Geraldine Kennedy has been appointed as editor of The Irish Times, succeeding Conor Brady who held the position for 16 years.

Geraldine, (51), was once a member of the Irish parliament for the Progressive Democrats and has previously been political editor, deputy editor, political correspondent and public affairs correspondent at the paper.

She also worked as political correspondent at the Sunday Tribune and after that held the same post at the Sunday Press.

Her promotion makes her the first woman to hold such a senior post in the Irish newspaper industry.

Conor Brady, who will remain on the newspaper's board as a non-executive director, was appointed editor in 1986 after first joining the newspaper in 1969 as a graduate from University College, Dublin.

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