Sub-editors, also known as Copy Editors, are the unsung heroes of journalism. They work long hours, often through the night. Theirs’ is a hard and thankless job.
They are the faceless men and women of the newsroom. Their names rarely appear in print. No one knows them.
Yet they toil hour after hour, day after day. Why?
Because there are few jobs in the world that can match the satisfaction of bringing out a newspaper. It’s an addiction. You have to do it, to believe it.
The responsibilities of the sub-editors are many. To understand what they do, their responsibilities have been grouped under the following heads:
1. News Selection
a. They select the news reports to be used on their pages. The selection is made in consultation with the Chief Sub-editor and the News Editor.
b. They also select photographs to be used on their pages. These can be standalone photographs or photographs to go with stories.
2. Editing
a. They spot and correct spelling mistakes and grammar errors that may be present in a news report filed by a reporter.
b. They check and re-check names, designations, dates, etc to ensure that the copy is factually accurate.
c. They make sure that the copy is free of libellous or defamatory content.
d. They scan the copy to locate gaps in news reports, and insert the missing information after getting it from the reporters.
d. There are times when the copy is badly written or where the news focus is missing. In such case, the sub-editors rewrite news reports.
e. There are times when a news report needs to include points given in a wire story. In such situations, the sub-editors club these scattered points to create a single, complete copy.
3. Write headlines
Readers may ignore the best of stories if the headlines are weak or fail to capture the attention of the readers. This is where the sub-editors can make a world of a difference to the pulling power of a newspaper.
They are required to write headlines that lift the newspaper’s appeal.
4. Decide news value and display
The sub-editors play a crucial role in giving a clear and sharp focus to the newspaper. They select the news reports that are relevant for their readers, and decide on their display.
5. Photo Editing
a. The sub-editors select photographs on their news value, relevance and visual appeal. They are guided in this by the News Editor.
b. In several newspapers, the sub-editors may be required to edit photographs. This may require cropping to remove extraneous elements. It may also require digital enhancement for better printing.
c. The sub-editors need to coordinate with photographers to get information for writing captions, also known as cutlines.
6. Make pages
a. The sub-editor makes a rough dummy to decide which story will be placed where. After this, the sub-editor moves the edited news reports in their respective slots. The important stories go on top of the page. They are displayed across multiple columns to underscore their news value; the less important are run as single columns.
b. It is quite possible that a news report may be longer than the planned display. In this case, the sub-editor edits the report once again to ensure that the news report fits.
c. The news value is one element of page make-up. The other and an equally important element, is visual appeal. The sub-editors have to ensure that the completed page looks visually appealing.
d. The sub-editor also inserts edited photographs and captions on the page.
7. Proof read print ready page
a. After its completion, the sub-editor takes a print-out, and then carefully proof reads it to ensure that there are no mistakes in headlines, captions or text jumps.
The sub-editors do not have time on their side. They have to perform this work against tough, harsh and demanding deadlines.
No wonder newspaper editors revere good sub-editors. They treat them like gold because they know that a newspaper’s reputation and credibility rests on the shoulders of these unsung heroes of journalism.
WATCH SLIDE SHOW ON THE ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF SUB-EDITORS
‘Theirs’ is a hard and thankless job’, should be ‘Theirs is a…’.
No apostrophe needed. Great article by the way – I completely agree that sub-editors play an important role in news production.