Copy editing

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Copy editing (also copy-editing or copyediting, sometimes abbreviated ce) is the work that an editor does to improve the formatting, style, and accuracy of text. Unlike general editing, copy editing might not involve changing the content of the text. Copy refers to written or typewritten text for typesetting, printing, publication, broadcast or other independent distribution. In the context of publication in print, copy editing is done before typesetting and again before proofreading, the latter of which is the last step in the editorial cycle.

In the US and Canada, an editor who does this work is called a copy editor. An organisation's highest-ranking copy editor, or the supervising editor of a group of copy editors, may be known as the copy chief, copy desk chief, or news editor. In book publishing in the United Kingdom and other parts of the world that follow British nomenclature, the term copy editor is used, but in newspaper and magazine publishing, the term is sub-editor (or the unhyphenated subeditor), commonly shortened to sub. The senior sub-editor on a title is frequently called the chief sub-editor. As the "sub" prefix suggests, copy editors typically have less authority than regular editors.

The term copy editor may also be spelled as one word or in hyphenated form (copyeditor and copy-editor). The hyphenated form is especially common in the UK; in the US newspaper field, use of the two-word form is more common.

Overview

The "five Cees" summarize the copy editor's job, which is to make the copy "clear, correct, concise, comprehensible, and consistent." According to one guide, copy editors should "make it say what it means, and mean what it says". Typically, copy editing involves correcting spelling, punctuation, grammar, terminology, jargon, and semantics, and ensuring that the text adheres to the publisher's style or an external style guide, such as the Chicago Manual of Style or the Associated Press Stylebook. Copy editors may shorten the text, to improve it or to fit length limits. This is particularly so in periodical publishing, where copy must be cut to fit a particular layout, and the text changed to ensure there are no "short lines".

Often, copy editors are also responsible for adding any "display copy", such as headlines, standardized headers and footers, pullquotes, and photo captions. And, although proofreading is a distinct task from copy editing, frequently it is one of the tasks performed by copy editors.

Copy editors are expected to ensure that the text flows, that it is sensible, fair, and accurate, and that any legal problems have been addressed. If a passage is unclear or an assertion seems questionable, the copy editor may ask the writer to clarify it. Sometimes, the copy editor is the only person, other than the writer, to read an entire text before publication and, for this reason, newspaper copy editors are considered the publication's last line of defense.

The role of the copy editor varies considerably from one publication to another. Some newspaper copy editors select stories from wire service copy; others use desktop publishing software to do design and layout work that once was the province of design and production specialists.

In the setting of academic publishing, scholarly journals also employ copy editors to prepare manuscripts for publication. To distinguish themselves from copy editors working in journalism, these editors sometimes refer to themselves as manuscript editors.

Changes in the field

Example of non-professional copy editing in progress

Traditionally, the copy editor would read a printed or written manuscript, manually marking it with editor's correction marks. At sizeable newspapers, the main copy desk was often U-shaped; the copy desk chief sat in the "slot" (the center space of the U) and was known as the "slot man," while copy editors were arrayed around him or her on the outside of the U, known as the "rim." In the past, copy editors were sometimes known jocularly as "rim rats." Chief copy editors are still sometimes called "the slot". But nowadays, the manuscript is more often read on a computer display and text corrections are entered directly.

The nearly universal adoption of computerized systems for editing and layout in newspapers and magazines has also led copy editors to become more involved in design and the technicalities of production. Technical knowledge is therefore sometimes considered as important as writing ability, though this is truer in journalism than it is in book publishing. Hank Glamann, co-founder of the American Copy Editors Society, made the following observation about ads for copy editor positions at American newspapers:

We want them to be skilled grammarians and wordsmiths and write bright and engaging headlines and must know Quark. But, often, when push comes to shove, we will let every single one of those requirements slide except the last one, because you have to know that in order to push the button at the appointed time.

Traits, skills, and training

Besides an excellent command of language, copy editors need broad general knowledge for spotting factual errors; good critical thinking skills in order to recognize inconsistencies or vagueness; interpersonal skills for dealing with writers, other editors and designers; attention to detail; and a sense of style. Also, they must establish priorities and balance a desire for perfection with the necessity to follow deadlines.

Many copy editors have a college degree, often in journalism, the language the text is written in, or communications. In the United States, copy editing is often taught as a college journalism course, though its name varies. The courses often include news design and pagination.

In the United States, The Dow Jones Newspaper Fund sponsors internships that include two weeks of training. Also, the American Press Institute, the Poynter Institute, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, UC San Diego Extension and conferences of the American Copy Editors Society offer mid-career training for newspaper copy editors and news editors (news copy desk supervisors).

Most US newspapers and publishers give copy-editing job candidates an editing test or a tryout. These vary widely and can include general items such as acronyms, current events, math, punctuation, and skills such as the use of Associated Press style, headline writing, infographics editing, and journalism ethics.

In both the US and the UK, there are no official bodies offering a single recognized qualification.

In the UK, several companies provide a range of courses unofficially recognised within the industry. Training may be on the job or through publishing courses, privately run seminars, or correspondence courses of the Society for Editors and Proofreaders. The National Council for the Training of Journalists also has a qualification for subeditors.

See also

• Author editing
• American copy editors
• American Copy Editors Society
• AP Stylebook
• Fact checker
• Headline
• House style
• News design
• Photo caption
• Proofreading
• Robinson Prize

References

• The Art of Editing, by Floyd K. Baskette, Jack Z. Sissors, and Brian S. Brooks.
• Séamas Ó Brógáin, A Dictionary of Editing, Dublin: Claritas, 2015, ISBN 978-0-9934649-0-4.

External links

• Proofreading practice at Project Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders
• What exactly is a copy editor?, by Bill Walsh of The Washington Post
• How a copy desk works