Editor Guidelines
From Global Voices Wiki
These guidelines are guidelines. They are intended to give everyone a clear idea of what the general workload for Global Voices editors should be (not Lingua). Some editors have fewer bloggers in their regions. Some have difficulty recruiting volunteers. And a number of editors deliver much, much more than the minimum required. Publishing more than the minimum rate is warmly welcomed and celebrated. The more bloggers from different countries we can link to the better. This is a labor of love!
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[edit] Regional Editors
Regional editors are chiefly responsible for providing as broad and complete coverage as possible of citizen media of the countries in their regions. We have regional editors for Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, South East Asia, North East Asia, South Asia, Eastern & Central Europe, Caribbean, Caucasus & Central Asia. This work is paid with a modest monthly stipend.
Recruiting: Each regional editor is responsible for making good faith efforts to recruit authors from different countries, and for maintaining or belonging to a regional Google Group.
Leftblog posts: 2-5 a week - These posts can either be written by volunteer authors or the editor, in recognition of the fact that some posts (especially those which need to be translated) require a lot of editing.
Roundup links: 10-15 a week. These posts can also either be written by volunteer authors or the editor. They are short and typically include only one link.
Special coverage: In times of emergency, posting should be as much as possible, as soon as possible, as needed.
[edit] Language Editors
Language editors are chiefly responsible for translating content from citizen media in their language into English for a global audience. We have language editors for Spanish, Persian, Russian, Arabic, Japanese, Portuguese, Chinese, French, Korean. This work is paid with a modest monthly stipend.
Recruiting: Each language editor is responsible for making good faith efforts to recruit authors from different countries, and for maintaining or belonging to a regional Google Group. Language editors are expected to work with volunteers, but this can either mean recruiting their own, or working with existing volunteer authors/translators together with relevant regional editors.
Leftblog posts: 2-5 a week - These posts can either be written by volunteer authors or the editor, in recognition of the fact that some posts (especially those which need to be translated) require a lot of editing.
Roundup links: As needed, or one a day. These posts can also either be written by volunteer authors or the editor. They are short and typically include only one link.
Special coverage: In times of emergency, posting should be as much as possible, as soon as possible, as needed.
[edit] Subject Editors
Subject editors are meant to scan citizen media of the entire world for stories related to their subject. We have subject editors for Environment, Citizen Video, and Public Health. This work is paid with a modest monthly stipend.
Recruiting: Subject editors are welcome to recruit volunteers, but it is not a requirement. They must, however, interact with existing voluteers and editors to help diversify their sources and stories.
Leftblog posts: 2-5 a week - These posts can either be written by volunteer authors or the editor, in recognition of the fact that some posts (especially those which need to be translated) require a lot of editing. **
Special coverage: In times of emergency, posting should be as much as possible, as soon as possible, as needed.
Liaising: Subject editors have additional responsibilities in liaising with funders and partners for their subject areas (Reuters, OSI, Rising Voices grantees).
(** Public health editor posts less, given the additional workload on the end of Rising Voices)
[edit] Communication/Availability
In the event that editors are traveling or unavailable they must communicate this to authors, and assign a deputy if necessary (either one of the other editors, a qualified author, or managing editor).
If there will be more than a couple of days delay publishing a volunteer's post, this should be communicated to the author directly. Communicating clearly and regularly with our wonderful authors is key, and probably one of the greatest challenges of the job. Use, Google Groups, IM, chat, and email - whatever works. Waiting more than a few days to respond to an author is unacceptable.
On the other hand, editors can let volunteers know that they do not respond to emails on weekends or other self-chosen "private" days.
[edit] Vacation
All editors are entitled to 2 weeks' paid holiday a year, where they can assign a person of their choice to stand in for them.
