About

Since 2008, Mission Local, an independent news site based in the Mission District, has been focused on high-impact, enterprise reporting on everything from police reform to corruption at City Hall, housing, and the gig economy. Core to our mission is training the next generation of journalists who reflect the diversity of San Francisco.

Because we’re based in the city’s oldest (and arguably, best) neighborhood we also chronicle the lives and changes here, but often, what is happening in the Mission is happening across San Francisco.

Originally a project of U.C. Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, we struck out on our own in 2014. In the summer of 2018, we became a fiscally sponsored project.

We kept growing and in October 2022, the IRS granted Mission Local SF (EIN: 88-3177547) status as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization (retroactive to July 1, 2022). All donations are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

We’re delighted to have the help of a superb board of directors. You can read about them here.

Throughout our journey, our goals have not changed. We aspire to be a model of local, self-sustaining, fiercely independent news – one that trains young journalists who reflect the diversity of the city. We post job listings and you can find out about our internship program here.

We continue to believe sustainability comes from our readers. You keep us here doing excellent work. You can find a list of all of our supporters here.

If you prefer checks to online donations, you can make out checks to Mission Local SF and send them to 2489 Mission St. #22, San Francisco, CA, 94110.

Any questions? Call us at 415-275-4739 or contact me at lydia.chavez@missionlocal.com.

Site illustrations: The man above our events listing and the sweeper at the end of each story are illustrations done by Rini Templeton, an activist artist who did thousands of illustrations and allowed organizations and individuals to use them as open-sourced artwork. She died in 1986 in Mexico City. Some of her illustrations are kept online here.

We want to hear from you! Send your tips, story ideas, and unique perspectives to tips@missionlocal.com.

We promise to:

Offer original, transparent reporting.
Admit and correct our mistakes.
Cover everyone in the neighborhood.
Experiment on how best to make civic issues meaningful.
Train a workforce that reflects the diversity of the city.

Our full policy on editorial independence is here. Our privacy policy is here.

Lydia Chávez

Founder/Executive Editor. I’ve been a Mission resident since 1998 and a professor emeritus at Berkeley’s J-school since 2019. I got my start in newspapers at the Albuquerque Tribune in the city where I was born and raised. Like many local news outlets, The Tribune no longer exists. I left daily newspapers after working at The New York Times for the business, foreign and city desks. Lucky for all of us, it is still here.

As an old friend once pointed out, local has long been in my bones. My Master’s Project at Columbia, later published in New York Magazine, was on New York City’s experiment in community boards.

At ML, I’ve been trying to figure out how to make my interest in local news sustainable. If Mission Local is a model, the answer might be that you – the readers – reward steady and smart content. As a thank you for that support we work every day to make our content even better. More by Lydia Chávez

Joe Eskenazi

Managing Editor/Columnist. Joe was born in San Francisco, raised in the Bay Area, and attended U.C. Berkeley. He never left.

“Your humble narrator” was a writer and columnist for SF Weekly from 2007 to 2015, and a senior editor at San Francisco Magazine from 2015 to 2017. You may also have read his work in the Guardian (U.S. and U.K.); San Francisco Public Press; San Francisco Chronicle; San Francisco Examiner; Dallas Morning News; and elsewhere.

He resides in the Excelsior with his wife and three (!) kids, 4.3 miles from his birthplace and 5,474 from hers.

The Northern California branch of the Society of Professional Journalists named Eskenazi the 2019 Journalist of the Year. More by Joe Eskenazi

Joe Rivano Barros

Senior editor

Joe was born in Sweden, where half of his family received asylum after fleeing Pinochet, and then spent his early childhood in Chile; he moved to Oakland when he was eight. He attended Stanford University for political science and worked at Mission Local as a reporter after graduating. He then spent time at YIMBY Action and as a partner for the strategic communications firm The Worker Agency. He rejoined Mission Local as an editor in 2023. You can reach him on Signal @jrivanob.99. More by Joe Rivano Barros

Meg Shutzer

Senior Editor

Meg Shutzer is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and investigative reporter. Their most recent investigation into a juvenile detention center in Louisiana was a Finalist for the Livingston and Dart Awards. Their documentaries include MOTHER (2024), 8 Days at Ware (2022, PBS) Knocking Down the Fences (2021, PBS) and New Generation Queens (2015, Amazon).
Meg has a BA from Harvard and a Master’s in Journalism from UC Berkeley. They are a co-founder of Family Pictures, a production company comprised of journalists and filmmakers who combine original reporting and cinematic vision to craft non-fiction stories. When they aren’t chasing down a story, you can find Meg teaching journalism classes at San Quentin State Prison or cycling classes at 17 Reasons Athletic Club in the Mission District. More by Meg Shutzer

