Media channels including CNN and The Washington Post are accused of encouraging artists to cancel performances at the Kennedy Center, while publications, among othersThe New York Times are celebrating a series of recent cancellations, Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell has claimed without evidence in a series of X-posts in recent days.
“I have just been informed by a number of booked artists that they are receiving emails from [CNN] And [The Washington Post] encouraging them to boycott the Trump Kennedy Center,” Grenell said wrote on X Tuesday. “The traditional media are left-wing activists – and they are open about it.”
In one after the day before, Grenell, again without evidence, claimed as much The NYT is “celebrating people who boycott the arts.”
The independent has contacted the Kennedy Center, CNN, the AfterAnd The NYT for comment.
The messages prompted critics of the president and his allies to demand proof of the alleged emails, which they say violates journalistic standards of neutrality.
“This should be easy enough to prove….” CNN commentator and former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger wrote on X.
Grenell’s claims come after a series of artists canceled upcoming dates at the center in protest of President Donald Trump’s takeover and the recent, potentially illegal attempt to rename the institution the Trump-Kennedy Center.
Jazz supergroup The Stoves announced on its website that it will not perform during a series of two New Year’s Eve concerts.
“Jazz was born from struggle and from a ruthless drive for freedom: freedom of thought, of expression and of the full human voice,” the group said. wrote in a statement. “Some of us have been making this music for decades, and that history continues to shape us.”
“I would never dream of performing at a venue that bears a name (and is controlled by the kind of board) that represents overt racism and deliberate destruction of African-American music and culture,” says Billy Harper, a saxophonist in the group. reportedly added in a statement to Jazz Stage.
The Doug Varone and dancers The group added Monday that it will not perform a planned April performance at the center.
“We can no longer afford ourselves, nor ask our public, to enter this once great institution,” the statement said, adding: “We hope that in three years the Center and its reputation will return to that glory.”
The wave of cancellations follows news that drummer and vibraphonist Chuck Redd canceled a longstanding Christmas Eve jazz concert downtown in protest of the name change.
In response, the head of the Kennedy Center has demanded $1 million from Redd, calling the measure a “political stunt.”
In February, Trump broke with the center’s bipartisan tradition and installed a new set of MAGA-friendly board members, who quickly appointed him chairman of the center.
Earlier this month, the board claimed to have voted unanimously to change the center’s name to the Trump-Kennedy Center. Some observers say this is not legal, and one congresswoman on a phone call about the decision said she was quiet and not allowed to voice her criticism.
The Trump administration has dismissed criticism of the measure, including from Kennedy’s relatives, arguing that it has saved the arts institution from decline.
Since Trump took over, In fact, ticket sales were the worst in yearsaccording to a Washingtonpost October analysis.
Last week, Trump became the first president to host the Kennedy Center Honors, with viewership reportedly down 35 percent from last year.
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