Peter Schorsch
Shirish “S.V.” Dáte, the former Tallahassee bureau chief of The Palm Beach Post, is stepping down as editor of the Washington Desk at National Public Radio.
Before his time at NPR, Dáte made his name for aggressive reporting on former Gov. Jeb Bush — which became the book Jeb: America’s Next Bush.
Dáte made the announcement in a statement released Friday:
I sailed up the Chesapeake four years ago with the start of school just two months off, no place to live, no job and only one or two leads.
Thanks to NPR, I was able to get my sons re-settled into “civilization” with a minimum of disruption and angst, and also to resume my career in journalism. I’ve learned so much here, about radio, about Congress, about Washington in general. I owe that to you, as well.
I leave with mixed feelings. This is a first-class place with a lot of smart, talented people — but I think that at this moment, I need to seize the opportunity that the good former governor of Florida is providing and make the most of it.
Thank you all, and fair winds and following seas, although with 2016 already here, I’m confident our courses will be crossing often.
Dáte won recognition for his 2003 series on fraud and abuse in Bush’s prized school voucher programs prompting criminal investigations. He also reported in 2002 on the state speaker’s hiring of an aide — a former Tallahassee Hooters restaurant waitress — resulting in Dáte becoming the first reporter in Florida history to be banned from the House.
Dáte has also written several other books, including Quiet Passion, a biography of former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham. His works have appeared in The POLITICO, The Atlantic, National Journal, The Washington Post, The New Republic and Slate.