Eleni Balakrishnan

Reporting from the Tenderloin. Follow me on Twitter @miss_elenius. More by Eleni Balakrishnan

Yujie Zhou

I’m a staff reporter covering city hall with a focus on the Asian community. I came on as an intern after graduating from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and became a full-time staff reporter as part of the Report for America and have stayed on. Before falling in love with the Mission, I covered New York City, studied politics through the “street clashes” in Hong Kong, and earned a wine-tasting certificate in two days. I’m proud to be a bilingual journalist. Follow me on Twitter @Yujie_ZZ. More by Yujie Zhou

Kelly Waldron

Find me looking at data. I studied Geography at McGill University and worked at a remote sensing company in Montreal, analyzing methane data, before turning to journalism and earning a master’s degree from Columbia Journalism School. More by Kelly Waldron

Xueer Lu

I work on data and cover the Excelsior. I graduated from UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism with a Master’s Degree in May 2023. In my downtime, I enjoy cooking, photography, and scuba diving. More by Xueer Lu

Junyao Yang

Junyao covers San Francisco’s Westside, from the Richmond to the Sunset. She moved to the Inner Sunset in 2023, after receiving her Master’s degree from UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. You can find her skating at Golden Gate Park or getting a scoop at Hometown Creamery. More by Junyao Yang

Oscar Palma

Reporting from the Mission District and other District 9 neighborhoods. Some of his personal interests are bicycles, film, and both Latin American literature and punk. Oscar’s work has previously appeared in KQED, The Frisc, El Tecolote, and Golden Gate Xpress. More by Oscar Palma

Abigail Vân Neely

I’m covering criminal justice and public health. I live in San Francisco with my cat, Sally Carrera, but I’ll always be a New Yorker. (Yes, the shelter named my cat after the Porsche from the animated movie Cars.) More by Abigail Vân Neely

Marina Newman

Staff Reporter

I’m reporting on housing, homelessness, and Bayview-Hunters Point. More by Marina Newman

Margaret Kadifa

I’m covering immigration. My background includes stints at The Economist in print and podcasting as well as reporting from The Houston Chronicle and elsewhere. More by Margaret Kadifa

Beth Winegarner

I’m a copy editor and a Bay Area native who’s lived in San Francisco since 2004. I’ve written for local publications like the SF Weekly, San Francisco Examiner, San Francisco Chronicle and San Francisco magazine, as well as the New Yorker, the Guardian, Wired, Mother Jones and others. My favorite tacos and alambres come from El Farolito. More by Beth Winegarner

Interns

Mariana Garcia

Mariana Garcia is a reporting intern covering immigration and graduate of UC Berkeley. Previously, she interned at The Sacramento Bee as a visual journalist, and before that, as a video producer for the Los Angeles Dodgers. When she’s not writing or holding a camera, she enjoys long runs around San Francisco. More by Mariana Garcia

Anusha Subramanian

I’m a data intern at Mission Local, originally from Mumbai, India. I earned my master’s degree from Columbia Journalism School, where I reported on education, health care and New York City. Before journalism, I researched bacterial immunology and genetics at UC Berkeley and wrote for The Daily Californian. I’m passionate about visual storytelling, and at great peril to my bank account, I’m an extreme foodie. More by Anusha Subramanian

Donor Relations Lead

Victoria Anibarro

Donor Relations Lead. Vicky has called many places home, and moved to San Francisco with her husband in 2020 to complete her Master’s in Migration Studies. She enjoys drinking coffee, being in nature, engaging with her community, and asking people to support Mission Local. Donate Today! More by Victoria Anibarro

Advertising & Sales Coordinator

Isaac Cannon

Isaac Cannon is the advertising and sales lead for Mission Local. He earned a B.A. in Business Administration from UNC-Chapel Hill, where he pursued his desire to “reinvent the idea of a crooked businessman” through sustainable, relational, and impact-centered sales and marketing. He is passionate about serving his neighbors, and excited to develop Mission Local’s advertising in a manner that brings value to businesses and readers alike! More by Isaac Cannon

