Two years have passed since my responsibilities for editing the space physics section of theJournal of Geophysical Researchwere handed on to an able successor. During this period, my feeling that the membership of the American Geophysical Union wishes to know more regarding the editing of their journals has been reinforced. The various journals of the American Geophysical Union, along with the meetings it sponsors, provide the chief justification for the AGU's existence as a scientific organization. Because its journals are central to many aspects of the scientific endeavors of the AGU and its individual members, interest in the functions and responsibilities of the editors is wide and natural. It was therefore surprising to me to find that these functions and responsibilities are, to a large extent, poorly understood, perhaps, only for the simple reason that editors write little about the details of their editorial philosophy and their job.