If you're a regular reader of the Duluth News Tribune, you likely noticed the big change atop the front page the moment the paper hit your doorstep or you picked it up at the gas station this morning - well before you read the first big headline. Today is the debut of the News Tribune's brand-new flag. It's bigger, more colorful and better represents our news organization today. It's also the result of many hours of meetings, loads of input, countless votes and myriad revisions. A few months back, News Tribune publisher Neal Ronquist asked members of each department of the newspaper to create a new nameplate that also would be used in marketing efforts and the overall rebranding of our organization. He wanted a fresh look. He got it.
The News Tribune's flag has changed a lot since the paper's beginnings in the 1800s. For many years the ornate type read "The Duluth News Tribune." But somewhere along the way "The" fell off the page and the nameplate became "Duluth News Tribune." That's how the flag remained for decades - tweaked a bit here and there - in bold, dark type. Although there was a brief time several years ago that "Duluth News Tribune" was displayed in white letters on a red background. Those same three words make up the nameplate today, albeit in a slightly different fashion. Jon Godfrey, one of the News Tribune's top graphic designers, carefully and creatively crafted the new nameplate with a lot of co-worker input. Godfrey used the same font for "News Tribune" as the old flag, Escrow Semibold, but made some minor adjustments in letter spacing and expanded the point size from 100 points to 145. Most folks probably won't notice this, but the "arms" that come down from the top of the "T" in "Tribune" are not quite as pronounced as they once were. The biggest change is with the "Duluth" portion of the flag. It's 33-point Myriad Bold and sits atop "News Tribune." As Godfrey explains it, "It's smaller but in an elevated 'top' position, overseeing everything, and 'News Tribune' is bigger, stronger, brighter." It's also bluer. We didn't choose blue because it's most everyone's favorite color. (I prefer orange myself, but that suggestion didn't take root.) As marketers know, there's meaning in every color of a company's brand. Studies show that blue evokes thoughts of "trust," "strength," "dependability," "confidence," "integrity," "sincerity," "harmony" and "communication" - words we felt represented our mission at the News Tribune better than other colors and their meanings. For our new nameplate, Godfrey blended his own version of the color blue. His not-so-secret recipe is 100 percent cyan, 34 percent magenta and 7 percent yellow. "I call it DNT blue, which is how the world should refer to that particular blue from now on," Godfrey quipped, "or we could call it Lake Superior blue because the lake is such an all-encompassing entity for so many of us that live near it." Whether it's called DNT blue, Lake Superior blue or another apt name, we're proud to unveil the latest version of the Duluth News Tribune flag.If you're a regular reader of the Duluth News Tribune, you likely noticed the big change atop the front page the moment the paper hit your doorstep or you picked it up at the gas station this morning - well before you read the first big headline.Today is the debut of the News Tribune's brand-new flag.It's bigger, more colorful and better represents our news organization today.It's also the result of many hours of meetings, loads of input, countless votes and myriad revisions.A few months back, News Tribune publisher Neal Ronquist asked members of each department of the newspaper to create a new nameplate that also would be used in marketing efforts and the overall rebranding of our organization.He wanted a fresh look.He got it.
The News Tribune's flag has changed a lot since the paper's beginnings in the 1800s. For many years the ornate type read "The Duluth News Tribune." But somewhere along the way "The" fell off the page and the nameplate became "Duluth News Tribune." That's how the flag remained for decades - tweaked a bit here and there - in bold, dark type. Although there was a brief time several years ago that "Duluth News Tribune" was displayed in white letters on a red background.Those same three words make up the nameplate today, albeit in a slightly different fashion.Jon Godfrey, one of the News Tribune's top graphic designers, carefully and creatively crafted the new nameplate with a lot of co-worker input.Godfrey used the same font for "News Tribune" as the old flag, Escrow Semibold, but made some minor adjustments in letter spacing and expanded the point size from 100 points to 145. Most folks probably won't notice this, but the "arms" that come down from the top of the "T" in "Tribune" are not quite as pronounced as they once were.The biggest change is with the "Duluth" portion of the flag. It's 33-point Myriad Bold and sits atop "News Tribune."As Godfrey explains it, "It's smaller but in an elevated 'top' position, overseeing everything, and 'News Tribune' is bigger, stronger, brighter."It's also bluer.We didn't choose blue because it's most everyone's favorite color. (I prefer orange myself, but that suggestion didn't take root.) As marketers know, there's meaning in every color of a company's brand. Studies show that blue evokes thoughts of "trust," "strength," "dependability," "confidence," "integrity," "sincerity," "harmony" and "communication" - words we felt represented our mission at the News Tribune better than other colors and their meanings.For our new nameplate, Godfrey blended his own version of the color blue. His not-so-secret recipe is 100 percent cyan, 34 percent magenta and 7 percent yellow."I call it DNT blue, which is how the world should refer to that particular blue from now on," Godfrey quipped, "or we could call it Lake Superior blue because the lake is such an all-encompassing entity for so many of us that live near it."Whether it's called DNT blue, Lake Superior blue or another apt name, we're proud to unveil the latest version of the Duluth News Tribune flag.
