Nick Barbaro

Niccolo Raffaele Barbaro (born 1952), better known as Nick Barbaro, is an American journalist and businessman who is the co-founder of The Austin Chronicle and co-creator of the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival. Barbaro's contributions have helped define the Austin, Texas music community. He was also the publisher of The Austin Chronicle, an alternative weekly newspaper, which he founded in 1981 with Louis Black. In March 2025, Barbaro retired after 46 years and named Cassidy Frazier as the new publisher. Barbaro will remain as president of the Austin Chronicle Corporation.

Biography Barbaro is the son of Marilyn Buferd (Miss America 1946) and Francesco Barbaro, a WWII Italian submarine commander, movie agent and producer. Barbaro grew up in Los Angeles and also Dallas. He attended UCLA where he developed his interest in cinema.

In the mid-1970s he moved to Austin and enrolled in the University of Texas. There he earned a graduate degree in Radio, Television, and Film. While at UT he worked on The Daily Texan where he served as film critic.

He lives in Austin with his wife Susan Moffat.