News Editing: Concepts & Objectives

News Editing

News editing is the process of transforming news items or a news article into the desired shape and size by employing the appropriate language and symbols. A copy is edited to bring consistency of language and style throughout a newspaper issue and to highlight the "news sense" in an article. Editing is done to achieve a balance of news coming from both inside the business and the outside world.

Parity between well-written articles and those authored by novice reporters is also induced by sorting and screening. Finally, only newsworthy tales are chosen. These are double-checked for accuracy in terms of language, syntax, facts, figures, and sense. They are also clarified for improvement and compressed for space efficiency. 

Concept of Editing

Understanding what we are editing and why we are doing it is necessary before we can fully understand the term "editing." When you stop to think about it, all we do is edit data. Every piece of knowledge or communication is effect edited to enhance its expression and, consequently, comprehension. It's possible that the information will be aired or published. 

According to Norman Podhoretz, a well-known American theorist and Editor-at-large of the American monthly magazine "commentary," editing is to enhance an inherently well-written piece or to transform a clumsily written one into, at the very least, a beautifully shaped effective essay that remains true to the author's intention and realizes that intention more fully than he is able to do.

Objectives of Editing

• Accuracy: One of the most important aspects of the editing process is accuracy. The research and writing process for news reports must include fact-checking, which includes ensuring that names are spelled and pronounced correctly, that a story's facts are accurate, and that any conclusions are supported by sufficient evidence. It is typical to perform several accuracy checks. All cautious, accountable writers ought to follow suit. The precision of the research and writing processes determines how reliable the final product is.

• Fact Checking: Access to resources for fact-checking has grown thanks to the internet. Sadly, the internet has also made it easier to obtain questionable sources. As more people have access to the internet and the criteria for evaluating sources evolve, there will likely be ongoing discussions regarding the academic validity and reliability of sources that the public can participate to. The rise of medical, legal, and other specialty websites attests to the importance of easy access, rapidity, and the appearance of legitimacy on the public's usage and acceptance of accessible information. Even surgical procedures can be viewed online. Who is to determine what is produced and what is real? The majority of internet users are knowledgeable enough to avoid inputting credit card details on unknown and untrusted websites.

• Objectivity: Well-intentioned sources are also capable of disseminating inaccurate information. For instance, a distressed mother who insists that her imprisoned son is an innocent victim of a federal law may have made that mistaken assumption due to her own personal interest in her son's situation, rather than the actual circumstances of the case. One can report the mother's perspective as her factual, albeit unrecorded, point of view while simultaneously relaying the details of the real arrest warrant or any other assertions made by the arresting authority in order to remain objective.

• Maintaining the Track: Another crucial aspect of the editing stage is ensuring that a piece of writing stays on course. It is well known that writers fiercely guard their creations. It might be difficult and time-consuming to write a text. Some authors find it extremely difficult to identify and erase tangential sentences or sections after spending so much time and effort on them, especially if they are well-written or include excellent ideas. Generalizations that don't fully address a topic's particular might likewise blind writers to them. In other words, the writer's emotional and intellectual involvement in the writing process is frequently at odds with taking on the position of editor. Because of this, it's typical for writers to step back from their writing before editing it, or to ask someone else to read it objectively.