6.6: Sub-editing

Usually, in large newsrooms, there are sub-editors (copy editors) who do the final editing of news pieces, checking for grammatical mistakes, factual errors, story flow and content – in short, they usually “clean up” the story before publication in print or online. Sub-editing is a specialised skill and something that one learns over many years.

Sub-editors serve as a second set of eyes looking for any errors in a story. The emphasis here is on a second set of eyes. That is because journalists should always check their own copy for accuracy before submitting it to an editor. Every writer should allow some time for revising their own copy. After your own revisions, you do need a second pair of eyers for a final check. Good writing, by definition, requires editing; a second pair of eyes is essential to really look at your story and make sure that the message comes through clearly, that everything you need in the story is there, and that there are no mistakes or legal issues.

An accuracy check is the first level of copy-editing. Sub-editors look for grammatical and usage errors as well as for spelling mistakes. They pay particular attention to subject–verb agreement and subject–pronoun agreement. Sub-editors make sure that all numbers in a story are correct: addresses, telephone numbers, age, date, and time references. They rework any calculations the journalist may have performed to make sure the math is correct. They confirm that the journalist has used proper titles for everyone who is quoted, and they review the use of attribution throughout the story.

Sub-editors also look closely for any errors of fact or issues of fairness.

Thorough editors read stories with a sceptical eye, with questions like these in mind:

• How does the journalist know this?
• Why should the audience believe this?
• Is the main point of the story supported?
• Are the quotes accurate, and do they capture what the person really meant?
• Are all sides represented?
• Is something missing?
• Is the story fair?

Sub-editors pay attention to style (many publications have their own writing style) and language, which vary depending on the local culture. This is important because different communities have different standards. As a journalist, you should be aware of this. In most communities, you would not use strong language (swear words) or graphic descriptions of violence in your stories. This could be as simple as phrases such as “bloody hell” or “damn”; some people might find these words offensive. As a journalist, you should know your audience and know what to avoid, but sub-editors also check this.

Sub-editors and journalists alike should read the copy aloud – especially in broadcast newsrooms – listening for sentences that are too long, redundancies, awkward phrases, and double meanings. In many newsrooms, sub-editors have the authority to change a journalist’s copy without consultation to fix these kinds of basic problems.

Sub-editors are not simply proofreaders, however. They are journalists in every sense of the word. Most sub-editors either have reporting experience or reporting skills. When they read a journalist’s story, they are looking for much more than basic accuracy. They want to know if a story would make sense to someone who knows nothing about the subject. They are mindful of the need to make stories engaging and interesting.

Remember

Once you have filed your story (this means once you have submitted your story for publication), it does not mean your job is done. The story needs to be edited, which means you need to be available to assist sub-editors while they are editing your story in case they pick up gaps or discrepancies. They should be able to reach you to help them fix the story where necessary.

If a story incomplete, the sub-editor must be able to work with the journalist to improve the final product. That is when their leadership skills come into play, as they use a process commonly called “coaching”. Despite the presence of sub-editors and producers in newsrooms, it is expected of journalists to ensure from the start that their stories are complete, well-written and accurate. In many newsrooms, especially online newsrooms, journalists now often check their own stories before publication, which means you need to ensure that you write well and cover all aspects of good news reporting. Before submitting your story for publication, you will be expected to write headlines and captions.

Good headlines are short and to the point; headlines are not “titles” but they tell a very short story and usually contain a verb. A headline is short and catchy – both a summary and an advertisement. It gives the audience a quick idea of what the story is about and tells readers why they should be interested in reading the entire piece. A print or online headline summarises the story, gets the reader’s attention, helps to organise the news on the printed page, and, through the use of different sizes of type, indicates the relative importance of each story. When writing a headline, you try to capture the central point of the story in the headline. For example, a story about a new political party called SA Now winning the local elections by a landslide would have a headline like: “SA Now wins local elections by landslide” and NOT “Local election winners”. The headline contains facts, news and interests the reader; it is not simply a statement of something that happened. Online headlines should be very descriptive and contain detailed information so that search engines can find the story. That is why online headlines should be written with search engine optimisation (SEO) in mind. See this article for more information about SEO.

The language in headlines should be simple and straightforward. Use proper names and present tense. It is generally acceptable not to use conjunctions, articles like “the”, and to drop linking verbs like “is” or “were”. A story that tells how a woman and her boyfriend were arrested for a string of bank robberies might be headlined: “Bandit, boyfriend held in robberies”. A headline should match the tone of the story. Hard news stories demand a straight summary, like this headline from The Zimbabwe Independent newspaper: “Smugglers dent Zimbabwe’s gold production”. The headline makes sure the reader knows exactly what the story is about. Feature headlines, on the other hand, may only hint at the story’s content since they are written primarily to pique the reader’s curiosity. For example, Argentina’s Buenos Aires Herald ran this headline over a review of a new recording: “Sassy Madonna goes back in time”.

Headlines must be accurate and honest, not misleading. What is in the headline must be in the story. Nothing annoys a reader more than a story that does not deliver what the headline promised.

Captions serve a different purpose. Instead of summarising content the way a headline does, a caption helps the reader appreciate what is inside the visual frame. The photograph and caption together form a small story that the reader can understand without having to read the text of the story that accompanies them. Captions should clearly identify the main people in a photograph. If several people are featured, it is often helpful to let the reader know that the central character is the one “wearing a cap” or “standing on the right”. Captions should not repeat the exact wording of the headline or lift a sentence directly from the story. Most captions are short, just one or two lines, often in smaller type. But on occasion, a newspaper or online site may contain multiple photographs with longer captions in a photo essay that tells a complete story. Longer captions can use quotations from the people pictured. It is important to identify all people in a caption and to indicate where they are, unless there are too many people, then you can identify just the main characters.