Editors
Also called: Features Editor, Newspaper Copy Editor, Opinions Page Editor, Sports EditorPlan, coordinate, revise, or edit written material. May review proposals and drafts for possible publication.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 15 of its 20 rated tasks, and jobs are projected to shrink 1.1% by 2035. In the most exposed occupations, the squeeze shows up first among early-career workers. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 4.8% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 7.8 hires for every 10 job openings in information, which employs about 60% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.7.8 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $63,330 | $43,510 to $87,990 | 530 |
| Alaska | $63,630 | $59,220 to $76,640 | 60 |
| Arizona | $63,090 | $56,280 to $83,730 | 820 |
| Arkansas | $50,180 | $38,090 to $62,390 | 260 |
| California | $98,030 | $71,090 to $136,820 | 14,830 |
| Colorado | $77,870 | $58,510 to $98,170 | 1,830 |
| Connecticut | $85,950 | $61,160 to $123,380 | 1,050 |
| Delaware | $75,020 | $48,980 to $102,160 | 170 |
| District of Columbia | $83,920 | $77,400 to $130,360 | 3,310 |
| Florida | $73,950 | $47,880 to $95,740 | 3,790 |
| Georgia | $76,650 | $60,770 to $90,360 | 1,920 |
| Hawaii | $55,070 | $49,820 to $77,360 | 100 |
| Idaho | not published | not published | 230 |
| Illinois | $76,060 | $62,370 to $100,750 | 4,560 |
| Indiana | $56,440 | $39,930 to $77,900 | 830 |
| Iowa | $57,200 | $45,800 to $75,180 | 900 |
| Kansas | $61,920 | $50,770 to $77,640 | 500 |
| Kentucky | $59,430 | $45,540 to $84,160 | 490 |
| Louisiana | $58,860 | $44,640 to $76,030 | 330 |
| Maine | $50,180 | $46,280 to $73,390 | 300 |
| Maryland | $75,550 | $60,820 to $100,300 | 1,850 |
| Massachusetts | $83,170 | $61,490 to $103,620 | 3,100 |
| Michigan | $63,090 | $49,120 to $77,370 | 1,690 |
| Minnesota | $62,650 | $48,200 to $79,710 | 1,970 |
| Mississippi | $54,380 | $36,980 to $74,620 | 290 |
| Missouri | $61,620 | $45,330 to $82,420 | 880 |
| Montana | $61,750 | $44,230 to $82,370 | 200 |
| Nebraska | $46,320 | $39,120 to $58,730 | 360 |
| Nevada | $72,510 | $53,840 to $89,240 | not published |
| New Hampshire | $66,510 | $54,980 to $88,590 | 250 |
| New Jersey | $81,680 | $64,990 to $107,830 | 2,120 |
| New Mexico | $64,250 | $44,730 to $81,240 | 230 |
| New York | $101,480 | $76,790 to $140,320 | 16,800 |
| North Carolina | $73,740 | $55,950 to $84,050 | 1,870 |
| North Dakota | $60,520 | $43,750 to $68,170 | 200 |
| Ohio | $72,160 | $51,270 to $98,440 | 1,800 |
| Oklahoma | $50,780 | $39,460 to $65,160 | 500 |
| Oregon | $71,540 | $57,740 to $90,740 | 1,110 |
| Pennsylvania | $63,460 | $46,530 to $87,770 | 3,240 |
| Puerto Rico | $39,640 | $35,300 to $51,670 | 300 |
| Rhode Island | $77,960 | $59,000 to $82,020 | 340 |
| South Carolina | $62,000 | $48,250 to $76,300 | 500 |
| South Dakota | $56,730 | $55,940 to $63,320 | 140 |
| Tennessee | $59,550 | $46,010 to $80,940 | 1,390 |
| Texas | $45,950 | $29,950 to $73,160 | 6,460 |
| Utah | $65,040 | $49,360 to $82,130 | 590 |
| Vermont | $66,860 | $60,170 to $97,030 | 240 |
| Virginia | $80,590 | $58,990 to $109,090 | 2,720 |
| Washington | $77,850 | $56,900 to $100,580 | 1,860 |
| West Virginia | $56,630 | $39,490 to $82,980 | 260 |
| Wisconsin | $64,270 | $47,490 to $82,950 | 1,510 |
| Wyoming | $46,710 | $40,230 to $65,570 | 110 |
Nationally: $77,920. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 15 of its 20 rated tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI alone | Read copy or proof to detect and correct errors in spelling, punctuation, and syntax. | 0.23% |
| AI alone | Prepare, rewrite and edit copy to improve readability, or supervise others who do this work. | 0.61% |
| AI + software | Verify facts, dates, and statistics, using standard reference sources. | 0.08% |
| Not rated | Write text, such as headlines, stories, articles, editorials, or newsletters. | Not published |
| AI alone | Develop story or content ideas, considering reader or audience appeal. | 0.75% |
| Not much | Plan the contents of publications according to the publication's style, editorial policy, and publishing requirements. | under 0.01% |
See all 22 tasks
| AI + software | Confer with management and editorial staff members regarding placement and emphasis of developing news stories. | Not published |
| Not much | Oversee publication production, including artwork, layout, computer typesetting, and printing, ensuring adherence to deadlines and budget requirements. | Not published |
| Not rated | Respond to questions from the public. | Not published |
| AI + software | Monitor news-gathering operations to ensure utilization of all news sources, such as press releases, telephone contacts, radio, television, wire services, and other reporters. | Not published |
| AI alone | Assign topics, events and stories to individual writers or reporters for coverage. | Not published |
| Not much | Allocate print space for story text, photos, and illustrations according to space parameters and copy significance, using knowledge of layout principles. | under 0.01% |
