Post job

Journalist vs news editor

The differences between journalists and news editors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a journalist, becoming a news editor takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a journalist has an average salary of $60,828, which is higher than the $53,822 average annual salary of a news editor.

The top three skills for a journalist include news stories, multimedia and story development. The most important skills for a news editor are news stories, news coverage, and instagram.

Journalist vs news editor overview

JournalistNews Editor
Yearly salary$60,828$53,822
Hourly rate$29.24$25.88
Growth rate-10%-5%
Number of jobs11,48812,484
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Average age4044
Years of experience24

What does a journalist do?

A journalist is responsible for creating written correspondence, covering various subjects as the management requires. This task involves a lot of research investigations, conducting interviews, and gathering reliable sources to verify the authenticity of data before releasing the articles on news portals and other social platforms. Journalists should have excellent communication skills, both written and oral, conveying information to the target audience with high accuracy and efficiency. They analyze opinions and testimonies, create eye-catching headlines, and ensure adherence to deadlines.

What does a news editor do?

A News Editor reviews and changes the content of a publication provided by writers and other contributors. They generally work for newspapers, magazines, and websites.

Journalist vs news editor salary

Journalists and news editors have different pay scales, as shown below.

JournalistNews Editor
Average salary$60,828$53,822
Salary rangeBetween $38,000 And $95,000Between $35,000 And $81,000
Highest paying CityNew York, NYNew York, NY
Highest paying stateNew YorkNew York
Best paying companyBloombergApple
Best paying industryFinanceProfessional

Differences between journalist and news editor education

There are a few differences between a journalist and a news editor in terms of educational background:

JournalistNews Editor
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Most common majorJournalismJournalism
Most common collegeMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyNorthwestern University

Journalist vs news editor demographics

Here are the differences between journalists' and news editors' demographics:

JournalistNews Editor
Average age4044
Gender ratioMale, 46.6% Female, 53.4%Male, 53.5% Female, 46.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 9.6% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 7.3% White, 76.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage10%12%

Differences between journalist and news editor duties and responsibilities

Journalist example responsibilities.

  • Manage studio operations, ensuring that shows run efficiently by floor directing, prompting and providing scripts.
  • Partner closely with 13WHAM ABC Rochester.
  • Award regional EMMY for spot news.
  • Edit headline packages, kickers, bumps and topicals.
  • Update stories to web page, twitter, and facebook.
  • Used ENG trucks to distribute live news feeds during broadcasts.
  • Show more

News editor example responsibilities.

  • Manage the day-to-day production of the Olympics section as needed.
  • Manage online web CMS, updating metadata, optimizing SEO, editing HTML/CSS, and directing UX/UI updates.
  • Manage content on various CMS systems, including HTML coding and training numerous staff members on various CMS systems.
  • Maintain editorial calendar, manage freelance budget and coordinate with photo editor and designers to help ensure optimal presentation of stories.
  • Cover NFL playoffs and NCAA tournament games.
  • Cover UConn s 2014 NCAA tournament championship run on site.
  • Show more

Journalist vs news editor skills

Common journalist skills
  • News Stories, 15%
  • Multimedia, 11%
  • Story Development, 11%
  • Local Community, 7%
  • Edit Video, 5%
  • Local News, 4%
Common news editor skills
  • News Stories, 10%
  • News Coverage, 8%
  • Instagram, 8%
  • Twitter, 7%
  • SEO, 7%
  • Facebook, 7%

Browse arts, entertainment, sports, and media jobs