58.5 F
Milpitas
Sunday, December 10, 2023

About Us

Rhoda Shapiro

Founder & Editor-in-Chief

Rhoda Shapiro is the winner of a 2022 Golden Quill Award for her Education journalism. She works as a journalist and media consultant in the Bay Area. She has written for both the Tri-City Voice and the Mercury News, and is the founder of Chi Media Company, which works mostly with nonprofit organizations and educational entities to elevate their marketing and communication platforms. Rhoda is also the author of “Fierce Woman: Wake up your Badass Self.” Her YouTube channel features practices in yoga, meditation, and women’s empowerment. Rhoda is The Milpitas Beat’s Founder and Editor-in-Chief.

David Newman

Reporter

David Newman is an award-winning Bay Area journalist whose proudest achievement may be placing 4th in his middle school speech contest in which he gave a stirring plea to “Save the Whales”. He specializes in stories about art, entertainment, food, and travel, but has also written extensively on other topics, including home & garden, parenting, small business, government, science & technology, animal care, and special events. He lives in a small house with his lovely wife, two beautiful daughters, and their little dog Bae. When not writing he can often be found in his office daydreaming about travel or watching soccer while his wife does actual work. You can view his writing portfolio here: www.davidnewman.net

Eric Shapiro

Content Editor & Creative Director

Eric Shapiro is a writer and filmmaker. He has won awards for journalism (CA Journalism Award) and screenwriting (Fade In Award), and has served as a ghostwriter, speechwriter, or script doctor for over 3,000 clients. His first novel is a dark political thriller called "Red Dennis” (2020). His first nonfiction book is a guide for helping writers be more productive called ”Ass Plus Seat" (2020). He co-hosts the "House of Mystery Radio Show” on NBC News Radio. In 2023, Eric founded the Psychic Arts Center, dedicated to exploring psychic phenomena and assisting people through psychic readings.

Our Vision

The Milpitas Beat is a community-based print and online newspaper located in Milpitas, California. Our vision is to cultivate a more connected, conscious, and vibrant community by providing news coverage that truthfully reflects the expression, ideas, and culture of the people of Milpitas. Our new print edition, which just launched in April 2019, is monthly, and usually comes out on the third Thursday of every month. However, due to the pandemic, we have suspended printing.

Who We Are

There’s no use sugar-coating it: Local journalism is in jeopardy. All across this country, newspapers, faced with decreasing revenue, are closing up shop. And many of the newspapers that are still surviving have been gobbled up by private equity firms. These firms put their focus on building profit, and not community; and in the process, have turned once-vibrant newspapers into shells of their former selves. That’s why we created The Milpitas Beat. We want to work to create a newspaper that is deeply in touch with what the residents of Milpitas are thinking, feeling, and wanting to see in their community. Guided by a deep fascination of people, stories, culture, art, education, and politics, we work with passion, always, to deliver the articles and media that speak most directly to the people we serve. Also, as residents of Milpitas ourselves, we are deeply committed to creating a print and online newspaper that supports and enriches the community in any way it can.