Why copy editing is Important

Are copy editors the next dinosaurs? Just saying

In 2008, the American Copy Editors Society invited comments from the public to give reasons why editing – or most ostentatiously ‘copy editing’ – was still important and relevant for newspapers and “modern content.” Society was convinced that “copy editing at America’s newspapers, a cornerstone of fair and honest journalism, is threatened now more than ever.”

Just not to startle you into splashing a typo across your Word, let us simply ignore the job loss figures all the way down to 2012.

The organization was not worried without reasons. Newsroom copy editors in the US, UK and Canada have been hit hard by a spate of buyouts, and layoffs in the print industry in the recent years since the US economy began lurching.

The American slump was acute. The New York Times even banned copy editors from placing their fingers in the buyout pie. Lawrence Downes, a Times editorial board member, even wrote that when copy editors disappear, no one would even notice.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics rattled off scary numbers at 400-job average decrease.

There are reasons. Take with a pinch of salt, for instance, proficiency levels. Thanks to better education, the quality of spoken and written English is far more pronounced and proactive now than it was two decades ago. The prized reporter is the one that does both stories and copy editing. Unlike 2-4 decades down the boulevard, most reporters today are empirical in expression and intolerant to traditions. 

I believe that the steady impetus of both quality education and the discipline offered by the harsh lessons of corporate vagaries have ensured those copy editors in the US no longer take up office space. A copy editor that also brings in scoops is any publication house's ultimate wallet-saver. 

“I think I know what military fame is; to be killed on the field of battle and have your name misspelled in the newspapers.”  William T Sherman

So is this the end of the copy editor and his hard-earned expertise in the way of quality language catering? 

Is it over for aspiring copy editors?

No, not at all, and not that I believe they are not, either. Alternatively, at least it appears to be just another bad company stock and poor marketing fortunes of the moneyed Media, not necessarily a rejection of the skill base. 

Another possible consolation you may take refuge in: the copy editors going out are those with what I call a ‘lesser skill quotient.’ It is something not many human resource reps will tell you. Newspapers retain only the more proficient ones normally. I'm just peddling a theory here.   

Look at it this way: the journalism industry in Asia and Europe is on firmer grounds, for now. Asian countries such as India are some of the biggest beneficiaries of outsourced copy editing manna from the US and the UK. The downturn in the western industries also means that the drought would leave Asian freelancers and contract copy editors looking at a collection of good cents on the freelance market.

The downturn still does not explain the likened economics of field personnel like news reporters, and off-station correspondents ejected by the recession in the industry. The business side aside, there is a world of paradigm to relearn here. The economics do not always dictate the indispensability of correct English. Besides the obvious task – brushing and flossing the fangs of our miscalculation – copy editors represent the finer pursuits of excellence to unambiguous and unprejudiced communication. 

They are the insurance to newspapers’ greatest virtue and most important selling point — credibility; a safety net no self-respecting, quality-conscious and credibility-retentive publication would afford to ignore. It is a good business sense.

This gracious announcement was seen pasted in the copy editing and news section of my organization during Christmas week, 2013. The delightful irony was not lost on the copy desk team.     

Why do copy editors and copy editing matter?

The reasons are obvious. 

• First thing first: Until the apocalypse comes, there will always be something to write about, and writers will always have to need a copy editor sitting in the second chair.

• English will always need copy editors for the sake of the language itself. For a language that even ‘native speakers’ grapple with in their course of expressing an idea, writers need copy editors to ensure that the message is delivered to the reader the way the writer originally intended. 

• Correct English is not enough – clarity, style, presentation, and even aesthetic weight are what copy editors add to content. In spite of the newspaper corporate going for mammon, they still do not dare run the risk of losing readership – and credibility – on the altar of circulation. That is where copy editors come in.

• The copy editor (and relatively, the proofreader) is the last line of editorial defense against shoddy Grammar. They are the guarantee against typographical bloopers that ambush even the most acquiescent reader. They are the "verifiers" against inaccurate or biased details. Copy editors raid dubious statements, watch out for discrepancies, cut out anything that looks even remotely 'foreign'. They are quality-guarantee.

• Fred Vultee of American Copy Editors Society: “Editing is central to the process of professional journalism; we’re attentive to threats to the roles of reporters and visual journalists so they will be attentive to similar threats to the value of what we contribute as editors.” 

• The copy editor is the bridge between the writer and the reader. What credibility could a newspaper or publication house possibly gain if their book contained misspellings, grammatical errors, incomprehensible passages, or muddy ideas. How does the author protect his investment and ensure his credibility as a writer? The copy editor ensures a bulwark for the author from the pitfalls of language. 

• Copy editors offer publications' a safety net that ensures quality and credibility. They “catch” most of the problems that come with words and sentences, presentation and narration, grammar and semantics attributions, design and content, and ideas and intellectual engagement. They are issues only a reckless author or reporter would drop while beating a breaking news, or for the author, churning out a bestseller. The copy editor is the PR manager there. 

• The work of the copy editor is something that always manages to elude the hallowed attention of the reader. His work is unappreciated and largely invisible – until the reader runs into a typo. That is the only time the credibility and skill of the editor come into question. That is the only time one feels a need for good copy editors. Copy editors, still.

The copy editor stands in for the reading pleasure of the reader, adds to the intellectual vagabond’s literary experience, and perhaps even stands in to provoke critical curiosity in him just by making a sentence look good. The editor reshapes, clarifies and strengthens the value of the content. That's quality assurance.

Proficient copy editors will not go out of business any huff soon. Curiously, according to reliable sources, the apocalypse is at least 100 billion years away. What do you think?

©2012 Al Ngullie ALL RIGHTS RESERVED This article contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this article may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval systemwithout express written permission from the author / publisher.

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