Finally: A Woman to Lead the Fed

Janet Yellen will be the first female head of the Federal Reserve—indeed, "the first woman to head a central bank in any big Western nation" if you don't count Russia, writes John Cassidy in the New Yorker. And that certainly matters, as it may not surprise you to hear that, when you look at professional economists, you won't see a lot of women in senior roles. And there are even fewer in policy-advisory or central banking positions, Cassidy writes. As a dad, he writes, he salutes Yellen for giving his daughters, "and other girls ... an example to emulate."

She's already a solid leader, he continues, and as a woman, she'll get "more public attention"—especially from regular folks who don't work in the financial industry—"than your average gray-haired, male central banker would." She'll likely end up "as something of a celebrity," Cassidy writes. "And there’s nothing necessarily wrong with that: She deserves the attention." Virtually since graduating high school, Yellen "has been leaving her mark in fields that traditionally have been heavily male-dominated." Now, as she approaches the Fed's helm, she "may or may not turn out to be a great leader of the Fed. (But) on her first day in office, she will already be a historic one." Click for Cassidy's full column. (More Janet Yellen stories.)