To celebrate a redesign and a title change, Politics magazine—previously named after its company, Campaigns & Elections—hosted a party for 200 on Thursday at Atlantic Video on Massachusetts Avenue. The magazine’s event planners took advantage of the venue's largest studio (typically used for video and film production for shows such as ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption), highlighting the soaring ceiling with intense lighting.
“It’s a blank space. You can create whatever you want,” said Molly Clancy, one of the coordinators and Campaigns & Elections’s associate director of political programs and operations.
The studio’s spotlights provided plenty of drama, but Clancy chose black curtains to drape over three quarters of the room to divide the space and create a more elegant look. A square bar at the center was the focal point, with yellow and orange table linens and flower arrangements chosen as an appropriate complement to the red border on the magazine’s newly redesigned cover.Guests sampled from sushi bars stationed in two corners of the room, each staffed with a chef from Sushi-Ko through Susan Gage Caterers. They could also choose from 10 types of passed hors d’oeuvres, from goat cheese wrapped in phyllo to mini bread bowls filled with chili.
Partygoers included a mix of editors, readers, political consultants, advertisers, and friends of the magazine. Alexandra Lajoux, the daughter of Campaigns & Elections founder Stanley Foster Reed, was in attendance, as were some bold-faced names such as Mary Matalin, James Carville, and Washington Post editorial cartoonist Tom Toles.
The magazine’s events are usually more serious, taking the form of seminars and campaign training, but this party aimed for a more lighthearted feel, as evidenced by the swag in the gift bags: a light-up yo-yo emblazoned with the magazine’s new logo and a Capitol-shaped stress ball.
“It’s a blank space. You can create whatever you want,” said Molly Clancy, one of the coordinators and Campaigns & Elections’s associate director of political programs and operations.
The studio’s spotlights provided plenty of drama, but Clancy chose black curtains to drape over three quarters of the room to divide the space and create a more elegant look. A square bar at the center was the focal point, with yellow and orange table linens and flower arrangements chosen as an appropriate complement to the red border on the magazine’s newly redesigned cover.Guests sampled from sushi bars stationed in two corners of the room, each staffed with a chef from Sushi-Ko through Susan Gage Caterers. They could also choose from 10 types of passed hors d’oeuvres, from goat cheese wrapped in phyllo to mini bread bowls filled with chili.
Partygoers included a mix of editors, readers, political consultants, advertisers, and friends of the magazine. Alexandra Lajoux, the daughter of Campaigns & Elections founder Stanley Foster Reed, was in attendance, as were some bold-faced names such as Mary Matalin, James Carville, and Washington Post editorial cartoonist Tom Toles.
The magazine’s events are usually more serious, taking the form of seminars and campaign training, but this party aimed for a more lighthearted feel, as evidenced by the swag in the gift bags: a light-up yo-yo emblazoned with the magazine’s new logo and a Capitol-shaped stress ball.

The magazine was the focus of the evening.
Photo: Eric Powell for BizBash

Politics' new layout (and name) was the focus of the event.
Photo: Eric Powell for BizBash

Gold balloons floating three feet in the air added some whimsy to the decor.
Photo: Eric Powell for BizBash

A square bar sat at the center of the cavernous space, and a jazz band provided music.
Photo: Eric Powell for BizBash

Each of the two sushi bars had its own chef.
Photo: Eric Powell for BizBash

The magazine's new look received a dramatic showcase.
Photo: Eric Powell for BizBash