First off, thanks for your Web site and recruiting column.
I discovered it in college, and your information was a big help in
getting my internships and first "real" job. Now, here's my question:
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I've been a copy editor at a metro daily for 2 1/2 years, basically
since graduating college. The paper has a Sunday circulation of
300,000. I usually love my job, but I miss getting to work with
reporters closely and perform more macro-editing, things I did
regularly in college. I'm also not sure how many more years I can
handle working nights, weekends and generally every holiday but one. I
would really love to move into a line editor's position, but I'm not
sure how many people are willing to hire a copy editor for those jobs,
especially since I haven't reported since college. I don't see any
positions opening up at my current paper, so I'd have to go elsewhere.
What do you think is the best plan of action to reach my goal? And do
you think I simply need more years in the business before I can make
the leap?
Ready for a Change
We won't know whether you have enough years in the business
for people to get interested in you until you stick your toe -- and an
application -- in the water.
I'd want you to first try a few things where you are now.
One great thing about your career history is that you are in a
high-demand job now -- and thinking about moving to a position where
there is an even higher demand. Talk to your editors about doing some
cross-training or filling in on some shifts. You would benefit from
some time as a reporter, and the paper would benefit if you could pick
up some shifts on an assigning desk. With holidays, vacations and
sickness, there are never enough editors on originating desks. An ideal
situation might be to work an originating desk shift into your regular
week. Maybe you could slide into an early Saturday shift as a fill-in
assistant city editor, giving you some immediate relief on the weekends
while you grow your supervisory skills.
An unsolicited word of advice: Assigning editors can help more with the
reporting if they have their own experience to draw on, but this is not
essential. Someone who comes up through the copy desk can have a lot
to offer, too. Remember that, and use the knowledge to bolster your
confidence when working with reporters.
Resources
- Lousy Listeners, a News University online course
- "The Effective Editor:
How to Lead Your Staff to Better Writing and Better Teamwork" by Foster Davis and Karen F. Dunlap
- "News Leadership at the Head of the Class" by Jill Geisler
-
Poynter's media leadership bibliography
