Editorial: It's time you joined the conversation

One of the privileges of working for a media company is the opportunity to occasionally talk up your own products.

I hope readers will forgive me for using today's column to give our redesigned website, hbtoday.co.nz, a wee nudge.

Our goal at Hawke's Bay Today is to be the leading media outlet in the region. That means we aspire to not only publish one of the strongest regional newspapers in New Zealand but also to deliver the best local news website in Hawke's Bay and to be active in social media.

We've made big strides in the past 12 months and yesterday we relaunched our website with a crisper design and, importantly, the ability for you, our readers, to comment.

We see it as part of our mission to not only deliver you the news but also to offer the platform for you to tell us what you think both in paper and online.

People in Hawke's Bay love to comment on issues for the region and our stories of the day. We have one of the most engaged readerships in New Zealand and we sincerely hope you will not only continue to write and text the editor for publication on this page but also join the conversation online.

All you have to do is register to comment - a quick and painless process that costs nothing. So get online now at hbtoday.co.nz

Hawke's Bay Today is a finalist in the Pacific Area Newspaper Publishers Association annual awards for Newspaper of the Year. The Panpa Awards, announced in Sydney tomorrow, are keenly contested by newspapers in New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific. It is an accolade just to be nominated as a finalist by the judges in our category, daily newspapers with circulation up to 25,000.

Hawke's Bay Today photographer Paul Taylor is a finalist in two categories at the Panpa Awards and we congratulate him on the achievement.