Editorial- an overview

Editorial

Editorial is an article in a newspaper that expresses the editor’s opinion about an item of news or an issue.
An editorial is one of the writing styles used to express an opinion or reaction to timely news, event or an issue of concern. Most editorials are used to influence readers to think or act the same way the writer does. Not all editorials take sides on an issue but have one of the following four purposes:

1. Inform: The writer gives careful explanations about a complicated issue.
2. Promote: Writer tries to promote a worthy activity. Get the reader involved.
3. Praise: The writer praises a person or an event.
4. Entertain: The writer encourages or entertains the reader about an important
issue.
We do not intend that editorials should be a routine part of the journal’s format, but the launch issue is a special case, which provides an opportunity to outline very briefly the journal’s editorial policy, to detail some of our ambitions for the new journal and signal the contents of early issues. An editorial is an expression of a newspaper’s “feelings’.

What should an editorial do?

Editors generally edit for content and proofreads material to be printed by the publishing, makes necessary editorial, spelling, and grammar corrections according to appropriate style guides; rewrites for clarity if necessary. They typeset and design, or approve type and design, of printed material; produce or approve graphics and artwork.

They maintain correspondence with authors; resolve questions arising from revision of material, produce supplemental materials for manuscripts. They review and log in all submitted manuscripts; contact author regarding acceptance or rejection, produces promotional and marketing materials for printed piece, maintain all necessary databases; update and purge as necessary to ensure completeness and accuracy, determine need for copyright information and obtain any necessary permission, maintain back copy inventory and may handle subscription, billing, and purchasing transactions.

They should have excellent writing skills and excellent proofreading skills.
Strong design knowledge and knowledge of computer and desktop publishing software are also necessary things with the detail oriented. Ability to work independently and under strong deadline pressure is also a must.

If we see the editors’ main intention towards their editorials we see that they simply try to:
• Criticize or attack: If they criticize, they require suggestions for change. If you launch an attack against something, you must
be impeccable in your charge. An attack is forceful; criticism does not have to be forceful, but it has to be held down with facts and suggestions for change.
• Defend: They want to stand up for an individual or an institution that is under attack by society.
• Endorse: But they want to give solid reasons for their endorsement of a political candidate, an issue, or the reasons behind building a new gymnasium.
• Compliment: They want to show evidence that the compliment is deserved. They do praise when warranted.
• Instigate, advocate or appeal: To instigate editorially would mean that the newspaper intended to go on a crusade for something--improvements in the school study hall system, for example. Or they might advocate that this be accomplished by backing suggestions put out by a school committee that studied the problem. An appeal editorial might mean that they’d encourage people to donate to a school fund drive or vote for a tax levy increase.
• Entertain: An entertaining editorial is good for the reader’s soul, but it should have a worthwhile point and should be written about something worth the reader’s time.
• Predict: Support their predictions with fact.

They have to avoid moralizing editorials. They tend to preach and turn the reader off. Whatever type of editorial we write, it must be built around a logical framework. It must have a/an:
• Introduction: To get the reader’s attention
• Body: To persuade the reader
• Conclusion: To prompt the reader into action