After the St. Louis Post-Dispatch launched a blog called “The Platform” Sunday, Margaret Wolf Freivogel, editor of the new non-profit news site the Saint Louis Platform, knew there would have to be a name change.

To be reborn as the “Saint Louis Beacon,” this local news hub created by some former Post-Dispatch employees will focus on shining “the light on news that matters to our region.”

Together, we can pierce the darkness with quality reporting and thoughtful discussion. We can generate a Beacon that illuminates our region and shines outward to the world.

Even though “Platform” name has been in use for months now, Freivogel thought a name change would easier since the site is still in its test phases.

In a statement on the site, the editors wrote:

We’re taking this step to avoid any confusion that might result from the recent appearance of a new blog created for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch editorial page. We were surprised to discover that the blog’s name is The Platform and that the name appears in print announcements with a trademark symbol next to it.

In the statement, the editors stated that the new Web address will be stlbeacon.org, but if you stop by using the original address it will automatically take you to the new Beacon site.

To see the site at its current address, click here.

A gaggle of ex-Post-Dispatch employees banded together this year to create Saint Louis Platform, an online news magazine filled with original reporting on the metro area. But strangely on Sunday the St. Louis Post-Dispatch announced their new editorial blog called The Platform.

Coincidence or not?

Platform Editor Margaret Wolf Freivogel weighed in Monday that the timing seemed “odd.”

“We’ve been operating under that name for a number of months,” she said, later adding, “You’d have to see what’s going on in the mind with the corporate headquarters.”

Because of the kerfuffle, Freivogel said the site will be changing its name to avoid confusion and a possible copyright drama. The Post-Dispatch has placed a trademark symbol near their blog’s name. While it’s unlikely that they have the trademark, Freivogel said it may demonstrate their intent.

“We’re just getting started and we’re at a point that we can change things pretty easy,” she said, adding she is “flattered that they like it.”

Freivogel said the non-profit site picked the name platform because of the word’s multiple meanings, referring to the technology platform of the internet, a platform for people to speak out on and Post-Dispatch Publisher Joseph Pulitzer’s platform statement, which was an “inspiration” to the site’s creators.

“But we feel like whether it was deliberate or not this is causing confusion about who we area. It makes it difficult for people to find us,” she said.

As for the site itself, Freivogel said it’s going well. They have a beta site up for people to peruse and give feedback on. They’ve already started posting original content and hope for the site to become a place for people to get information and voice their own opinions about St. Louis.

Check out the test site here.