By VERNON ROBISON
Publisher/Editor
The Progress, the independent newspaper serving the northeast Clark County communities of the Moapa and Virgin Valleys, has undergone a significant rebranding process.
As you can see, this week we unveil a significant change to our masthead logo artwork that will be displayed each week across the top of our publication.
But in addition to that, the newspaper has also undergone a slight name change. As of this week, we become the “Mesa Valleys Progress,” a name which, I feel, better encapsulates both the unity and diversity of the communities that we serve.
Before rumors start to fly, though, let me emphasize that this is the full extent of the change. Local ownership of the newspaper has remained exactly the same. Also unchanged will be our focus and mission of serving our communities as an independent, locally-owned news voice.
It has been nearly two-and-a-half years since our last rebranding, which was rolled out abruptly in April of 2020, amidst the darkest uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time, we went from being a Moapa Valley-centered publication, to becoming more broadly focused in offering news, events and advertising equally in both Moapa Valley and Virgin Valley.
In a column published on April 29, 2020, I wrote about how this broadening of focus was not a sudden move, nor was it a new idea. We had been moving slowly in that direction for several years before that time. But the sudden impacts of the pandemic in those early weeks, especially on the news media landscape in Mesquite, quickened our schedule and ushered in the new era much sooner than we had ever planned or intended.
Though we have experienced some difficult workflow challenges and have felt significant growing pains since the grim Spring of 2020, I feel that the Progress has been successful in its mission of recording, reporting, delving into and celebrating the people, events and issues of our two “Mesa Valleys.” Though we have a long way to go, I am proud of what we have accomplished in so short a time.
But though the idea for that expansion was not new back in 2020, the artwork development process of that year’s rebranding was done too hastily. To be frank, with all that was going on, there was simply no time, that April, for careful consideration or even much thought. It was a swift revamp that had to be done ‘quick and dirty.’ And that is exactly how it went.
It wasn’t more than a few weeks after that change that I was already thinking about what we would do for a more extensive and permanent rebranding. I began to work with our excellent graphic arts team to begin that process. And a long process it has been.
In my mind, the new logo would have to solve a lot of problems, answer a lot of questions, and tie up a lot of loose ends. It hasn’t been easy for it to get there. It has been a heavy lift for our graphics folks!
We began, as a team, talking about general graphic themes that would better represent and identify our regional landscape, our readership and our communities. A desert mesa was identified early on as the central graphic element in the designs. And what would that mesa be without both of the iconic letters emblazoned on its slope to represent the two high schools that are so much at the center of our thriving local culture?
I found true serendipity in the realization that our use of these two important letters – the ‘M’ for Moapa Valley, and the ‘V’ for Virgin Valley – also solved a nagging problem with our website domain name.
Established many years ago as mvprogress.com, when we were the “Moapa Valley Progress,” it has been a struggle figuring out how to keep that domain relevant during the past couple of years. But all is happily brought back home again, full circle, to now represent the newly named “Mesa Valleys Progress.” Surely it was all meant to be!
Now to conclude, I am acutely aware that change is uncomfortable. Many people may grumble at this new look and new name for their old hometown paper. But let me repeat once again, our readers can rest easy knowing that nothing else has changed. The Progress is still devoted to staying laser-focused in our coverage of local events, personalities, issues, triumphs and struggles of these communities that we love. These things will not change!
But to those folks who still may be off-put by the change, I deeply apologize. And to make amends, I give full permission for everyone to just continue calling us “The Progress” if you want to. That is really how we have always been known throughout our 35 year history anyway, despite a myriad of different brands. We are still just fine with that.
Finally, thank you all for your patience with us as we have grown, changed and transformed over the years. Thank you for your continued loyalty to our brand.
Thank you to our advertisers for their support in making it possible to have a strong and vibrant newspaper in our small communities. That is a rarety in our modern digital world.
And finally, thanks to all of you for reading the Mesa Valleys Progress!
