Newport Business Media, formerly Newport Communications Group, has named Jim Park editor of the new RoadStar magazine for owner-operators, independent contractors and professional truckers.

RoadStar will address the vital issues that affect professional truckers. It will be focused on bringing the news that matters, solid business skills articles and the most thorough equipment spec'ing and maintenance stories in the industry. With 100,000 owner-operator and independent contractor subscribers, RoadStar will launch in January 2011. Starting this summer, Park will host a special RoadStar blog on Truckinginfo.com, focusing on issues and information for the owner-operator and professional driver.

"Some people think the economy, high fuel prices and other factors mean the end of the owner-operator," said Deborah Lockridge, editor-in-chief of the new RoadStar. "But we believe we are looking at the dawn of a new era of professional trucker. Changes in the industry will mean owner-operators need to be smarter about their business, their equipment, safety and other vital issues. RoadStar, with Jim Park at its helm, will help build this new generation of professional trucker."

Park is both an award-winning journalist and an experienced driver and owner-operator. He was a trucker for 20 years, an owner-operator for 11 of those years and partner in a small special-commodity fleet for four years.

Having moved into journalism in 1998, Park has been writing for Heavy Duty Trucking for nearly three years. He was a major contributor to the June 2008 special "Fuel Crisis" issue, which earned the Grand Neal award for excellence in business journalism from American Business Media. His regular Tire Report in Heavy Duty Trucking was a finalist this year for Best Educational Content in the ABM's Neal Awards. He earned a gold national award from the American Society of Business Publication Editors in the "How To" category in 2009 for a story on driving for fuel economy, and has won six Kenneth R. Wilson awards for Canadian business journalism.

"Jim is something exceptional in North American trucking journalism: He's an editor who has been there and done that as a truck driver and owner-operator," said Steve Sturgess, executive editor. "This gives Jim and RoadStar a unique ability to communicate with the readers."

Sturgess, former editor of RoadStar before the publication was suspended at the end of 2007, will still be involved with the new RoadStar as executive editor.

In the past, Park has written for Land Line magazine and for Today's Trucking in Canada and has served as editor of the owner-operator magazine HighwayStar and RPM Canada. Park is a regular contributor to two Sirius XM satellite radio trucking shows and a fill-in anchor on Sirius XM Trucking News. He has more than 2 million miles of safe driving to his credit.