Video Editing Workflow for UK Newsrooms

Video editing for journalists: an overview

Video editing is the assembly of raw footage, audio, graphics, and music into a coherent, broadcast-ready or web-ready package. For UK journalists working in video, it is an increasingly core skill — many digital newsrooms expect reporters to self-edit, and even broadcast journalists benefit from understanding the edit process to shoot more efficiently.

The key software platforms used in UK newsrooms divide broadly into two tiers: collaborative systems (Avid Media Composer, used at major broadcasters for multi-editor newsroom workflows) and individual or small-team systems(Adobe Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro). For journalists self-editing on a laptop, DaVinci Resolve's free version offers professional capability at no cost and runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Good editing begins before you touch the software. A well-organised project, properly labelled bins, and a paper (or digital) script or shot list make the difference between a two-hour edit and a six-hour one.

Key editing software in UK newsrooms

When editing workflow matters most

• 1Self-editing a news package to a tight deadline — good project organisation compresses edit time significantly.
• 2Handing a project to a colleague or back to a camera operator after a first cut — labelled bins and clean project structure enable handover.
• 3Editing MOJO footage that requires transcoding before the edit timeline is smooth.
• 4Colour matching footage from multiple cameras or different shooting days to look consistent.
• 5Syncing separately recorded audio to video — especially for double-system audio from a recorder.
• 6Preparing video for multiple platforms with different specs (broadcast 25fps 1080i, web H.264, vertical 9:16 for social).

Red flags

• ⚠Editing directly from the original camera card or memory card — always import and back up first; losing a card during edit loses irreplaceable footage.
• ⚠No project folder structure — a flat bin with 200 unlabelled clips is a time-sink in any edit situation.
• ⚠Starting the picture edit before syncing audio — audio sync issues discovered at the end of an edit require re-assembling the sequence.
• ⚠Exporting at the wrong codec or bitrate for the delivery platform — re-exporting wastes time that rarely exists in a newsroom.
• ⚠Colour correcting by eye alone without scopes — perception shifts under monitor fatigue; use the waveform and vectorscope.
• ⚠Not saving a version before making major changes — non-destructive editing software can be undone, but version saves are a safety net for large structural changes.

Edit start-up checklist

• Footage has been backed up from the camera card to at least one additional drive before editing begins.
• Project folder is created with labelled sub-bins: Interviews, B-roll, PTC, Graphics, Audio, Exports.
• Sequence settings match the delivery specification: frame rate (25fps for UK broadcast), resolution, codec.
• All footage has been imported and, where needed, transcoded to an edit-friendly codec.
• Audio and video are synced before picture edit begins.
• A rough assembly (string-out) of all usable interview clips is cut before shaping the package.
• B-roll bin is reviewed and selects are identified to cover each section of narration.
• A final export profile matching delivery specs is saved in the project before exporting.

Common mistakes

• ›Cutting to music before the script is locked — if the narration changes, music-driven pacing has to be rebuilt from scratch.
• ›Not checking audio levels against broadcast standard (-12 dBFS average for speech in UK broadcast) — levels that peak too high or sit too low will be rejected.
• ›Using jump cuts within a single interview clip without a cutaway — jarring jump cuts are an editing error; cover them with B-roll.
• ›Applying heavy colour grades that alter the meaning of the image (e.g. heavy desaturation that makes someone look ill when they are not) — this is an editorial and ethical concern, not just a technical one.
• ›Exporting at too low a bitrate for web — web video should generally be exported at 8-15 Mbps (H.264) at minimum for 1080p.
• ›Not archiving the project folder after delivery — source footage and projects often need to be re-accessed months later.

Related guides

Primary sources

Frequently asked questions