About Best-Edit
Editorial Standards for Modern Newsrooms
Best-Edit is an editorial tool built by journalists who needed a better way to maintain quality when newsroom resources disappeared.
We’re not a grammar checker. We’re not an AI writing tool. We’re an editorial system built on the standards of top-tier journalism, available to anyone publishing news.
The Problem We Solve
Newsrooms have shrunk. Copy desks have been eliminated. Solo reporters are filing multiple stories daily with no editorial support.
But readers haven’t lowered their standards. A typo in a school board story doesn’t just undermine that article. It erodes trust in everything else you publish. In local journalism, where credibility is your only currency, every error accelerates the decline.
We built Best-Edit because the existing tools don’t solve this:
- Grammar checkers treat journalism like email writing
- AI content generators create slop, not editorial support
- Generic editing tools don’t understand newsroom standards or journalism structure
We needed an editorial tool that understood journalism. So we built it.
What Best-Edit Does
Best-Edit provides the editorial infrastructure small newsrooms and solo journalists can’t afford to hire:
Catches errors before publication
Grammar, spelling, attribution issues, structural problems, and logical inconsistencies.
Tightens prose
Eliminates wordiness, passive voice, and unclear constructions while preserving your voice.
Provides editorial feedback
Ask questions directly: “Is this ready to publish?” “What’s missing?” Get instant editorial guidance.
Works conversationally
Paste your draft, upload a document, or just ask questions. Best-Edit responds like an editor would.
Enforces standards consistently
Every story gets the same rigorous editorial review, whether you’re filing at 9am or 11pm.
Teaches as it edits
Explanations for every suggestion help you internalize standards over time.
Who Built This
Best-Edit was founded by Mark Konkol, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and Peabody Award-winning documentary producer. After years of writing and producing journalism across multiple platforms, he built the editorial tool he needed when newsroom support disappeared.
Best-Edit reflects the editorial practices learned in newsrooms and journalism schools. We understand ledes, nut grafs, attribution, and story structure because we’ve written under those standards.
How It Works
Conversational editorial support
You can paste text, upload Word documents or PDFs, or simply ask editorial questions. Best-Edit responds with specific, actionable feedback.
Opinionated by design
Best-Edit enforces professional journalism standards. No configuration needed. No settings to tweak. Just consistent quality from day one.
Built for journalism workflows
Works the way you work—whether you’re drafting in the interface, uploading finished pieces, or asking quick questions mid-story.
Maintains your voice
We clean up mechanics (grammar, structure, clarity) while preserving style. You sound like yourself, just clearer.
Keeps you in control
Every edit is a suggestion. You review, accept, or reject. You’re the journalist. We’re the safety net.
Who Uses Best-Edit
- Local newspaper reporters filing multiple daily stories without copy desk support
- Small newsroom editors maintaining standards across skeleton crews
- Freelance journalists publishing without in-house editorial support
- Solo investigative reporters needing editorial review on complex stories
- Anyone publishing journalism who believes quality protects credibility
Editorial Standards We Enforce
Best-Edit is built on the principles taught in journalism schools and practiced in professional newsrooms: