[_delirium]

I think it's fairly standard in journalism (both newspapers and magazines). A lot of bigger magazines and newspapers have a full-time headline writer who basically does only that, possibly along with some related headline-ish tasks like pulling out those random quotes from the article that get printed in large font in insets.

[jacques_chester]

I used to work at a newspaper.

This person is known as the "subeditor". They also have influence on page layouts in their section, so they have the power to highlight or bury some stories.

[stcredzero]

Newspapers and magazines also have a stake in their own brand, image, and "feel." They also have a stake in the marketability of their product, or their own idiosyncratic view of such, which in this context would be your essay/article.