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Boston Career Explorer

Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media

Editors

Plan, coordinate, revise, or edit written material. May review proposals and drafts for possible publication.

Also called: Acquisitions Editor, Assignment Editor, Business Editor, Features Editor, Legal Editor, Newspaper Copy Editor

Median pay in Greater Boston
$86,410
$41.54/hr
Jobs in Greater Boston
2,480
Massachusetts 2024–2034
+4.1%
330 openings a year
Typical U.S. entry requirement
Bachelor's degree
Less than 5 years of related work experience

Greater Boston: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, May 2025. Growth and openings: Massachusetts statewide projection.

Pay range in Greater Boston

Yearly pay in Greater Boston by percentile
10th25thMedian75th90th
$53,170$64,510$86,410$107,150$140,330

10% of workers earn less than the first figure and 10% earn more than the last.

What you’d do

  • Verify facts, dates, and statistics, using standard reference sources.
  • Write text, such as headlines, stories, articles, editorials, or newsletters.
  • Read copy or proof to detect and correct errors in spelling, punctuation, and syntax.
  • Prepare, rewrite and edit copy to improve readability, or supervise others who do this work.
  • Develop story or content ideas, considering reader or audience appeal.
  • Allocate print space for story text, photos, and illustrations according to space parameters and copy significance, using knowledge of layout principles.

AI and this job

AI exposure: how much of this job’s work AI tools can do or help with, based on national research. It is not a forecast of job loss.

Higher exposure85 of 100

The index averages three national research measures, each shown as a percentile of all jobs:

  • AIOE 77
  • Language-model AIOE 81
  • GPTs-are-GPTs 96

Observed AI use today: Substantial (Anthropic Economic Index)

AI exposure is higher for this job, and observed AI use is substantial. AI tools can help with proofreading, rewriting for readability, and drafting headlines or text. Checking facts carefully, choosing story ideas, and judging what an audience needs rely on people. Massachusetts is projected to add about 4.1% more of these jobs from 2024 to 2034.

Likely to change

  • Proofreading and fixing grammar
  • Drafting headlines and rewriting copy

Still relies on people

  • Choosing story ideas for an audience
  • Taking responsibility for accuracy and fairness

Written with AI from the data on this page. Check with a career coach before making a decision.

Next steps from here

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Training near Boston

College and school programs in the Boston metro area that lead to this job, with 2023-24 completions (IPEDS).

37 programs near Boston (plus 17 graduate)

Related occupations

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