| AI alone | Read, evaluate and edit manuscripts or other materials submitted for publication, and confer with authors regarding changes in content, style or organization, or publication. | 0.11% |
| Not much | Supervise and coordinate work of reporters and other editors. | Not published |
| AI + software | Meet frequently with artists, typesetters, layout personnel, marketing directors, and production managers to discuss projects and resolve problems. | Not published |
| AI alone | Review and approve proofs submitted by composing room prior to publication production. | Not published |
| AI alone | Select local, state, national, and international news items received from wire services, based on assessment of items' significance and interest value. | under 0.01% |
| AI alone | Direct the policies and departments of newspapers, magazines and other publishing establishments. | Not published |
| Not much | Interview and hire writers and reporters or negotiate contracts, royalties, and payments for authors or freelancers. | Not published |
| AI alone | Read material to determine index items and arrange them alphabetically or topically, indicating page or chapter location. | Not published |
| AI + software | Arrange for copyright permissions. | Not published |
| AI alone | Make manuscript acceptance or revision recommendations to the publisher. | under 0.01% |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 9 of the 22 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 22 tasks fall under 15 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #3 Respond to customer problems or inquiries
- #6 Develop news, entertainment, or artistic content
- #9 Edit written materials or documents
- and 4 more, in the table below
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edit written materials or documents | |||
| Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures | |||
| Develop news, entertainment, or artistic content | |||
| Create visual designs or displays | |||
| Communicate with others about specifications or project details | |||
| Respond to customer problems or inquiries | |||
| Write material for artistic or commercial purposes | |||
| Prepare informational or instructional materials |
Show all 15 activities
| Evaluate the quality or accuracy of data | |||
| Obtain formal documentation or authorization | |||
| Communicate with others about operational plans or activities | |||
| Coordinate artistic or entertainment activities | |||
| Negotiate contracts or agreements | |||
| Perform recruiting or hiring activities | |||
| Supervise personnel activities |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- A document or report27%
- Marketing or social media content13%
- An email or message12%
- A resume or job application6%
- An analysis or summary6%
How they worked with Claude
50% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for editors specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 262,806 moves out
- 1 Writers and Authors Very high -0.3% 8%
- 2 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 3 Postsecondary Teachers, All Other Very high +2.0% 4%
- 4 News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists Very high -5.9% 3%
- 5 Management Analysts Very high +10.1% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 277,618 moves in
- 1 Writers and Authors Very high -0.3% 6%
- 2 News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists Very high -5.9% 4%
- 3 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 4 Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Very high -6.0% 3%
- 5 Public Relations Specialists Very high +1.8% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 1% less than high school
- 3% high school
- 8% some college
- 3% associate's
- 54% bachelor's
- 23% master's
- 4% professional degree
- 5% doctorate
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 1,337 people surveyed.
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation
18 programs, such as Communication, General, Mass Communication/Media Studies and Journalism.
See all
- Communication, General
- Mass Communication/Media Studies
- Journalism
- Broadcast Journalism
- Technical and Scientific Communication
- Publishing
- Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other
- Writing, General
- Creative Writing
- Professional, Technical, Business, and Scientific Writing
- Rhetoric and Composition
- Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies, Other
- General Literature
- Children's and Adolescent Literature
- Literature, Other
- Business/Corporate Communications, General
- Grantsmanship
- Business/Corporate Communications, Other
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
10.3% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | <0.5% | 19.1% |
| a certification | <0.5% | 5.8% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS · Brynjolfsson, Chandar and Chen, Stanford (Aug 2026)
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/27-3041.00