Help Us Rename the Daily Phoenix Light-Rail Publication

It’s been 42 days and counting since the Knight Foundation announced that Daily Phoenix, our hybrid platform to deliver news and information to urban audiences by light-rail stop, won startup funding. Back here in the scorching confines of Phoenix, the interest was immediate. Local TV station KTVK-TV Channel 3 interviewed us on their signature program, Good Morning Arizona.

It was an incredible opportunity and an enlightening experience that really helped us out. For those of you who are thinking about doing a new media project or are already working on one, the TV interview format can be a boon as it forces you to sum up your project in small sound bites (while under the extreme pressure of being on live television).

Apparently, we did a great job. How do I know this? Well, when we laid out the basics of the project (our pitch), the anchor, Tess Rafols, thought it made perfect sense and, in fact, was surprised no one had thought of it yet. (The Internet is a pretty big place, so trust us, Tess — this idea is floating around elsewhere.) Still, we were very encouraged, and we think we are bringing a great concept to the table.

Now for the fun part: The interview also made us re-think our name, Daily Phoenix.

This has been a source of angst for us since the interview. Why? Well, the word “Daily” doesn’t really add much utility to the name and isn’t very descriptive. It’s on the Web, so, of course, anything can be “daily.” Originally, we thought it made sense because it gave people the sense that this is a publication — which, indeed, is the exact reaction we have received. But others have said that it sounds like “old media.”

The word “Phoenix” is also troubling. The bulk of our light-rail system is in Phoenix, but it also runs out to the suburbs of Tempe and Mesa. Although newbies use the word “Phoenix” to refer to the region, using “Phoenix” in our name could alienate local folks (our primary users).

As a result, we’ve decided to brainstorm a new list of names over the next two weeks. This will be a collaborative tool for the community, so, in that spirit, I’d like to toss out this opportunity to the Idea Lab audience for help. We can’t offer fame or fortune, but we can offer that cocktail party “coolness” factor if your name — or some mashup of names submitted below — actually sticks.

Here are our basic guidelines:

• Our project uses web, print and mobile technologies to deliver information by light-rail stop to urban audiences. They can collaborate or use it to guide themselves around the city’s news, events and services.

• Because of this, they should feel like they have control over their environment. This is an empowering tool for them.

• It’s location-based knowledge — meaning it has an awareness at a certain point and time.

• Whatever the name is, it would be nice if it could become a verb among our users (i.e., “googled”).

That’s it! Although we’re coming up with our own list, any suggestions below in the comments are welcome. Thanks!