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Before leaving the Beverly Wilshire this morning, President Obama had a meeting with "some of the entertainment industry's high-level executives, as well as talent representatives with access to the industry's top stars and musical acts," Tina Daunt and Matthew Belloni report at the Hollywood Reporter. From their story:
Among the small group of industry insiders who were invited to attended the early-morning meeting with the president at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel were: Weinstein Co. studio head Harvey Weinstein, CAA music agent Rob Light, ICM agent Chris Silbermann, Modern Family creator Steve Levitan, Atlantic Records chairman Craig Kallman, producer/songwriter Bruce Roberts, talent manger and producer Jason Weinberg, UTA agent Rob Prinz, talent manager Eric Ortner, Island Def Jam senior vp Karen Kwak, Warner Bros. Records president Livia Tortella, talent manager Greg Mertz, ID PR publicists Kelly Bush and Mara Buxbaum, talent managers Bruce Flohr, Michael Green, Steve Moir and Bill Silva, Universial Music Publishing head Tom Sturges, entertainment attorney Chuck Ortner and actor/activist Kal Penn.The event was not a fundraiser, and attendees were not asked to donate to the Obama reelection campaign. But those invited have been ardent supporters of the president and were identified as "influencers" with the ability to help Obama shape the national political conversation heading into a tough race in 2012.
An insider who attended the hour-long meeting with the Obama campaign staff tells THR that the vibe was casual. The president appeared for about 25 to 30 minutes, telling the group that his campaign would be tough and he needed their help to engage the Hollywood community in particular and the general public at large.
THR boldfaces the names, but I'm not going to do that.