Elisa DiStefano and her vivacious energy departed from News 12 Long Island after reporting and anchoring for 17 years.
The Hauppauge High School Class of 1997 alum began her career shortly after graduating from Boston University with a Bachelor of Arts in Television, TV and Broadcast Journalism.
She started out working for a Boston cable station, where she covered breaking news from up in the air– a helicopter! Entertainment news was what she pursued next. As she regularly reported on the red carpet at celebrity events, her articles were published in Entertainment Weekly and Long Island Pulse Magazine.
In 2005, DiStefano began her 17-year career at News 12. She greeted sleepy Long Islanders bright and early for the 5 a.m. traffic report. Later on, she’d report on entertainment happenings and share Road Trips Close to Home segment packages. Her cheery smile and liveliness brought back viewers every day.
While at News 12, she worked alongside Jamie Stuart, current Sports Reporter at Newsday. “I worked with her for more than a decade,” said Stuart. “She is the same type of person that you see on-air, in-person. She is always optimistic, bubbly and always has a smile on her face– I am not sure if I have ever seen her without a smile.”
In 2014, she married Mo Cassara, former Hofstra Basketball Coach and current CBS Sports and ESPN Sports Analyst. Together, they have two children: Christian, 5, and Elle, 3.
This past May, Cassara and DiStefano reopened their restaurant, cleverly named “MO’NELISA,” after being closed for about 26 months due to the pandemic and other delays. The Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria is located in Point Lookout– a Hamlet located in the Town of Hempstead.
Her exciting journalistic journey doesn’t end with News 12, though.
DiStefano revealed what is next for her career in an Instagram reel posted on Wednesday. “Next week I will be beginning my new chapter at Newsday,” DiStefano told her 40k followers. “I am so excited to be able to do what I love and continue to tell your stories in a new multi-platform, multimedia way.”
Doug Geed is an anchor at News 12 Long Island and has been with the network since its start in 1986. His almost-36-year career granted him the opportunity to work alongside Elisa DiStefano.
“I would see her every day, sometimes at 3 or 4 in the morning when we would both stroll in with our eyes half open,” said Geed. “She was always incredibly pleasant. That is maybe the first thing people ask me when they’re talking about Elisa DiStefano, is she that nice, and the answer truly is yes.”
Geed commends DiStefano’s dedication to her career by acknowledging her ability to balance being a hard worker and a full-time mom.
DiStefano’s departure came as a shock to many of her coworkers, but it’s clear she has a bright future ahead of her.
“17 years here [News 12] is a long time. I knew she had some connections in the entertainment world so I thought maybe she would end up doing some sort of entertainment related for another network,” said Geed. “All of that was a surprise, but I wish her well at Newsday. I wish her well anywhere she goes.”
The Messenger Papers reached out to Elisa DiStefano for a comment and hope to hear from her soon. DiStefano’s energy and bright smile will now light up the Newsday newsroom.
But what News 12 had in DiStefano that no other network will ever have, is the impeccable signoff she calculated to have said over 40,000 times in her 17-year career, “Long Island Rail Road: On or Close to Schedule.”
Long Islanders and journalists alike will miss DiStefano on News 12, but will still tune into it as appointment viewing – on or close to schedule – because of how she single-handedly made it part of our homes.