Our super volunteers

Mimi Chakarova

Multimedia advisor. I’m a documentary filmmaker who taught with Lydia at Mission Local when it was a Berkeley Project. Now, I’m called in to advise on projects and delight in doing so. Otherwise, I’m making films. Most recently, In the Red and The Apology as well as short films, The Neighbors and The Block. Other full-length documentaries: The Price of Sex and Men: A Love Story. Find my projects at Still I Rise. More by Mimi Chakarova

George Lipp

George Lipp has long lived in the Mission. He’s our volunteer extraordinaire – always out taking photos or running across crimes in progress. More by George Lipp

Craig Mautner

Craig has been a Mission/Bernal resident since 2011 when he and his wife followed their kids to the Bay Area from SoCal. After a 40-year career in tech he is proud to support Mission Local behind the scenes and as an occasional reporter. When not working on ML Craig spends his time taking his granddaughter around the City, biking, rooting for the Warriors, and fixing pinball machines. More by Craig Mautner

Sara Miles

Volunteer and author of the daily newsletter. I’m a writer who’s covered wars, politics, and religion. I’ve lived in the Mission for over 30 years, and have appreciated the work of Mission Local since it began. More by Sara Miles

Mark Rabine

Mark Rabine has lived in the Mission for over 40 years. “What a long strange trip it’s been.” He has maintained our Covid tracker through most of the pandemic, taking some breaks with his search for the Mission’s best fried-chicken sandwich and now its best noodles. When the Warriors make the playoffs, he writes up his take on the games. More by Mark Rabine

Sandra Salmans

I provide editing support for Mission Local from New York, about 2500 miles away from SFO. (I just looked it up.) This allows me to retain my journalistic objectivity and fussy adherence to East Coast standards of punctuation. I got involved with Mission Local a few years ago through Lydia, whom I met in the early 1980s at The New York Times, where I was a business reporter. Since then I’ve been in and out of journalism and nonprofits, and have also tried my hand at fiction. A couple of years ago I contributed Mission Local’s first fiction series, a comic novel called Love in the Middle Ages. More by Sandra Salmans

Where we are

Our Address: 2489 Mission Street #22, 94110, San Francisco
Our Telephone Number.: 1-415-374-7329

Best way to reach us: info@missionlocal.com

Timeline

2025 June – LION Publishers, a nonprofit focused on sustainability with nearly 600 member sites, named Mission Local a finalist in two categories: Business of the Year in the medium/large revenue tier and Public Service in the large revenue tier.

2025 May – Mission Local wins 12 prizes from the California News Publishers Association, including two first-place wins for in-depth reporting and informational graphics stemming from last year’s election coverage.

We practically swept the informational graphics category, thanks to our outstanding team of data reporters, winning first, third, and fourth-place prizes.

2024 December – Mission Local wins six awards from the San Francisco Press Club. Four first-place awards: Joe Eskenazi for column writing, Beth Winegarner for feature writing,
Eleni Balakrishnan for best news story and Will Jarrett and Gilare Zada for data work. HR Smith, Joe Rivano Barros, Kelly Waldron, won third place for the series “See How They Run”
And Liliana Michelena won third place for sports writing.

2024 November – Mission Local wins two awards from the Society of Professional Journalist of Northern California: One for BigMoneySF under explanatory journalism, and one for our tech coverage.

2024 September – Mission Local wins the General Excellence award from the Online News Association.

2024 August – Mission Local is a finalist for two awards from the Institute for Nonprofit News, one for BigMoneySF and one for our election coverage.

2024 July – Mission Local wins six California Journalism Awards including two first prizes — one for general excellence and one for Joe Eskenazi’s columns.

2023 November – Mission Local wins three awards from the Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California. We also win a first-place prize for feature layout from the San Francisco Press Club, and win four second-place prizes.

2023 August – LION Publishers names Mission Local a finalist for its Outstanding Coverage Award.

2023 August – Mission Local celebrates its quinceañera with a 15-day fundraising drive.

2023 August – Will Jarrett’s Killer Robots series wins the Institute for Nonprofit News’ Community Champion Award.

2022 December – Mission Local picks up four prizes from the San Francisco Press Club, including two for Managing Editor Joe Eskenazi, one for police reporter Eleni Balakrishnan and one for a project produced by Molly Oleson, Sindya Bhanoo and Hélène Goupil.

