When futurists ponder the outlook for news media in the 21st century, they don’t need a crystal ball.

They need only look to Tampa, where the news operations of The Tampa Tribune and the entire operational structures of Tampa Bay Online (TBO.com) and WFLA-TV are coming together under the same roof.

Within the sand-colored walls of the News Center, Media General has taken a giant step toward convergence, where the depth of newspapers, the drama of television and the power of the Internet come together.

The point of convergence is actually a large circle of workstations wired into a complex network of computer systems that serve as the electronic brains for The Tampa Tribune, WFLA and TBO.com. This multimedia desk is the heart and soul of the News Center. From this desk, editors, producers and researchers from each medium work side-by-side to cover the news of the Tampa Bay region and to share information as events develop.

Each medium will continue to produce content in its own unique form and style, using the highly developed talents of its own reporters, photographers, artists and technologists. But their collaborative efforts will be collected, adapted and presented in the best way possible, using the latest technology available.

The intent is to make Media General the indispensable source of news and information for people in the Tampa Bay area. This news and information will be there whenever they need it, however they want it — in print first thing in the morning, on their television screens several times throughout the day and over the Internet continuously via their computer, cell phone, pager or whatever device the next technological breakthrough brings.

The News Center is a testament to the strategic vision of Media General and the determination of the management at the Company’s various operating units in Tampa. But its success hinges on the ability of staff members at the newspaper, the online service and the television station to re-examine traditional roles of gathering and presenting news.

For more than a year, employee teams met to study how this convergence of media would work, to develop plans to draw the operations together and to find ways of presenting the concepts so they would win support throughout Media General. Ultimately, the goal was to find solutions that best serve the needs of our customers.

The Tampa project is only the beginning.

As communications technology creates faster, easier and better ways to collect and disseminate news, the lessons learned in the News Center will be applied throughout Media General. But the impact will be felt far beyond this Company. Already, the work being done in the News Center has attracted the attention of some of the most forward-thinking industry professionals, and it most certainly will become an important model for the future of media convergence.