Knowledge Creates Power: Zogby: Palin Person of the Year, Bush, of Decade

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Zogby: Palin Person of the Year, Bush, of Decade

By Jim Meyers - Wednesday, 15 Dec 2010 04:33 PM - NewsMax

Former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin is the Person of the Year for 2010, according to a new survey by Zogby International, which also designated George W. Bush as Person of the Decade (2000-2010).

Palin, Zogby, Person of Year, Bush Palin was cited by 21 percent of the respondents, while 16 percent chose President Barack Obama. Glenn Beck and Julian Assange of WikiLeaks notoriety tied with 13 percent.

None of the other seven possible choices for Person of the Year — Gen. David Petraeus, Hillary Clinton, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Conan O’Brien, Apple’s Steve Jobs, basketball star LeBron James, and Defense Secretary Robert Gates — garnered more than 6 percent.

Democrats favored Obama with 33 percent, while Palin won among Republicans (39 percent) and independents (17 percent).

Bush, Zogby, Palin, Person of the Year In the Person of the Decade polling, Bush was chosen by 44 percent of respondents, followed by Obama with 20 percent, and Osama bin Laden with 11 percent.

Zogby’s poll of nearly 2,000 adults found that 40 percent of respondents believe the BP oil spill is the news story of the year, with the midterm elections second at 34 percent.

The 2001 terrorist attacks is the news story of the decade, according to 73 percent of respondents.

The most significant political story of 2010 is the emergence of the tea party, Zogby found, while the most significant international news story of the year is the Haiti earthquake, and the most significant issue of the decade is the rise in terrorism.

Time Person Of The Year 2010: Mark Zuckerberg

NEW YORK -- Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been named Time magazine's "Person of the Year" for 2010, beating out a long list (100) competitors. Julian Assange of WiliLeaks was rumored to take the award and the cover although on the official list of 100.

At 26, Zuckerberg is the youngest "Person of the Year" since the first one chosen, Charles Lindbergh; he was 25 when he was named in 1927, Time said Wednesday. Zuckerberg beat out Britain's Queen Elizabeth II by just two weeks: She was 26 when she was named in 1952.

Incidentally, Queen Elizabeth II has recently joined Zuckerberg's social networking behemoth.

Zuckerberg has put himself on the map not only as one of the world's youngest billionaires, but also as a prominent newcomer to the world of philanthropy.

Earlier this year, he pledged $100 million over five years to the Newark, N.J. school system. Now, he's in the company of media titans Carl Icahn, 74, Barry Diller, 68, and others who have joined Giving Pledge, an effort led by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and investor Warren Buffett to commit the country's wealthiest people to step up their charitable donations.

Zuckerberg owns about a quarter of Facebook's shares.

Zuckerberg has built Facebook into an international phenomenon by stretching the lines of social convention and embracing a new and far more permeable definition of community. In this new world, users are able to construct a social network well beyond what would ever be possible face-to-face.

"I'm trying to make the world a more open place," Zuckerberg says in the "bio" line of his own Facebook page.

Born in Zuckerberg's Harvard dorm room, the site has in six years grown to more than 500 million users worldwide and a dollar worth in the billions.

Facebook was the subject of director David Fincher and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin's film "The Social Network." It features a dark portrayal of Zuckerberg by Jesse Eisenberg, as well as the direction he's taking his company and his status as one of America's most influential figures.

The film has been picked as the best of the year by the New York Film Critics Circle, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and the National Board of Review. On Tuesday, it received six Golden Globe nominations, including best picture, drama, going up against its chief rival, the British monarchy tale "The King's Speech," which led with seven nominations.

Time's "Person of the Year" is the person or thing that has most influenced the culture and the news during the past year for good or for ill.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke received the honor last year. The 2008 winner was then-President-elect Barack Obama. The 2007 winner was Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Other previous winners have included Bono, President George W. Bush, and Amazon.com CEO and founder Jeff Bezos.