WASHINGTON – David Jackson, a longtime reporter who chronicled the White House and politics for USA TODAY and the Dallas Morning News, has died.
Jackson was found dead of an apparent heart attack in his Washington, D.C., apartment on April 22nd. He passed away at the age of 66.
“David helped define political reporting at USA TODAY and beyond for decades,” said Jamie Stockwell, vice president of news at USA TODAY. “His coverage of the White House and national politics was steady, authoritative, and deeply respected throughout the industry. We are saddened by his passing and our thoughts are with his loved ones and all those who had the privilege of working with him.”
Jackson, known as DJ to those close to him, fit the mold of the typical hard-nosed newspaper reporter, with his rumpled appearance and sometimes gruff demeanor.
But friends and colleagues remembered him as a man who had a deep love not only for journalism, but also for sports, history, travel, books and, of course, his family.
And what about that unfriendly personality? It usually melted away once he really got to know and trust the people around him.
“I got to see the funny side of David, I got to see the serious side of David, and of course I got to see this tenacious reporter,” said Katarina Camia, with whom he worked for many years as a reporter and editor. “I’m honored to call him a friend.”
Jackson began his career as a sportswriter for the Times and the Democratic Party in Orangeburg, South Carolina, where he was born and spent most of his formative years. He also worked for newspapers in Augusta, Ga., and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., before moving to the Dallas Morning News, where he covered county and city government before being assigned to the paper’s Washington bureau.
Karl Leibsdorf, the newspaper’s Washington bureau chief, said Jackson was initially assigned to cover courts and the judiciary. At the time, the Morning News also produced a weekly television show, and Jackson developed a knack for bringing in interesting guests, including an up-and-coming lawyer named John Roberts, who appeared in a segment about the Supreme Court.
Years later, when George W. Bush nominated Roberts to the Supreme Court, “the only video of him discussing legal issues was on our television show,” Loebsdorf said.
Jackson eventually moved from the Supreme Court to the White House, serving every president from Bill Clinton to Donald Trump. Jackson joined USA TODAY’s White House team in 2005 and remained with the paper until retiring in January 2025.
Susan Page, USA TODAY’s Washington bureau chief, recalled that the White House team interviewed then-President-elect Barack Obama at his inaugural headquarters just before he took office. Jackson showed up to the interview wearing a black trench coat, which he wears everywhere.
“Before the soon-to-be president, I basically had to order him to take it off,” Page recalled. “That was part of his general personality: a tenacious reporter who loves following and following the news and is fascinated by politics.”
Mr. Jackson serves as president of the White House Correspondents’ Association and presided over the association’s annual dinner in 2011.
After retiring, Jackson continued to pursue another love: travel.
Chris Peacock, a longtime friend who often attended sporting events together, recalled a conversation shortly after Jackson was about to embark on his first overseas trip as a reporter on the White House beat. Jackson didn’t seem too excited about the upcoming adventure.
“Why would I want to go to another country if I haven’t been to every state in the United States yet?” he asked.
But eventually he was resurrected and traveled the world. He especially liked visiting Asia.
Jackson is survived by two brothers, James Jackson Jr. and Dwight Jackson of Columbia, South Carolina; a nephew, James B. Jackson III, also of Columbia, and a niece, Katie Handel of Lexington, South Carolina.
