Walk me through your CV.

What it tests: Story coherence + editorial fit. Signal of genuine editorial trajectory - reporting / producing / editing roles - not generic media interest.

Tell me about a story or a show you are proud of - what made it work?

What it tests: Editorial judgement + ownership + ability to articulate WHY a piece worked, not just that it did.

Tell me about a weakness, a failure, or feedback you have received.

What it tests: Self-awareness + maturity. Cross-role canonical. Fake weaknesses + 'I care too much about the work' answers downgrade immediately.

Why editorial - vs reporting, producing, or moving to a platform / product role?

What it tests: Authentic interest in the editor's job (decisions, slate-building, standards, room-running) vs the adjacent crafts.

Which kind of outlet appeals - linear broadcaster, streamer, public-service, digital-native?

What it tests: Genuine view on the outlet model + its editorial implications.

What it tests: Outlet-specific homework. Bar: specific evidence from recent commissions, lineups, or editorial direction - not generic praise.

How do you read this firm's current slate / output and where it is going?

What it tests: Outlet-specific homework + ability to read editorial direction from public output.

What is the biggest editorial challenge this firm faces in the next 12-24 months?

What it tests: Strategic editorial thinking. Tests whether candidate can name a real challenge (audience erosion, standards scrutiny, AI in newsrooms, content cost, talent retention) and propose an editorial response.

Editorial interview prep.

An editor in this world is the person who decides what gets made + what gets shown: which story leads the bulletin, which pitch becomes a commission, which scene survives the edit, which title gets the homepage row.

What interviewers look for

Can the candidate make + defend an editorial call under deadline - not just describe what others have made?
Do they have a standards reflex - accuracy, fairness, legal risk, taste - before the commercial argument lands?
Are they audience-aware without being audience-led - who is this for vs what will get clicks?
Can they read platform + format - what works on a 6pm bulletin vs a streamer vs a TikTok vertical?
Can they run a room of producers + talent - brief well, give notes well, hold the line on weak work?
Do they understand the commercial + slate context - budget, windowing, ratings, completion, renewals?

Behavioural questions to expect

Walk me through your CV.
What it tests: Story coherence + editorial fit. Signal of genuine editorial trajectory - reporting / producing / editing roles - not generic media interest.
Tell me about a story or a show you are proud of - what made it work?
What it tests: Editorial judgement + ownership + ability to articulate WHY a piece worked, not just that it did.
Tell me about a weakness, a failure, or feedback you have received.
What it tests: Self-awareness + maturity. Cross-role canonical. Fake weaknesses + 'I care too much about the work' answers downgrade immediately.
Why editorial - vs reporting, producing, or moving to a platform / product role?
What it tests: Authentic interest in the editor's job (decisions, slate-building, standards, room-running) vs the adjacent crafts.
Which kind of outlet appeals - linear broadcaster, streamer, public-service, digital-native?
What it tests: Genuine view on the outlet model + its editorial implications.
Why this firm?
What it tests: Outlet-specific homework. Bar: specific evidence from recent commissions, lineups, or editorial direction - not generic praise.
How do you read this firm's current slate / output and where it is going?
What it tests: Outlet-specific homework + ability to read editorial direction from public output.
What is the biggest editorial challenge this firm faces in the next 12-24 months?
What it tests: Strategic editorial thinking. Tests whether candidate can name a real challenge (audience erosion, standards scrutiny, AI in newsrooms, content cost, talent retention) and propose an editorial response.

Technical concepts to master

Editorial judgement

Green-light + kill: The two decisions every editor makes: commit resources to this piece, or refuse them. Killing is harder + more diagnostic than green-lighting.
Angle + framing: The specific question or claim the piece is built around - the spine - and the lens through which it is told.
Slate + lineup balance: The mix of pieces in a schedule / row / vertical / strand; editors balance heavy + light, breaking + analytical, returning + new.
News peg + why-now: The reason a piece is being published or commissioned at THIS moment - news event, anniversary, cultural moment, data drop, white space.

Standards + accuracy + legal

Two-source rule: Contested or sensitive factual claims require two independent sources - typically one document + one human, or two unrelated humans.
Right of reply: Affected parties must be given a real opportunity to respond to specific allegations before publication.
Defamation + the public-interest defence: A published statement is defamatory if it damages reputation + is communicated to a third party + is untrue or unfair; defences include truth, honest opinion, qualified privilege, public interest.
Impartiality + due weight: Public-service + regulated broadcasters must show due impartiality on controversial subjects - a range of views with due weight, not false balance.

Audience + platform sensibility

Format metrics that actually matter: Linear news: share + reach + demo skew + appointment-to-view. Streamer: completion rate + watch-through + repeat + 28-day-views. Digital: time-on-page + scroll-depth + return rate.
Audience contract: The implicit promise a piece or strand makes to its viewer - what they signed up for, in what tone, at what length, at what cadence.
Data-informed vs data-led: Data-informed editors use audience signal as one input among editorial judgement, standards, and slate balance. Data-led editors let the metric pick the piece.
Windowing + scheduling: Streamers + broadcasters choose when + where a piece drops - day-and-date vs theatrical-first, prime-time slot vs catch-up, batch vs weekly drop, breaking vs evening lineup.

Talent + production craft

The editorial brief: Written brief that names the question, the audience, the treatment, the length, the deadline, and the kill criteria. Good briefs prevent most editorial pain.
Notes that improve work: Notes are early, specific, on the work not the person; protect the spine of the piece, push on execution.
Killing without breaking the team: Kill weak work honestly + early; explain what would need to change for the next pitch; never kill via silence or scope creep.
Defending work upwards: Strong work against weak senior notes; bring data, precedent, audience read, and craft reasons; protect reporters + producers from political notes.

Practical drills

Pitch me a strand, show, or story you would green-light at this firm right now - in one sentence, then defend it. Then tell me what you would kill from the current slate to fund it.
It is 90 minutes to transmission / drop. You have these five candidate pieces + this audience picture [interviewer lists]. Build the lineup, justify your top story / lead title, and tell me what you push, what you drop, and what you fact-check first.
[Interviewer presents a scenario - e.g. a contested claim with one source, a defamation flag from legal, a taste call on graphic footage, a complaint mid-broadcast.] Walk me through the call.

Smart-question anchors

Editorial direction - what the current head wants the slate / output to look like in 12-24 months
Standards culture - how legal / standards / editorial actually work together under deadline
Audience + data culture - which metrics are watched + how much they drive commissioning
Slate + windowing - balance of returning vs new, in-house vs indie, day-and-date vs windowed
What good looks like in this seat - the specific pieces or calls that would land well in year one

Related roles

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