Italy’s Alessandra Galloni to be first woman to lead Reuters in 170 years

Rome: Reuters has named Italian journalist Alessandra Galloni as its next editor-in-chief, the first woman to lead the prestigious international news agency in its 170-year history.

Galloni will succeed Stephen J. Adler who is retiring after leading the editorial team for the past decade, during which time the agency received hundreds of journalism awards, including seven Pulitzer Prizes.

Aged 47 and from Rome, Galloni has been global managing editor for Reuters since 2015, a top position at the agency which has a worldwide staff of almost 2,500 journalists in 200 locations.

“For 170 years, Reuters has set the standard for independent, trusted and global reporting,” Galloni said in a statement. “It is an honour to lead a world-class newsroom full of talented, dedicated and inspiring journalists.”

Galloni’s appointment was welcomed on Twitter by Italy’s undersecretary for European Affairs Enzo Amendola with the comment “Italian pride.”

Galloni speaks four languages and has broad experience covering business and political news at Reuters, where she began her career in the agency’s Italian-language news service.

She then spent 13 years reporting and editing at The Wall Street Journal before rejoining Reuters in 2013 as the editor of its Southern Europe bureau.

Galloni is currently based at the agency’s London office where she will remain when she takes up the top job next Monday.