President Donald Trump confirmed Friday he will skip the "boring" White House correspondents' dinner later this month, saying he'll hold a rally instead.
Trump, who launches almost daily verbal attacks on what he considers a hostile media, has missed the two previous sessions of the annual get-together in Washington.
Asked if he'd go to this year's gathering, on April 27, he told reporters at the White House that "the dinner is so boring and so negative that we're going to hold a very positive rally."
Trump said his rally, in a still undecided location, will be "a big one."
Appearances by presidents at the black tie occasion have previously been a tradition.
However, Trump has a uniquely combative relationship with the media, which he denounces as "fake news," except in a handful of cases, including his favoured Fox News network.
Last year the correspondents' dinner ran into controversy when the keynote speaker, comedian Michelle Wolf, tore into White House staff, especially press secretary Sarah Sanders, with what some took to be heavy handed and offensive jokes.
The White House Correspondents' Association, which organises the event, has tried to diffuse tensions this year by inviting a historian, Ron Chernow, instead of the usual comedian.
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