This week, in upcoming news ventures that Nieman Lab is extremely curious about: Texas Tribune editor-in-chief Emily Ramshaw and chief audience officer Amanda Zamora are leaving the Tribune. Word came first from Tribune CEO and cofounder Evan Smith, who wrote that the two are leaving to launch a “new national nonprofit news organization aimed at giving women the facts, tools and information they need to be equal participants in democracy and civic life.”

“We’ll all root for them hardest and loudest. I’ll root hardest and loudest of all,” Smith wrote. “And I’ll be one of their first financial supporters.”

Public details on the new venture are roughly nonexistent at this point. Is this a daily news site or a “tool” for people who’ve mostly unplugged from daily news? Does “equal participants in democracy” imply an activism component? What does it mean to launch a news site specifically for women in 2020? How big will the staff be, and how much funding has been raised? What topics will be covered? Will the site take a stance on issues like abortion? Is the target reader a news junkie or a news avoider? What does real estate go for in Austin these days? And so on.

Zamora and Ramshaw remain employed at the Texas Tribune until Dec. 20 and Jan. 3, respectively, and won’t be sharing details until the new year. “The only thing I care about as much as informing and engaging with Texans on politics and policy is informing and engaging with women on politics and policy. That’s what I’m devoting my next chapter to,” Ramshaw said in a statement.

So more TK. In the meantime, see the announcement threads from Ramshaw and Zamora below, followed by a sampling of the Twitter speculation and gushing.

1/8 For the last decade, I’ve had the distinct honor of working in — and then leading — the greatest newsroom in America, @TexasTribune. Together, my extraordinary colleagues and I have harnessed the power of journalism, data and live events to build a better Texas.

— Emily Ramshaw (@eramshaw) November 19, 2019

1/12 Happy Tuesday, y’all. I hope you’ll indulge a brief thread from me on some important personal/professional news. I’ve taken a few good leaps in my career. And it’s time for my next. https://t.co/itUmAXNYms

— amanda zamora (@amzam) November 19, 2019

Two of the absolute best newsroom leaders and journalists @amzam and @eramshaw are taking their collective knowledge and wisdom and applying it to a news start-up for women. Genuinely excited to see the outcome of this https://t.co/QnoWP16cus

— emily bell (@emilybell) November 20, 2019

Because much of our industry a) underpays women and b) doesn’t prioritize boundaries or respect any semblance of work/family balance. https://t.co/E9aoL97bNd

— Emily Ramshaw (@eramshaw) November 20, 2019

I’ve known both @eramshaw and @amzam for a decade — long enough to know that any venture they lead is destined to be ambitious, innovative and impactful. Can’t to see the organization they build and the journalism they begin to produce. https://t.co/RX7tyAhLIl

— R.B. Brenner (@rbbrenner) November 20, 2019

Yes @amzam and @eramshaw are brilliant and could turn anything into gold. But after reading @rtraister's book Good and Mad…there is a raging fire burning below the surface, women who have become increasingly politically activated. They need news/info to further their goals.

— Carrie Brown (@Brizzyc) November 20, 2019

For all that’s wrong in the news biz, the ascent of @amzam through her work at The Washington Post, ProPublica and TexasTrib is an example of what’s good and changing in our industry. Wishing her + the legendary @eramshaw great success… https://t.co/VsslB4qQhF

— Mark Stencel (@markstencel) November 20, 2019

One of the most exciting and ambitious new news projects in memory https://t.co/TvXAo5MTar

— Ben Smith (@BuzzFeedBen) November 19, 2019

Wowzer. "A new national nonprofit news organization aimed at giving women the facts, tools and information they need to be equal participants in democracy and civic life." https://t.co/n47Z7IVFf0 What a great idea.

— Jay Rosen (@jayrosen_nyu) November 19, 2019

Lots of reasons to be excited about this, but personally I am *so* curious to see how @eramshaw and @amzam can take this more tool-and-resource-oriented framing of civic information vs. the more traditional here's-the-day's-news model that most news orgs rely on. https://t.co/XwUnZxkGQy

— Joshua Benton (@jbenton) November 19, 2019

That's a problem for women and men, white folks and POC, young and old. But I suspect that some use of *identity*, along the lines of what they seem to be thinking, will be a key part of the answer.

— Joshua Benton (@jbenton) November 19, 2019

You better believe we’re not leaving Texas!

— Emily Ramshaw (@eramshaw) November 19, 2019