Catherine Pepinster, executive editor of The Independent on Sunday, is to replace John Wilkins as editor of the Roman Catholic weekly newspaper The Tablet.
Pepinster will be The Tablet’s first female editor when she takes over in January. Wilkins is retiring after 22 years as editor.
Having completed a postgraduate journalism course at City University, Pepinster wrote for several local newspapers before joining The Independent in 1994. She said it was an honour to be appointed editor of The Tablet, adding that it was an “historic moment” for the paper. “I hope my appointment will be a sign of the vital and valuable role that women can have in the life of the church,” she said.
“The intelligent Catholics who make up the readership of The Tablet have been confident that they can turn to its pages in a world where their religion is assailed on more and more sides. They will be able to continue to do so. “I hope The Tablet will remain a focus for not only the intelligent examination of difficult issues, but also for the reassurance that commonly held standards and beliefs can bring. “I intend to maintain The Tablet’s high standards of intellectual excellence and indeed build upon that formidable strength,” Pepinster added.
“I want The Tablet to be questioning, lively and accessible, but above all it will be unapologetically serious.”
By Catrin Rogers
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