I’ve been presented with a great opportunity that I hope other news innovators will follow and offer advice and guidance when needed. I am documenting this adventure at the News Tribe.

The company where I work, Gazette Communications, is undergoing a huge transformation. Part of that includes rebuilding and re-envisioning a local news and information web site, GazetteOnline, from scratch.

That task probably doesn’t sound all that exciting knowing how media companies work. But that’s the cool part. Part of the company’s transformation up to this point has eliminated many of the barriers that have gotten in the way in the past.

There are still some constraints: 1) We have an August 1 timeframe to launch 2) We need to be in a better position to make revenue 3) Moving to the Wordpress platform. That’s it.

Working on this project with me is Product Manager Sarah Gorsh and Creative Director Michal Zydzik, both recent new hires at Gazette Communications. I was named Brand Editor of GazetteOnline recently.

In order to be as transparent as possible, we’ve created a place called News Tribe to document our progress and invite collaboration and engagement.

News – A report of recent events. Previously unknown information. Something having a specific influence or effect. Anything about anything, submitted by anyone. Timely, relevant and engaging stuff that comes in many formats: text, photo video, Twitter, Facebook messages, SMS, ect.

Tribe – A group of people connected to an idea. Any group sharing like habits, interests, qualities and characteristics, and among whom leadership is typically neither formalized nor permanent. A social group. A collaboration.

The process has already begun. We’ve tried to explain what we are doing and what we’re about. We’ve also taken our first stab at a new logo and tagline, and are considering a few themes.

Here is what we are operating under in terms of a position statement, but how we get there is entirely up to us.

GazetteOnline will be the online resource for local breaking news and information for Eastern Iowans who demand immediacy, trustworthiness and quality.

GazetteOnline will keep fresh and alive by updating content every 15 minutes during peak news times and utilize smart, innovative tools to enable users to share, contribute and engage. It will become clear to Eastern Iowans that GazetteOnline is their source to keep up with their ever-changing world.

What do you think?