We can imagine The New York Times’ team cranks out a lot of words in its daily editions across platforms.

But, did you ever stop to think how many words that is?

Interesting reading in an email I received (as did every other Times subscriber) from Monica Drake, the Times’ Associate Managing Editor.

Ms. Drake writes subscribers a mail to inform us that she now has been asked by the Times to manage special projects.

My mandate is to make innovative, engaging work that brings the world ever closer to your doorstep and device. My team is already supporting new technology like augmented reality, which we introduced in our recent Winter Games coverage. As a subscriber, you’d have unlimited access to this type of work and more.

The way we cover our world not only calls for more technical innovation, it calls for reshaping the lens through which we view the world, so that we capture and speak to a broader population than ever.

Then she adds, the one statistic that made me think:

With subscriber support, we publish a daily word count equivalent to the entire Harry Potter series. It is all done at a high quality that distinguishes us in a rapid news cycle filled with constant, dramatic and impactful events.

That is quite a volume, which also makes me think of how much more difficult it is for us visual journalists to attract and to retain the attention of an audience that is approached by such a monumental amount of information. The job of curating becomes ever more important for editor. The job of seducing takes center stage: that story you choose, the effective hooking headline you write, and, of course, the visuals that are going to make sure that those precious words are read.