Editorial salary survey

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Annual, 1994 by Jean Marie Angelo

Compensation for top editors has stalled; some improvement is reported for the next echelon.

Salaries for the decision-makers in magazines' editorial departments--the editorial directors and the editors--have stalled this year as the impact of tough times continues to ripple through the industry. The average salary for editorial directors and their equivalents in top management is $66,444, according to those who responded to FOLIO:'s annual salary survey for 1993. This is 2.6 percent less than the average reported by this group last year.

For their part, editors report an average salary of $46,893, which is down 6 percent from last year.

But there is some good news. Managing editors and senior editors are faring better, reporting modest salary gains in 1993. This year's average salary for managing editors is $41,052, up 5.1 percent from last year. Senior editors report that they expect an average of $43,441 in annual compensation, an increase of 5.9 percent.

About one-third of managing editors, approximately the same percentage as last year, expect to receive a bonus this year. Managing editors on consumer titles are more optimistic than business editors.

A similar percentage of senior editors expect to receive a bonus, unchanged also from the year before. Business magazine editors however, expect their bonuses to shrink, while consumer editors anticipate a big increase.

One surprising fact is that senior editors in their 40's not only earn less than those in their '50s, but also less than those in their '30s.

Editorial professionals in the four personnel groups surveyed annually are not only facing modest or non-existent salary increases, they are also working harder for what they have. Some editors who work for multi-title companies have taken on editorial duties for more than one magazine to compensate for the fact that their staff sizes are now smaller. Others have been given duties that range outside the editorial purview.

Some who have been lucky enough to receive merit raises report their good fortune as a mixed blessing. "I was promoted to editor from managing editor and got a $10,000 raise," says a woman editor in chief, "but on the other hand, a new managing editor wasn't hired."

Still, her situation is better than that of other editors who have taken on additional responsibilities without corresponding raises. A few editorial directors and editors report that management has tried to compensate for additional assignments by giving increased bonus compensation. But these are a lucky few; the majority of the respondents in these two categories do not expect to receive larger bonus checks at the end of 1993.

Methodology

FOLIO: mailed its ninth annual editorial salary survey to 1,132 editorial professionals in two mailings last April. Four hundred four editorial professionals responded to the survey, yielding an overall response rate of 35.6 percent. Three hundred ninety-eight respondents (35.2 percent) supplied sufficient data for tabulation.

Some respondents gave expected salary and bonus ranges. In those instances, the mean was used for tabulation. Half of those who received the questionnaire work for consumer magazines; the other half work for business publications. Thirty-five percent of the sample group in each personnel category work for magazines with circulations of 100,000 or more. The rest work for magazines with smaller circulations.

The results of the survey have been weighted to reflect the circulation percentages and the percentage of business and consumer personnel who received the survey.

The results were tabulated by Accu-Tab, Bayside, New York.

EDITORIAL MANAGEMENT

EDITORIAL MANAGERS: May have various titles, including editor and publisher, editor in chief or editorial director. This person sets editorial policy and may also be in charge of other products or departments in addition to editorial. The editor reports to this person.

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EDITOR

EDITOR: May also be called executive editor. This staffer is responsible for editorial direction and content, including art, text and cover, of one or more magazines.

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MANAGING EDITOR

MANAGING EDITOR: Coordinates the editorial, art and production departments to ensure that the magazine is published on time and is in acceptable form. This person oversees the copy editing and proofreading functions.

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SENIOR EDITOR

SENIOR EDITOR: Plans and writes features and other articles. This person may also head an editorial feature department or be responsible for a specific subject area and oversee other editorial employees, freelance writers and designers.

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Jean Marie Angelo is a Stamford, Connecticut-based freelance writer. She was formerly managing editor of FOLIO:. Rachel Drucker is associate editor (special projects) of FOLIO:.