Picture editor to broadcast news editor
A picture editor already meets 56% of what the broadcast news editor role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
50.2/ 100
1 How much of what a broadcast news editor is expected to do is already part of a picture editor’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the broadcast news editor role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A broadcast news editor role treats 13 of its required skills as things a picture editor already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- build contacts to maintain news flow
- check stories
- consult information sources
- copyright legislation
- create editorial board
- develop professional network
What stands in the way is 6 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 22 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A broadcast news editor role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a picture editor background worth leading with.
- already held create editorial board communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held check stories information skills
- already held create rough cut handling and moving
- already held motion graphics arts and humanities
- already held build contacts to maintain news flow communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held follow ethical code of conduct of journalists assisting and caring
All 22 carried skills, including the 13 the broadcast news editor role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 25 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn grammar required
- still to learn spelling required
- optional, not held audiovisual equipment optional
- optional, not held file-based workflow optional
- optional, not held digital compositing optional
- optional, not held intellectual property regime of digital content optional
- still to learn apply organisational techniques required
- still to learn manage staff required
- optional, not held write to a deadline optional
- still to learn work closely with news teams required
- optional, not held write headlines optional
- optional, not held adapt to changing situations optional
- optional, not held apply grammar and spelling rules optional
- optional, not held proofread text optional
- still to learn digital journalism required
- optional, not held newsletter analysis optional
- optional, not held media and information literacy optional
- optional, not held edit recorded sound optional
- optional, not held put uncut recordings into computer optional
- optional, not held synchronise sound with images optional
- optional, not held develop digital content optional
- optional, not held check correctness of information optional
- optional, not held monitor broadcast programming optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a broadcast news editor role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 digital journalism study this
- 02 work closely with news teams practise this
- 03 apply organisational techniques practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 22 skills that carry over
- already held build contacts to maintain news flow skill
- already held check stories skill
- already held consult information sources skill
- already held copyright legislation knowledge
- already held create editorial board skill
- already held develop professional network skill
- already held editorial standards knowledge
- already held follow ethical code of conduct of journalists skill
- already held follow the news skill
- already held meet deadlines skill
- already held multimedia systems knowledge
- already held participate in editorial meetings skill
- already held press law knowledge
- already held create online news content skill
- already held create rough cut skill
- already held edit digital moving images skill
- already held graphic design knowledge
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held motion graphics knowledge
- already held perform video editing skill
- already held photography knowledge
- already held use presentation software skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held audio editing software optional
- optional, not held cut raw footage digitally optional
19 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held newsletter analysis optional
- optional, not held audiovisual equipment optional
- optional, not held check correctness of information optional
- optional, not held cut raw footage digitally optional
- optional, not held edit recorded sound optional
- optional, not held file-based workflow optional
- optional, not held media and information literacy optional
- optional, not held monitor broadcast programming optional
- optional, not held put uncut recordings into computer optional
- optional, not held synchronise sound with images optional
- optional, not held write headlines optional
- optional, not held write to a deadline optional
- optional, not held adapt to changing situations optional
- optional, not held apply grammar and spelling rules optional
- optional, not held audio editing software optional
- optional, not held develop digital content optional
- optional, not held digital compositing optional
- optional, not held intellectual property regime of digital content optional
- optional, not held proofread text optional
26 held skills the broadcast news editor role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role ICT software specifications knowledge
- not needed by the target role adapt to type of media skill
- not needed by the target role apply desktop publishing techniques skill
- not needed by the target role colour grade images with digital intermediate skill
- not needed by the target role consult with editor skill
- not needed by the target role desktop publishing knowledge
- not needed by the target role determine image composition skill
- not needed by the target role digital content creation skill
- not needed by the target role edit negatives skill
- not needed by the target role edit photographs skill
- not needed by the target role follow newspaper house style skill
- not needed by the target role maintain photographic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role negotiate exploitation rights skill
- not needed by the target role perform backups skill
- not needed by the target role perform image editing skill
- not needed by the target role post-processing of photographs knowledge
- not needed by the target role recruit employees skill
- not needed by the target role search for a suitable filming location skill
- not needed by the target role select camera apertures skill
- not needed by the target role select photographic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role select photos skill
- not needed by the target role set up photographic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role supervise staff skill
- not needed by the target role supervise work skill
- not needed by the target role use photographic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role use word processing software skill
10 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn digital journalism required
- still to learn grammar required
- still to learn spelling required
- optional, not held newsletter analysis optional
- optional, not held audiovisual equipment optional
- optional, not held file-based workflow optional
- optional, not held media and information literacy optional
- optional, not held audio editing software optional
- optional, not held digital compositing optional
- optional, not held intellectual property regime of digital content optional
Common questions about this move
Can a picture editor become a broadcast news editor?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A picture editor already covers 56% of what a broadcast news editor is expected to do: 22 skills carry over, 13 of which the broadcast news editor role treats as required.
What skills does a picture editor need to become a broadcast news editor?
6 required skills are missing, plus 19 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by arts and humanities. The single most important is digital journalism.
How hard is the move from picture editor to broadcast news editor?
Its learning distance is 50.2 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.