From Columbine to Parkland and every town in between, there is no man, woman, or child in the United States immune to the real danger of gun violence. Jennifer Boylan, Volunteer Legislative Lead of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America will be one of the presenters; she will talk about the work Moms […]
Ryan Belmore
Ryan Belmore is the owner and publisher of What's Up Newp. He took over the publication in 2012 and has grown it into a three-time Rhode Island Monthly Best Local News Blog (2018, 2019, 2020).
He was named LION Publishers Member of the Year in 2020 and received the Dominique Award from the Arts & Cultural Society of Newport County the same year. He has been awarded grants for investigative and community journalism, and continues to coach and mentor new local news publications nationwide.
Ryan is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, Online News Association, and Local Independent Online News Publishers. He is committed to the codes of ethics of these organizations: accuracy, independence, accountability, and transparency.
In Newport, Ryan served on the boards of the Fort Adams Trust and Potter League for Animals, and hosted a daily radio talk show for four years.
In 2021, Ryan moved to Alexandria, Virginia, to support his wife Jen's career. He launched The Alexandria Brief in 2025, applying what he learned in Newport to a new community. With the help of some talented on-the-ground contributors, he still runs What's Up Newp — and always will.
Contact: ryan@whatsupnewp.com.
Posted inCity & Government
Pell Elementary School becomes first school in Rhode Island to participate in national ‘Gratitude Campaign’
Pell Elementary School will kick off their two-week “Gratitude Campaign” as part of a larger initiative called Look For The Good Project, a Connecticut based non-profit organization that has inspired thousands of kids nationally and internationally to uplift their school communities with gratitude and kindness, Newport Public Schools announced in a press release today. Pell is the first […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Flo’s Clam Shack adds 25-foot shark from Mardi Gras Multi-Club to restaurant decorations
The 25-foot (somewhat) iconic shark that sat atop Mardi Gras Multi-Club in Cranston for many years has found a new home, and it’s on Aquidneck Island. Flo’s Clam Shack announced on its Facebook Page this week that they are “Going to need a bigger shack!” and plan on bringing the shark to “Middletown first”. Flo’s […]
Posted inCity & Government
Senator DiPalma and Representative Abney introduce bill to create commission on biennial budgeting
Senator Louis DiPalma (D-Dist. 12, Middletown, Little Compton, Newport, Tiverton) has introduced a bill (2018-S 2253) that would create a special legislative commission to study the possibility of transitioning Rhode Island to a biennial budget. House Committee on Finance Chairman Marvin Abney (D-Dist. 73, Newport, Middletown) has introduced the companion legislation (2018-H 7801) in the […]
Posted inThings To Do
30+ things to do this weekend: March 2 – 4
Discover all that’s happening, new and to do in and around Newport this weekend. Friday, March 2nd Newport Restaurant Week 2 pm – Oscar Shorts: Live Action at Jane Pickens Theater 4:45 pm – Call Me By Your Name at Jane Pickens Theater 6 pm – The 6th Annual JAC Lantern Parade at Jamestown Arts Center 7 pm – A Collection of Attitudes at […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Live music and entertainment listings: March 2 – 4
Our Newport Live Music and Entertainment Guide is Newport County’s premier and most comprehensive source for live music and entertainment in our area. Here’s a look at all the live music and entertainment that’s worth seeing, hearing, doing, or knowing about in Newport County this weekend. Friday, March 2nd Buskers: Sean Connell at 9 pmCeltica: Karaoke […]
Posted inNews
Recap: 10 most-read, most-shared stories in February 2018
Wondering what the talk of the town was around Newport in February? While covering dozens of events and posting hundreds of stories in the month of February, it’s the news that’s unexpected, original and breaking news that saw the most traffic on our site. Most-Read Stories Owners of Rosemary & Thyme opening second restaurant in […]
Posted inNews
Podcast: A conversation with Nellie Gorbea, Rhode Island Secretary of State
Rhode Island Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea joined What’sUpNewp’s Frank Prosnitz on this edition of The Open Forum on AM 1540 WADK. The two focused their conversation on cybersecurity, early voting and other important issues with which her office is involved. Gorbea was elected Rhode Island’s Secretary of State in 2015, becoming the first Hispanic elected […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Newport Jazz Assembly Band to perform at schools in Rhode Island and Connecticut
Newport Jazz Festival Assembly, a performance series presented by Newport Festivals Foundation, Inc., which has brought music to dozens of schools throughout Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, will perform in March at schools in East Hartford and Norwalk, CT, and Providence, RI. The series, funded by Newport Festivals Foundation, Inc., connects professional musicians to schools […]
Posted inCity & Government
Senator Euer, Representative Carson denounce federal plan to drill offshore
Opening nearly all of the United States’ coasts to oil and gas drilling would knock the United States backward in environmental protection and sustainability and could have catastrophic effects on the Ocean State, said Rep. Lauren H. Carson and Sen. Dawn Euer today. The two Newport legislators spoke at an Environment Council of Rhode Island […]
Posted inNews
What’sUpNewp Radio #80: Senator Dawn Euer
Senator Dawn Euer (D. Dist. 13, Newport & Jamestown) joined Ryan Belmore and Frank Prosnitz by phone today to chat about legislation that is meant to provide disincentives to the oil industry to prevent drilling off Rhode Island’s coast, her work with reproductive rights, her take on the Governor’s Red Flag Law, healthcare in Rhode Island, […]
