New Name Same Great Service

This month, The Tampa Tribune's Newspaper In Education (NIE) officially changed its name to News In Education. Our name and logo have changed, but our quality curriculum and commitment to education and customer service has not. "Increasingly, young persons are getting news and information through multiple sources, including print, broadcast and online," states Tampa Tribune Publisher Gil Thelen. "Our name change reflects that change and positions our efforts to be more connected to the real lives of students."

As of January 2003, all of The Tampa Tribune's NIE curriculum has included multi-media activities focusing on the use of the newspaper, Internet and television news. Changing the name and logo of the department is a natural progression. "The name of the program has expanded from 'Newspaper in Education' to 'News in Education' to reflect the multi-media strategy of the campus," states Amy Chown, marketing director at The Tampa Tribune.

As part of our commitment to improving education, NIE, in partnership with WFLA-TV News Channel 8 and TBO.com, has expanded to reflect a multi-media strategy. The NIE team has been working closely with WFLA-TV and TBO.com to develop curriculum activities that will enhance students' and teachers' educational experiences.

"Combining newspaper, television and on-line in NIE publications is a natural next step," states Brad Moses, director WFLA-TV News Channel 8. "NIE is a great way for kids to learn and the synergy of having all three media will give students a broader understanding of the world and the media itself."

NIE is a cooperative effort between schools and The Tampa Tribune to promote the use of newspapers as an educational resource. As always, NIE curriculum will go hand-in-hand with using The Tampa Tribune as a teaching tool. "Newspapers play a huge role in defining communities … Our goal is to reflect our community," states Donna Reed, managing editor of The Tampa Tribune.

"The Internet can be a nexus of community news, information and commerce … Furthermore, the Internet is a very convenient medium. A user's Internet experience may be active (searching) passive (browsing) or interactive (posting, messaging or chatting). The Internet is a wonderful enabler of news, information and communication - be it as micro as a neighborhood or as macro as the world," states Kirk Read, general manager, Tampa Bay Online.

"The Tampa Tribune's move from Newspaper In Education to News In Education reflects a broader shift that is occurring across the country," states Jim Abbott, vice president, Newspaper Association of America (NAA) Foundation. "Increasingly newspapers are becoming dispensers of information rather than simply producers of ink on paper. The use of the Internet, partnerships with other media outlets and the new concept of delivering information via handheld devices all reinforce our role as solid, reliable providers of information. News In Education certainly reflects the broader mission of the Tribune's NIE department. The quality educational products are certainly important but in today's world we can and do deliver the information students need in a wide variety of ways."

NIE's partnership with TBO.com and WFLA-TV News Channel 8 will augment NIE's curricula and the use of The Tampa Tribune in the classroom. "The news media is the extension of our own daily experience and author of the first draft of history," states Bob Hite, senior anchor WFLA-TV News Channel 8.