Time, one of the most famous arbitrary weekly news magazine in the world was founded in 1923. Since the last 90 years, the magazine has been choosing an individual, organization or a group as Person of the Year. This time, the title has been awarded to the President-elect businessman Donald Trump. Alongside Donald Trump, Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan were also the contenders for Times Person of the Year.
Donald Trump is TIME’s Person of the Year 2016 #TIMEPOY https://t.co/hTnFF2njwH pic.twitter.com/y8oWeldjJY
— TIME (@TIME) December 7, 2016
The Time article ‘The Choice’ by Nancy Gibbs elaborates why Trump might have been the most deserving candidate for the award. Nancy points out to his undoubted success in real estate development and a subsequent appointment to the most important position in the world, calling latter a ‘rebuke to an entrenched and arrogant governing class’.
Remember the White House Correspondent Dinner 2011 where Seth Meyers and Barrack Obama mocked Trump? And, remember the time when he was laughed upon for announcing Republican candidacy? After all that, Donald Trump became the people’s champion and won the November election despite huge odds shown by pollsters and analysts.
In an interview with Time, Trump thanked the group of Americans which he calls the ‘forgotten ones’. He also praised the greatness of American society and called this award a humbling experience.
See every TIME Person of the Year cover in 30 seconds #TIMEPOY https://t.co/GkH1ZUldcx pic.twitter.com/R71UQIuLK2
— TIME (@TIME) December 7, 2016
While the award has been perceived as a respect to Donald Trump by his followers, the opposing parties call it a misjudgment of Time magazine. Some people also speculate that Time intendedly put M above his head, making Trump seem like a man with horns – typically called a devil. A tweet even read – “Hitler, Stalin, Putin and now Trump. All have been the person of the year…”
All the critical responses of social media have been defended by Time magazine saying, “It’s not an endorsement” but an acknowledgment of his unexpected victory and American representation.
