The Washington Post named has two new managing editors with joint responsibility for its print and online editions, the paper reported. Elizabeth Spayd, 50, editor of washingtonpost.com, and Raju Narisetti, 42, founder editor of Indian newspaper Mint and former deputy managing editor of the Wall Street Journal, will report to Post executive editor Marcus Brauchli.
In a statement, the newspaper said that Spayd and Narisetti "will lead the integration of the Post's print and online newsrooms" and share responsibility for the journalism that appears both in print and online.
Spayd, who has been editor of washingtonpost.com since 2007 and with the newspaper since 1988, will oversee news gathering, editing and production, the Post said, and day-to-day production of the print edition of the newspaper.
Narisetti, who launched Mint in February 2007, will oversee the Post's weekend magazine as well as video, design and photography and will manage washingtonpost.com's day-to-day operations, the Post said.
Spayd and Narisetti replace Philip Bennett, who stepped down last week as managing editor, the second-ranking editorial position at the newspaper, after four years in the job.
Bennett was a candidate for the top job at the Post last year, executive editor, but it went to Brauchli, a former editor of the Wall Street Journal.
The Washington Post said: [Link]
Elizabeth Spayd, who has been a top editor on both sides of the Potomac River that separates the two newsrooms, will be responsible for the hard-news sections of the newspaper, located on The Post's fifth floor. Raju Narisetti, a former deputy managing editor of the Wall Street Journal, will oversee the fourth floor, which includes Style and other feature sections. Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli, who made the announcement, is pairing a longtime insider with someone who is unknown to journalists at The Post.
Spayd, 50, said that it feels "pretty cool" to break the gender barrier and that she hopes to increase The Post's appeal to female readers.
Narisetti, 42, who was born in India, is the first minority to reach the second-highest editing rank at The Post. He launched a national business newspaper in India in 2007 after having worked with Brauchli in several roles at the Journal, where Brauchli was the top editor until owner Rupert Murdoch helped pressure him into leaving last spring.
