actor-singer Michael Crawford, musician George Strait and the glam-rock band Kiss as this year's inductees. Trump also said he had "agreed to host" the event.
Who said what
Trump has taken a "strong interest" in the Kennedy Center since taking office and appointing himself the institution's chairman, said The New York Times. Historically, a "bipartisan advisory committee selects the recipients," The Associated Press said. But Trump said he "was about 98% involved" in choosing this year's honorees and had rejected a "couple of wokesters." Given the expectations, "perhaps the most surprising thing about Trump's class of honorees is how comfortably it fits with those that came before it," The Washington Post said.
Trump is also trying to "reshape" the decades-old ceremony by "pushing for a glitzier star-studded celebration," said Fox News. And he has "hinted he'd like to see the venue renamed the Trump/Kennedy Center," the AP said. But that could potentially "violate the law" that created the center in the first place, said NBC News.
What next?
Done+Dusted, the producers of Kennedy Center ceremonies in recent years, "pulled out of producing this year’s honors," said the Post. The ceremony will take place Dec. 7 and will be televised shortly afterwards.
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