Woman on top. About Time, I say

NANCY GIBBS

Nancy Gibbs, at age 53, has become the first woman to become the top editor at Time magazine in its 90-year history.

Gibbs, according to a profile in The New York Times, started as a fact-checker at the newsweekly 28 years ago. She has since written more cover stories for Time than any other writer in the magazine’s history and she is also a prolific author whose most recent book, The President’s Club: Inside the World’s Most Exclusive Fraternity, was published last year.

In a phone interview, Gibbs told The New York Times that she had been surprised at how many young women at Time said they were excited about her promotion, even at a time when breaking “this glass ceiling has become so commonplace”. (In January, Time Inc. named Martha Nelson editor in chief of its magazine division, the first woman to hold that job.)

Gibbs added that these moves seemed to have resonated with employees. “This is a historic institution and there is something that excites people about seeing a woman run it for the first time,” she said.

• ALSO READ: In an interview with Forbes, Nancy Gibbs talks about glass ceilings breaking all over, her most memorable cover story, and the role of a newsweekly in today's world: "Talking To Nancy Gibbs, Time Magazine's New Managing Editor".

• In her first piece for the magazine as managing editor, Gibbs discusses her plans: "New Editor Maps Out What’s Next For Time".

• ADDITIONAL READING: "How does an editor take the decision to publish pictures that can upset readers?" — Nancy Gibbs's predecessor, Richard Stengel, explains why he chose to run a cover photo that many readers were sure to complain about.