Posted inCity & Government
Representative Carson, Senator Euer to participate in events today to protest federal oil drilling plan
Representative Lauren Carson (D. Dist. 75, Newport) and Senator Dawn Euer (D. Dist. 13, Newport & Jamestown) will join Governor Gina M. Raimondo and the Environment Council of Rhode Island for events Wednesday to demonstrate Rhode Island’s opposition to the Trump administration’s efforts to open up nearly all of the United States’ coasts to offshore oil and […]
Posted inThings To Do
Newport Tour Guides & Greeters News #9: The pursuit of wow
I have always believed that we need to give every guest all we’ve got and deliver a “WOW! Experience” every time. We have the opportunity to transform every visitor to Newport into a lifelong ambassador for our city and its many attractions. Writer and international hospitality expert Micah Solomon explains it this way: “Creating a […]
Posted inJobs
Now Hiring: 90+ companies hiring right now in and around Newport
Time for a new part-time gig, new full-time job or a new career? Start your job search right here, there are more than 90 businesses hiring right now in and around Newport. All job listings have been posted within the last 7 days and are located within 5 miles of Newport. 22 Bowen’s – Line Cooks […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Newport-Kinsale Chef Exchange will celebrate Sister City bond from March 10th – 14th
Chefs from Kinsale, Ireland, will descend on Newport for four days of culinary and cultural exchange from March 10th – 14th. This March, while the City by the Sea celebrates its 41st Annual Irish Heritage Month, local restaurants will welcome guest chefs and restaurants from Kinsale, the “Gourmet Capital of Ireland,” located in County Cork. […]
Posted inNews
Second-grader at Pell Elementary School honored with Newport Police Department’s first ‘Young Hero Award’
Pell Elementary second grade student Andrew Novaes, was honored this morning by a contingent of officers from Newport’s Police and Fire Department, who visited Mrs. Bonnie Cecil’s classroom at the Pell School to present the Newport Police Department’s First Young Hero Award. According to a press release from Newport Public Schools, Andrew’s mother, Tatiana Lima […]
Posted inEnvironment & Health
Two Canadian sailors receive boats from the 2017 Clagett Boat Grant Program
The C. Thomas Clagett, Jr. Memorial Clinic and Regatta have announced the recipients of two 2.4mR boats from The Clagett Boat Grant Program are two sailors from Canada, Shaylagh Ley from Nepean, Ontario on Canada’s East Coast and Delani Hulme Lawrence from St Paul in Victoria, British Columbia on the West Coast. “We are very […]
Posted inCity & Government
Westerly Town Manager leaves for Mansfield, CT.
After two and a half years on the job, Westerly’s Town Manager, Derrik M. Kennedy, is leaving to accept the Town Manager’s position in Mansfield, CT, where he’ll earn a substantial pay increase and leave behind rumors that his job in Westerly was in jeopardy. Kennedy resisted a last-ditch effort Monday night by some Westerly […]
Posted inBusiness, Jobs
IYRS will host Career Day on March 24th
The International Yacht Restoration School (IYRS) will host a Career Day on March 24th from 9 am to 1 pm at the IYRS campus on lower Thames Street in Newport. Career Day is a free job and career-exploration fair that draws employers who come to this annual event with one goal in mind: to connect with individuals with […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Author shares history of RI’s first black militia for NUWC Division Newport’s commemoration of Black History Month
The contributions of men of color during the American Revolution were explained by historian and author Robert Geake on Feb. 22 to commemorate Black History Month at Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport. Titled “Privates, Pilots and Privateers,” the discussion focused on the history of the Continental Army’s 1st Rhode Island Regiment, known as the […]
Posted inNews
Volvo Ocean Race: Team AkzoNobel holds off late charge to win epic Leg 6 into Auckland
Team AkzoNobel has won Leg 6 of the Volvo Ocean Race, racing 6,344 miles from Hong Kong to Auckland in 20 days, 9 hours and 17 minutes and 26 seconds. It was a tremendous win, and came after an epic final 24 hours, when a ridge of high pressure off the north east coast of New […]
Posted inCity & Government
RIDOT to host public workshop on Pell Bridge Ramp Project on March 1st
Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) will be holding a public workshop to provide information about the reconstruction of the Pell Bridge Interchange in Newport. The public forum is scheduled for Thursday, March 1st at 6 pm at Newport City Hall.
Posted inArts & Culture, Things To Do
41st Annual Irish Heritage Month set to officially open on Sunday with Dancing at Forty Steps
The 41st annual Newport Irish Heritage Month kicks off on Sunday, March 4th, at 3:00 pm, with Dancing at the Forty Steps. In addition to dancing and live Irish music, the AOH Men choral group will provide some sing-a-long Irish songs. Weather permitting, of course. This event not only officially begins Irish Heritage Month […]
Posted inBusiness, Food & Drink
Great American Beer Bars: CraftBeer.com readers choose Norey’s as best beer bar in Rhode Island
Norey’s has been recognized as the best beer bar in Rhode Island in the annual Great American Beer Bars competition conducted by CraftBeer.com —the Brewers Association website for beer lovers. Norey’s, which was founded in 2000, offers at least 20 taps and 110 bottles of some of the world’s best and rarest craft beers. “There are more than 6,000 small and […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Newport Burger Bender: Winner, Critic’s Choice, and Most Creative revealed
Thirty local restaurants cooked up their best burgers, topped them with everything from frizzled onion straws and mac & cheese to creole remoulade sauce and jalapeno jam, placed it all between a bun (or loaded potato skins) and tossed it into the ring during the 2nd Annual Newport Burger Bender contest, held in Newport and […]