A news editor is one of the most important jobs in the PR industry, because they are tasked with ensuring the accuracy of the information going out. Since this information is vital to the success of the company being promoted, and reputation can suffer if the editor doesn’t do their job properly, a PR news editor must be vigilant and extremely thorough in their work.
What is a PR News Editor?
A news editor in PR is quite different than the conventional news editor. Traditional news editors are responsible for assigning stories to reporters, deciding what will run in a specific issue and ensuring all operations of the publication work efficiently. But a PR news editor does more of actual editing.
The PR news editor is responsible for everything that comes out of the public relations office. Often, this means press releases that go out to major and minor media outlets, but it also means that they are responsible for printed materials like pamphlets or fact sheets. In addition, the PR news editor will fact check and edit any copy that is posted to the company website, often including blog posts as well as the main website copy.
The news editor must have an eye for detail and be meticulous in their work. All of the information that is published to an official company source like the website or press releases must be checked for quality and factuality. If the wrong information is published, it can cause publically-owned companies to drop in stock, and many other problems can be prevented with the right editor.
The editor is responsible for many things when it comes to published company. Obviously, grammar is one of the top concerns, but the content must also read well, be clear and concise, be free or errors and completely politically correct. The editor must ensure that all copy is checked for style concerns, formatting problems and other errors as well.
PR news editors are usually great writers. They are able to create clear, concise copy that can be used in advertising or on important company documents that will go out to the public. PR news editors must have a broad range of knowledge, a curiosity about the world around them, the skills to thoroughly research a topic and a whole lot more.
In addition, the PR news editor must be familiar with technology used in the industry. This includes the basics like computers and software programs, scanners and word processing programs. However, it may also include more specialized communications equipment. They definitely need to be familiar with the internet, basic website design, RSS, blogs and all of the internet tools that are required to do the job.
