You Can Be Anything › All careers › Media, Communication & Journalism

Copy Editor

Reviews and corrects written content for grammar, style, accuracy, and clarity.

Did you know?

A missing comma in a Maine law cost a US dairy company $5 million when it settled a court case with its drivers in 2017.

How subjects help

A famous name

Mary Norris: Worked for decades as a copy editor at The New Yorker magazine checking grammar and style.

Try it yourself: Check three claims before you share them

  1. Read each made-up post and ask three questions: Where's it from? What's missing? How does it make me feel?
  2. Write down who is behind each post, if you can tell at all.
  3. Write what is missing: a named source, a date, a photo that proves it, other news outlets reporting it.
  4. Decide for each: "trust it", "check more first" or "don't share". Give one reason for each.

Fact-checkers and editors trace every claim back to where it came from, look for what's left out, and check whether other reliable sources agree before anything is published.

Adapted from Full Fact: Misinformation toolkit.

Also try: Warm up your voice like an opera singer.

Known for it in

USA, UK, Australia, Canada, India

Related careers