The Economist names first woman editor to lead the newsroom

(Reuters) - The Economist Group on Thursday named Zanny Minton Beddoes as the editor of its eponymous newspaper. Beddoes, 47, is the first woman to serve in the role of the 172 year-old publication and succeeds John Micklethwait, who was named head of Bloomberg news earlier this month. Most recently, Beddoes served as the Economist's business affairs editor. She joined the newspaper, which is half owned by Pearson's Financial Times media group, in 1994 after spending two years as an economist at the International Monetary Fund. (Reporting by Jennifer Saba in New York)