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Today we begin a four-day effort to sign up as many new members and renew as many old ones as possible — and in doing so, help fund our great reporting and our innovative use of technology. Won't you support us?

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We are less than 24 hours away from the first-ever Texas Tribune Festival. It would be a wicked understatement to say we're excited.

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Another month, another new traffic record for the Tribune. And we did it while sweating through the hottest August in Austin history.

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The Trib has been honored with a Knight-Batten Award for our innovative use and presentation of data, which the judges called "fundamental to its journalism." We couldn't have said it any better.

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We've been saying all along that the Trib is unbiased and transparent — but now you don't have to take our word for it.

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Perrypedia is a curated, one-stop location for news and information on Rick Perry.

Yes, we know Rick Perry isn't a declared candidate for president — yet. But on the theory that it's better to be prepared than not, we've created a one-stop, curated home for data and information on all things Perry. It's called Perrypedia.

Enlarge graphic by: Todd Wiseman

Got photos of the great Texas drought of 2011 or a massive wildfire? Video of Rick Perry or Ron Paul on the hustings? We've got a place for it: the Trib's new multimedia Tumblr.

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...Karen Wood, who also won in April, making her our first repeat winner. Can you keep her from claiming the July QRANK:TT prize, whose estimated value is $800?

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Put another way: Our traffic in the first six months of 2011 was 2.5 times what it was in the equivalent period last year. Blame the legislative session, yes — but as I've said before, this thing is working.

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Congrats, "acw": You're our QRANK:TT winner for May, with a score of 112,218 points. And now on to our June game, in which the fabulous prize you're competing for is...

Enlarge graphic by: Ben Hasson

It would be impossible to overstate the degree to which Matt Stiles has been responsible for our success in our first 18-plus months — which is why we're sorry to see him go.

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It's always a kick to announce big hires, and this one is massive: Jay Root, an award-winning journalist who has set a standard for coverage of Texas politics and breaking news with The Associated Press and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, is joining the Tribune's staff.

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I'm overjoyed to report that last week's brief membership drive — our first ever — exceeded our wildest expectations on the number of members generated, the amount of money raised and the size of the average gift.

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Nice to discover — belatedly — that Fast Company magazine named the Tribune one of the 10 most innovative media companies in the world in its March 2011 issue, which is all about the most innovative companies of 2011.

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It's exactly 18 months since we launched, and by now you know that we're in this for you — for Texas. If you believe in our brand of public service journalism, if you care about the big issues affecting every one of us, now is the time to become a member of The Texas Tribune.