Andy Bechtel
banner
andybechtel.bsky.social
Andy Bechtel
@andybechtel.bsky.social
Journalism professor at UNC-Chapel Hill. Copy editor. NOLA native, Durham denizen. Member of AAUP and ACES: the Society for Editing. https://editdesk.wordpress.com/
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
Fascinating to me that NPR is going with the Secretary of War nomenclature.
January 3, 2026 at 5:34 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
There it is. The final print edition, after more than 150 years, of the Atlanta Journal Constitution

elink75f.mail.breakermedia.com/ss/c/u001.o7...
December 31, 2025 at 12:44 AM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
New year's resolution for journalists and news leaders: Challenge numbers. When leaders describe a $6 Billion data center" ask — what's behind that number? Where does the money go? The $xB industry -- is that money to local economies, or investors? This is an almost universal miss that can be fixed.
December 30, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
Looking for a job in #editing?

@acesediting.bsky.social is a great resource! They can support you in your job-seeking journey with a host of resources just for editors:

aceseditors.org/resources/jo... #amediting #freelanceediting #publishing #editor #copyeditor #freelanceeditor #editingjobs
Looking for editing work?
Looking for a job can feel like work itself—searching for opportunities, updating resumes, tailoring cover letters, filling out applications, repeat.
aceseditors.org
December 30, 2025 at 1:39 AM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
The original Betty Boop, the first four Nancy Drew books and Greta Garbo's first talkie are among the many works from 1930 that will be free to use, share and remake starting on Jan. 1. n.pr/4scrT9d
The cultural works becoming public domain in 2026, from Betty Boop to Nancy Drew
The original Betty Boop, the first four Nancy Drew books and Greta Garbo's first talkie are among the many works from 1930 that will be free to use, share and remake starting on Jan. 1.
n.pr
December 26, 2025 at 11:06 AM
Merry Christmas to family, friends and followers!
December 25, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
This time of year I always think of this deliciously unhinged photo shoot with Truman Capote & Andy Warhol for High Times magazine's 1978 Xmas issue, with Capote soused to the gills & Warhol gamely playing along as Santa. I want someone to write an extended oral history of this photo shoot alone
December 24, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
Edward Hopper, Christmas card, 1928 whitney.org/collection/w...
December 24, 2025 at 3:15 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
The full spiked 60 Minutes CECOT package, clean & subtitled. 1/5
December 23, 2025 at 1:28 AM
‪The #1 movie from when you were 10 years old is how your 2026 is going to go.
December 19, 2025 at 9:06 PM
Today I saw "Al Gore" in a news story and initially interpreted it as "Artificial Intelligence Gore."
December 18, 2025 at 11:50 PM
Last night I dreamt that The New York Times was hiring a handkerchief editor. Duties included guiding coverage of hankies, ascots and small designer scarves.
December 18, 2025 at 12:16 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
Rise of Skywalker, the entire theater knew it would suck ass the second it started, it reminded me of watching the Mets or Raiders collapse, everybody was actively pissed off, saying stuff like "oh god" or laughing at how shit it was. A real bonding moment
Raising the always fun question: What are your most memorable theater-going experiences?

Mine also include The Matrix, Blair Witch, and being way too stoned in Belgium when Fellowship of the Ring was sold out so we sat in the back row for Mulholland Drive instead.
It was hands-down one of the most memorable theater-going experiences I can remember, a collective 30-minute butt-clench/armrest-grab for the final climb. And we knew he lived! Wild.
December 13, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
Incredible ad placement for this @politico.com story about Olivia Nuzzi's book flopping.

www.politico.com/news/2025/12...
December 11, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
UT-Dallas fired the editor of the student paper, then fired the staff when they went on strike to object, then banned their independent newspaper from campus, and now are trying to discipline the former student editor for fact-checking a letter to the editor? Glad @thefireorg.bsky.social is on this.
UT Dallas is Trying to Punish a Student Editor for Editing
UT Dallas has consistently been accused of free speech violations in recent years.
www.dallasobserver.com
December 10, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
Editor In Chief of Quinnipiac's student paper steps back from news coverage in order to not risk her visa. "For her, the irony is sharp. She comes from a country that was once under communist rule, and she viewed the U.S. as a beacon of free expression." nutgrafnews.substack.com/p/internatio...
International student EIC has to 'step back' from news coverage to not risk her visa
'I kind of feel like a hypocrite sometimes,' says a CT student journalist from Slovakia
nutgrafnews.substack.com
December 10, 2025 at 2:20 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
What photojournalist Ann Hermes does may look like nostalgia, but she’s actually capturing something else – people and places on the brink of change. That includes local newsrooms.
“This is for me a love letter to journalism,” Hermes said.
www.poynter.org/local-news/2...
This photographer is documenting old newspaper newsrooms while they’re still around - Poynter
Ann Hermes' images show what's left and what we stand to lose
www.poynter.org
December 10, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
Come work with me! Salary range $85,000-$100,000. Benefits include a union, fairly low insurance premiums and so many cat photos. job-boards.greenhouse.io/propublica/j...
Copy Editor
New York City, United States; Remote, United States
job-boards.greenhouse.io
December 9, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
*presses record*
Idea for movie: a maverick proofreader breaks all the rules & defies his bosses by making er, clear & concise corrections, wait a minute, delete
what the fuck does that mean
December 8, 2025 at 6:29 PM
When “yes” is the answer to a question headline.
December 7, 2025 at 8:09 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
Did you or someone you know dance on Soul Train in the 1970s?

I’d like to talk with you or them about that experience for my research

Thanks!
December 6, 2025 at 11:28 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
“I was under the impression that we were protected from being affected by any anti-DEI legislation and rulings because of our First Amendment right to freedom of press, but it appears I was wrong,” Alice Magazine Editor-in-Chief Gabrielle Gunter said in a statement Tuesday.
Via Andrea Tinker: The University of Alabama suspended publication of two student-run magazines on Monday, claiming that the publications were not in compliance with federal guidance on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs.
University of Alabama suspends student magazines for Black students, female students | Alabama Reflector
The University of Alabama suspended publication for Nineteen Fifty-Six Magazine and Alice Magazine citing a memo from Attorney General Pam Bondi.
alabamareflector.com
December 2, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
NYT editor takes reader questions about covering Trump. Gift link. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/02/u...
Your Questions, Complaints and Feedback for Our Editor, Joe Kahn
www.nytimes.com
December 2, 2025 at 2:52 PM
“Are you silently correcting my grammar?” Nah, we’re good. We all make mistakes, especially in casual conversations.
What’s the worst question someone can ask after you tell them your profession? For linguists, it’s definitely “how many languages do you speak?”, but I’m curious what else is happening to the rest of y’all out there?!
December 1, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Reposted by Andy Bechtel
"Never spread the lie in the headline" should be a hard rule of 21st century journalism.

Research shows that repeating lies helps to spread them, and people read headlines more than they read stories.
News media has to do better with headlines that present false and unverified public health claims.
November 30, 2025 at 1:10 AM