Jill Abramson to Leave Top Post at New York Times

Jill Abramson, who has led the New York Times (NYSE:NYT) newsroom since 2011, is “unexpectedly leaving” her role, to be replaced by Dean Baquet, the managing editor of the newspaper, effective immediately.

Baquet had been in his role as managing editor at the New York Times since 2011. He was previously the Washington bureau chief and has also served as a managing editor of the Los Angeles Times.

“There is no journalist in our newsroom or elsewhere better qualified to take on the responsibilities of executive editor at this time than Dean Baquet,” said Chairman Arthur Sulzberger, Jr. in a statement. “He is an exceptional reporter and editor with impeccable news judgment who enjoys the confidence and support of his colleagues around the world and across the organization.”

Abramson had been at the company since 1997 and served as managing editor from 2003 to 2011. She has been vocal about her dedication to the New York Times, and recently revealed that she has a tattoo of the company logo on her back. “I've loved my run at The Times. I got to work with the best journalists in the world doing so much stand-up journalism,” said Abramson.  “We successfully blazed trails on the digital frontier and we have come so far in inventing new forms of story-telling. Our masthead became half female for the first time and so many great women hold important newsroom positions.”

Abramson was the first female to serve in the top job at the New York Times. Baquet will be the first African American.

“The talented journalists of The New York Times make it the greatest news operation in history and I look forward to working with them to deliver the world’s most engaging and enterprising journalism,” said Baquet.

The New York Times recently reported a 2.6% revenue increase to $390 million in the first quarter of 2014. Profits declined from $28 million to $22 million.

Shares are down 5% year-to-date and are currently trading around $15.