Johnstown newspaper considers Tribune without Democrat

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http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06176/700763-85.stm

By Caitlin Cleary, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

For 54 years, what many Johnstowners called their daily newspaper depended on family history.

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Now, The Tribune-Democrat, its official name since 1952, when the afternoon Tribune merged with the morning Democrat, could become simply The Tribune. Newspaper officials are thinking of dropping Democrat as part of a major redesign that will roll out July 2, over the objections of some readers and employees who detect political overtones in the shift.

In a recent internal memo to Tribune-Democrat employees, publisher Chris Voccio listed several reasons in favor of changing the name, including an effort to cast off any appearance of political-party affiliation.

"The term Democrat means something very different today than it did in years gone by," Mr. Voccio wrote. "We are not a house organ for any political party, so why should we continue to use the name Democrat?"