John DiStaso
Encyclopedia
John DiStaso is a newspaper journalist
who is currently the senior political reporter for the Union Leader
, a daily published in Manchester, New Hampshire
.
and moved to New Hampshire with his wife in 1979. There he began his career with the Union Leader first as a stringer
before becoming a staff reporter in the early 1980s.
Today DiStaso writes the paper's weekly political column, "Granite Status" and was one of the moderators for the 2004 Democratic
presidential
candidates debate held on January 22, 2004 in Goffstown, New Hampshire
. DiStaso is credited with coining the phrase, "Republican in Name Only
" or RINO, in 1992.http://www.wordspy.com/words/RINO.asp DiStaso has also been described as the "The Dean of the New Hampshire Press corp" by greenmountainpolitics.blogspot.com.
. The criticism came from a long interview with George W. Bush presidential adviser Karl Rove
. The Review's Zachary Roth wrote this:
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
who is currently the senior political reporter for the Union Leader
New Hampshire Union Leader
The New Hampshire Union Leader is the daily newspaper of Manchester, the largest city in the state of New Hampshire. As of September 2010 it had a daily circulation of 48,342 and the circulation of its Sunday paper, the New Hampshire Sunday News, was 63,991. It was founded in 1863.It was called...
, a daily published in Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester is the largest city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, the tenth largest city in New England, and the largest city in northern New England, an area comprising the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. It is in Hillsborough County along the banks of the Merrimack River, which...
.
Early life
DiStaso was born in New JerseyNew Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and moved to New Hampshire with his wife in 1979. There he began his career with the Union Leader first as a stringer
Stringer (journalism)
In journalism, a stringer is a type of freelance journalist or photographer who contributes reports or photos to a news organization on an ongoing basis but is paid individually for each piece of published or broadcast work....
before becoming a staff reporter in the early 1980s.
Today DiStaso writes the paper's weekly political column, "Granite Status" and was one of the moderators for the 2004 Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
presidential
Democratic Party (United States) presidential primaries, 2004
The 2004 Democratic presidential primaries were the selection process by which voters of the Democratic Party chose its nominee for President of the United States in the 2004 U.S. presidential election...
candidates debate held on January 22, 2004 in Goffstown, New Hampshire
Goffstown, New Hampshire
Goffstown is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 17,651 at the 2010 census. The compact center of town, where 3,196 people resided at the 2010 census, is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as the Goffstown census-designated place and is located at the...
. DiStaso is credited with coining the phrase, "Republican in Name Only
Republican In Name Only
Republican In Name Only is a pejorative term that refers to a member of the Republican Party of the United States whose political views or actions are considered insufficiently conservative or otherwise not conforming to party positions...
" or RINO, in 1992.http://www.wordspy.com/words/RINO.asp DiStaso has also been described as the "The Dean of the New Hampshire Press corp" by greenmountainpolitics.blogspot.com.
Criticism
Distaso has been accused of Republican bias by the Columbia Journalism ReviewColumbia Journalism Review
The Columbia Journalism Review is an American magazine for professional journalists published bimonthly by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism since 1961....
. The criticism came from a long interview with George W. Bush presidential adviser Karl Rove
Karl Rove
Karl Christian Rove was Senior Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff to former President George W. Bush until Rove's resignation on August 31, 2007. He has headed the Office of Political Affairs, the Office of Public Liaison, and the White House Office of Strategic Initiatives...
. The Review's Zachary Roth wrote this:
"As Rove no doubt expected, DiStaso -- who was singled out by Campaign Desk back in January for distorting a quote by Democratic candidate Wesley Clark during a televised debate -- dutifully transcribed Rove's words and presented them as a full news story, under the title, 'Presidential Adviser Defends Decision to Liberate Iraq.'"http://www.cjrdaily.org/politics/our_roving_reporter.php