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Sophie Huet appointed Global Editor-in-Chief of AFP. Jean-Luc Bardet replaces her as Deputy Global News Director
Sophie Huet is taking over as AFP Global Editor-in-Chief, replacing Phil Chetwynd, who was appointed Global News Director on January 9th 2019. Jean-Luc Bardet succeeds Sophie Huet as Deputy News Director. He will retain his current portfolio as France director. They will take up their new duties on February 4th.
A journalist for 34 years and a graduate of the Marseille School of Journalism, Sophie Huet began her career at the Central Press Agency (ACP), before joining AFP in 1991, first at the Rennes then the Washington and London bureaux. After serving as Marseille deputy bureau chief she became deputy editor-in-chief for France. In 2013, after four years in charge of the general news service, she trained in digital project design at the Gobelins School of the Image and took over as head of infographics and innovation. Since 2016 she has been deputy to the global news director Michèle Léridon, in charge of coordinating innovation actions and co-piloting the new AFPHub platform project. She represents AFP at Minds International, a network of 22 international news agencies.
Jean-Luc Bardet has been AFP Regional Director France since September 2017. He joined AFP in 1987 on the France desk, then worked as a reporter in Besançon (1988-1991), followed by Washington, where he covered the 1992 presidential election. Upon his return to Paris in 1994, he joined the political service, first as parliamentary correspondent then at the prime minister’s office from 1997 to 2002. Head of the French Economic Department from 2004 to 2008, then deputy to the Global Editor-in-Chief (2008-2012), he headed the Brussels office for three years before being appointed editor-in-chief for France in 2015. Jean-Luc Bardet has a degree in law, holds a post-graduate degree in political science and a diploma from the Centre de Formation des Journalistes (CFJ). He co-authored, with Sylvie Maligorne (AFP) and Bruno Jeudy (JDD), "Les Coulisses d'une Victoire" (Editions L'Archipel), a book about the 2002 French presidential campaign.
About AFP:
AFP is a global news agency delivering fast, accurate, in-depth coverage of the events shaping our world from conflicts to politics, economics, sports, entertainment and the latest breakthroughs in health, science and technology. With 2,400 staff spread across almost every country, AFP covers the world 24 hours a day in six languages. AFP delivers the news in video, text, photos, multimedia and graphics to a wide range of customers including newspapers and magazines, radio and TV channels, web sites and portals, mobile operators, corporate clients as well as public institutions.