2022 November – Mission Local’s data reporter Will Jarrett wins the Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California award for data journalism. Andrew Gilbert who contributes culture coverage wins for culture reporting.

2022 September – Mission Local wins the Online News Association award for General Excellence for micro newsrooms.

2022 September – Mission Local wins the Insight Award from the Institute of Nonprofit News for “Garbage Odyssey” by Lydia Chávez, edited by Joe Eskenazi and Sandra Salmans.

2022 August – Mission Local announces an inaugural board of directors to oversee its new nonprofit.

2021 July – Mission Local wins an APEX award for the pandemic project, “How Do We Survive,” supported by the Pulitzer Center.

2021 May – Julian Mark wins the Social Justice Award from the Ethnic Media Awards contest for his piece, “Maurice Caldwell had his conviction overturned a decade ago: city attorney says he’s a killer.”

2021 March – “Testing the Limits,” a series of heavily reported stories spread over the course of months, earned Mission Local a semi-final nod in the Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Journalism.

2021 February – Julian Mark wins outstanding emerging journalist from the Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California.

2020 October – Mission Local wins Best of the Bay award for best website.

2020 March – Mission Local begins a texting service for monolingual Spanish speakers during the pandemic to send real-time news in Spanish.

2019 October – Our managing editor Joe Eskenazi is named journalist of the year.

2018 Fall – Mission Local celebrates 10 years!

2018 October – Mission Local wins three top awards from the Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California.

2018 Summer – We’re in the process of becoming a fiscally sponsored, non-profit project.

2018 Summer – Joe Eskenazi, formerly with SF Weekly and San Francisco Magazine, becomes managing editor

2017 Fall – Instead of covering crime, we focus on covering the SFPD and how it works.

2016 November – In the race for District 9 supervisor, our civic engagement project “43 Questions” runs for 43 weeks and ends in a public forum.

2015/2016 – The community helps photograph every block in the Mission for our “Good Morning Mission” project.

2015 October – Daniel Hirsch, Andrea Valencia, Laura Wenus and Lydia Chavez of Mission Local win the Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California award for Community Journalism for “their broad, in-depth coverage of San Francisco’s Mission District, with a strong focus on how housing issues affect residents.”

2015 March – Mission Local moves into a new space at 19th and Mission.

2015 January – The 108-year-old building where Mission local’s offices are located is damaged in a fire that leaves one dead and dozens of tenants and businesses homeless. Mission Local produces numerous articles covering the fire including two in-depth investigative pieces on the owner. The staff finds temporary refuge with neighbors Mission Bicycle and the data analysis team Wagon.

2014 October – We redesign and add new features. We also start selling business and reader memberships.

2014 September – CBS local names Mission local as one of the best local blogs in the Bay Area. We’re pleased, but we’re not a blog!

2014 June – We’re officially Mission Local, Inc. We publish a print edition of historical pieces.

2014 February – Ed Wasserman, a new dean at Berkeley’s J-school decides that “The curricular value [of Mission Local] to our students is limited or even, at times, non-existent.” He stops funding for the hyperlocals during school breaks or vacations. We disagree about the value, and spin Mission Local off as its own independent, media enterprise.

2013 March – Rent increases mean Mission Local moves to 2588 Mission St.

2011 Fall – Mission Loc@l becomes Mission Local.

2011 September – Streetfight writes about Mission Local as the “Hyperlocal That Gets Its Right”.

2010 Fall – Mission Local is a finalist for the Society of Professional Journalists’ National Mark of Excellence Award.

2010 May – Mission Local wins first place from the Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California for How Clean Are San Francisco Restaurants? The series changes the citywide restaurant inspection policy.

2009 Fall – We begin a collaboration with SFGate, posting our stories on their local blogs with link backs to Mission Local. The concrete sculptures on 20th Street won’t budge from their space so we find new offices on Treat and 17th streets.

2009 August – KQED notices our on-the-ground reporting of the changes on Mission Street.

2009 June – Mission Local wins a Webby Award for the best student news site in the country.

2009 March – Mission Local begins translating all of its content into Spanish.

2009 January – We get our first office in the Mission on 20th Street, sharing 600 square feet with some enormous concrete garden sculptures.

2008 October – Launched as a project of UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism. Great stories, but no one is reading us.