Jake Shapiro, executive director of Public Radio Exchange (PRX), introduces the [Beyond Broadcast: Reinventing Public Media Conference](http://www.beyondbroadcast.net/). The conference explores the thesis that traditional public media face a unique opportunity to embrace new participatory web-based media models-- podcasting, video blogs, social software, etc.--and create a stronger and more vital public service.
Previously Associate Director of the Berkman Center, Jake Shapiro now oversees various media projects. Jake is executive director of The Public Radio Exchange, a nonprofit online clearinghouse and community site for audio content. Jake has been producer and director of business development for Lydon McGrath Inc.; he was a producer for *The Connection with Christopher Lydon*- a nationally syndicated public radio talk show. He also has extensive experience in both research and web development at Harvard; among other endeavors, Jake developed web resources for the Davis Center for Russian Studies, the Harvard Project on Cold War Studies, and the Harvard Central Asia Forum. He also spent two years in Moscow, Russia as program coordinator of the Moscow Institute for Advanced Studies. Jake is co-founder of L-Shaped Records, guitarist for the local rock band Two Ton Shoe, and studio cellist on many independent and major label recordings. Jake graduated from Harvard in 1993, majoring in History and Literature; he is a fluent Russian speaker, plays guitar and cello, and lives in Brighton with his wife Elena Gorodenskaya.