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An extra pair of eyes will never go out of style

March 31, 2016 By Mia Chism Conferences

Past. Present. Future.

Copy editing isn’t what it used to be. It isn’t what it was 48 hours ago in many publications and companies. And many aren’t sure where it’s headed.

Is there a future in copy editing? A panel of five discussed their thoughts in the ACES session “The Future of Copy Editing” before opening the floor for questions, comments, fears, hopes and expectations. The panel included Andy Bechtel, UNC-Chapel Hill; Kimberly Koerth, Gannett; John Russial, University of Oregon; David Sullivan, Philadelphia Inquirer; and Laura M. Browning, the A.V. Club.

The title of copy editing vs. the job of copy editing

Bechtel noted early on in the discussion that “the title of ‘copy editor’ is fading from news organizations, but it’s being changed to other things and other titles. So, the jobs of copy editors are still alive and well, but one could expect to have a different title for doing the same work. Job titles voiced from a few members of the audience included page editor and even curator. On the other hand, while the job of copy editing may still be necessary, copy editors are continuing to do more work in different capacities.

Copy editor: the Jack of one trade vs. the Jack of all trades

It’s not just editing text for accuracy, cohesion, coherence, facts, style and grammar. No. Copy editors today, in many outlets and publications, are expected to understand the basics of design as well as production.

Mariel, an audience member, said within the last three years of working at Edtech World, the fairly traditional editing team has been laid off, but she was one to survive. Now her job is more than copy editing. “I just read all of it. I’m doing content editing, copy editing, layout — all of it,” she said.

Russial said he recently searched journalismjobs.com and found 30 copy editing jobs, 15 to 20 design jobs and numerous reporting jobs. “Surprisingly,” he said, “most of the reporting jobs were asking for copy editing skills as well.”

On-site editing vs. remote editing

The five-member panel as well as many audience members were curious as to how many people in the room did their work in an on-site office or from home. A former LA Times copy editor said many things have changed in the last 15 to 20 years, but he thought there would be more remote work being done.

An audience member who works for Ballotpedia as an editor said the entire organization is remote with about three editors for 45 writers. She said those editors provide as much feedback as they can to the writers. “It’s been great having the ability to work from wherever,” she said.

Another audience member said she works for an online news magazine where the majority of staff is based in New York while she works from Oregon, using Slack as the main form of communication with writers all over the country.

Top 10 takeaways from panelists and audience members on the future of copy editing

  1. The term copy editing is invisible, but it doesn’t mean it’s not necessary, and it doesn’t mean it’s not being done. — John Russial, University of Oregon
  2. “The future of copy editing is what we make of it.” — Kimberly Koerth, Gannett
  3. “Well actually, I think (copy editing) is more important now than maybe it was before.” — Andy Bechtel, UNC-Chapel Hill
  4. “Serves copy editing well if you are both a copy editor and a writer.” — Laura M. Browning, The A.V. Club
  5. “Copy editors don’t have so much of a future, but copy editing is still there.” — Koerth
  6. What we have done and what we do remains important.  — Russial
  7. We are diversifying the skills that we have the best way we know how to for job security. — Koerth
  8. “Pick up the slack. Find little ways to stand out. Demonstrate that you’re paying attention to what’s going on.” — Koerth
  9. “Change is constant whether or not you like it; so get in front.” — Audience member, lifelong member of ACES
  10. “Stop mourning what has happened and look forward to the future.” — Audience member, lifelong member of ACES

Lastly, a few jokes were had in the midst of the discussion, with one eliciting a roar of laughter from the room: “How do you keep a $20 bill away from a reporter?” The answer: “Hide it in a stylebook.”

ACES newsroom member Mia Chism is a student at the University of Oklahoma.

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