Editors, Copy Editors, Content Managers

Editors

The Editor, also called Content Editor, is a critical reader who exercises judgment in considering a project’s content, concept, intended audience, organization, design, and style.

Editors’ duties and responsibilities include the following:

• polishing, refining, and enhancing documents to meet brand guidelines
• modification of publications to produce logical, consistent, accurate, and complete work
• management of the history of jobs, including helping to keep folders neat and organized, documenting requested changes, and coordinating with design and studio production artists to ensure changes are correctly communicated and input
• maintaining broad awareness of the University’s strategic initiatives to ensure publications align with/incorporate the most recent relevant information or positioning
• resolution of questions raised by copy editors
• collaborating with writers, Account Executives, or clients to request clarification or missing information
• improving the efficiency and accuracy of the overall editorial process

With rare exception, all new projects must be brought to an editor, who will enlist the Copy Edit team in the review process.

Editors also often work as content managers for websites. Content managing is similar to editing but usually also involves more rearranging of copy, creating web pages, setting up templates, and coaching the client on how to write, edit, and arrange their own content. See the Content Management section of this website for more information.

Copy Editors

Proofreading is the scrutiny of a document to ensure there are no spelling errors or missing language. Copy editing involves checking factual consistency, making basic judgments about usage, and verifying adherence to brand guidelines. At BU Creative Services, the job functions of proofreading, copy editing, and fact checking are combined into one role with the title of Copy Editor.

Copy Editors review publications to ensure the following:

• all edits have been input correctly
• no text is missing or misplaced
• no production errors have been introduced
• all grammar, punctuation, and spelling is correct
• all names, places, and organizations are accurate and correct
• headers, footers, and table of contents are consistent and correct
• text adheres to in-house style guides and standard references
• no internal factual inconsistencies or confusing language