Time.com posted an "Are They Worthy?" list of 200 folks — politicians, entertainers, authors, Paris Hilton, etc., all thrown in together — who could potentially make their cut for the magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of the Year issue. You can vote for your picks on the site. (Perhaps someone should remind them it’s April?)
I’m happy about who’s at No. 1 so far, Stephen Colbert — he’s somehow beatingsecond-place Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto by more than twiceMiyamoto’s votes — and am pleased to see worthy candidates like TV science teacher Steve Spangler and Bill O’Reilly foil Keith Olbermann. So people really like irony, videogames, test tubes, and opinions. Whatelse? Harry Potter (J.K. Rowling, No. 3), pretty white electronics (Steve Jobs, No. 6), and American Idol. Yes, folks, Sanjaya Malakar’s clocking in as the seventh most influential person in the country right now. I understand (and even pseudo-supported) the Sanjaya phenomenon, but it’s very scary that the young lad we initially conceived as an ironic fetish might now exemplify a credible, if not influential personality. America also admires John Mayer, celebrity couples who adopt babies, and f—ing Dane Cook (pictured).
After recognizing 7 of the top 10 as entertainment-related, I thought for the first time in months, maybe I don’t live inside a tiny little pop culture-focused bubble because of my job. (It’s gotten to the point where I don’t acknowledge cultural references offered to me unless they include a complimentary shot of YouTube.) Maybe the real world and the entertainment bubble are becoming one and the same. Maybe I am a valuable citizen after all! Maybe Keifer Sutherland (No. 13) is Jack Bauer and is saving all of us RIGHT NOW.
OR maybe too many people like me are voting for Sanjaya.
What do you make of Time’s preliminary list?
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Dane Cook? Are you f%#$#)kidding me???
Dane Cook is to comedy what Godzilla is to Tokyo Skylines.
Dane Cook is destorying comedy, one energetic, non joke filled show after the other.
Yelling and pouring water bottles on yourself is not telling jokes. It’s not even funny
I’m with you, Peter. Dane Cook’s success represents the epitome of dumbed down America. For shame, America.
I’m all for Sanjaya being on the list. Giving people a redefined notion of what is identified in this country as cute is something that needs to be looked at on a wider scale. He’s not a fair skinned, blue eyed Justin Timberlake and that says something huge.
We haven’t seen a wave for someone so “American” in the U.S. since Michael Jackson became a heartthrob in the 80’s. But we all know how that went. >_>
This stupid list just proves how totally inane the American public is.
For the love of God people….. NOOOO…they’re NOT worthy!!!!!!!!
so lame…zzzzzzzzzz
So Annie B. is into Bill O’Reilly, and doesn’t realize his time is past. That fits right in with her ideas on bashing religions other than her own. Left wing media indeed.
Karla, Annie B. is NOT into Bill O’Reilly–at least, not based on this article. I suggest you actually READ it and do your best to comprehend it.
This list is so depressing. I had to scroll halfway down to even find Hilary Clinton. And thousands more people voted for Sanjaya than did for Barrak Obama? Are the American people really as apathetic and ignorant as they show themselves to be? On the other hand, I have to give it to my boys Stephen and Jon. Why can’t our real political candidates inspire as much respect and admiring fervor as these two pundits? Stewart and Colbert in 08!
I agree with Peter and Brad about Dane Cook. I tried to like him because it seemed the “cool” thing to do, but… he’s just not funny.
The fangirl and gamer in me is quite happy to see Miyamoto up at top (or near top).
Howard Stern? Influential? Maybe 10 years ago. Since moving to satellite radio, he barely has a fraction of his old audience, and does anyone even talk about him anymore? The whole thing about him supporting Sanjaya was just a cheap way to get his ugly old face in the paper again. Face it, Howard Stern no longer matters.
No list for the year should be compiled in April, as you said.
It appears to me it would be much easier to choose
at least 150 from the list that are NOT worthy. What is this world coming to???
this list is embarassing for us as a country. Sanjaya over Bono, Barrack, and Steve jobs??? You’ve got to be freakin kidding me.
get a dictionary and look up “foil” and then learn how to read. no, not tin foil, silly!
I haven’t looked at the list (it is April after all; it’s like those movie ads that refer to films as “the most ____ movie of the year”) but I wanted to point out that “influential” doesn’t mean “influential in a good way” necessarily, right? So someone like Dane Cook (at least previous to this year) could arguably have a lot of influence on the short-term future of entertainment, whether it’s in a good way or a bad way.
The Time 100 usually goes out sometime in May or early summer, so it doesn’t matter that it’s april.
I’m a teacher who was more than surprised and excited to see someone like Steve Spangler on the list. I’m not sure how someone outside of education would know about him (probably because of tv), but it’s a huge victory for teachers to actually have someone who is doing great things for teachers and kids on the list. Sure, he’s not as important as Bono or Hillary Clinton, but at least someone recognized a relatively unknown person by pop-culture standards as important and influential. He’s not just the guy who did the Mentos thing, he’s a teacher is making a difference.
I think Sanjaya is very popular at this time. Lot of moms want this kid to be the role model for their kids. And I agree. He is talented, sweet, family oriented, level headed and very humble. With the drug and party culture prevalent, I just hope that he influences our young ones in a big way. He totally deserves to be on that list.