It is no
surprise to see, Donald Trump splashed across the cover of this week’s issue,
honored as its Person of the Year. The caption reads: “President of the Divided
States of America.”
Win or
lose he had to be selected. He was the biggest news story of the year by
a landslide from beginning to end, this year’s long news cycle revolved around
Trump – can he win, what if he wins, he won, what’s next. His candidacy
and campaign is one that will be studied for decades. The majority of
Americans dislike him. The majority of those who voted did not vote for
him. Whether we love or loathe, fear or cheer, he is an amazing subject that
could easily win again next time around. He will drive the nation and dominate
the news in a way that really has not been seen before.
Clinton
finished No. 2 on the short list by Time.
I would say she should be further down the list.
I would
choose, as a group, Wikileaks and the hack society. These rogues greatly
influenced the election, disturb the government, disrupt businesses, and
challenge the law.
No 5 for Time was collectively scientists, who are
working to show how gene-editing technology can revolutionize medicine. Maybe
the only one that could have come close to Trump is the disenfranchised
electorate – the fickle voter that allowed for Trump to get nominated and then
swept into office. Then again, the voters are hard to honor when they
seem so divided, frustrated, and angry.
Another
choice could have been pollsters. They did an awful job of calling the
election.
Lastly,
the news media could be people of the year. The media also failed
us. It failed to bring down Trump -- no matter how much it tried. It and also failed to understand how Trump
could get elected. It would be critical of Trump but it would shed too
much attention on everything he said or did and not enough on the actual issues.
Time has had many unpopular choices before, including Hitler for
Man of the Year, but it’s understandable. Time honors the person or entity that is
the biggest newsmaker and makes the largest impact on society – whether good or
bad.
Trump’s
first Time cover was in 1989, highlighting his
real estate empire and bold business acumen. Interestingly, there, was a
quote 27 years ago saying he may run someday for the presidency. We know
how that story ends.
Time’s online
poll was drastically different than how its editorial board judged things. 19%
of these who took a time.com survey on who should be Person of the Year chose
India’s prime minister. 7% said President Obama, 7% Wikileaks co-founder Julian
Assange, 4% Clinton, and 2% FB CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Trump didn’t register
much with those who participated in the poll, as only 7% favored him for selection.
Few
selections of Time magazine have pleased all, but I must admit Trump is really
the most worthy pick here. Sure he stands for many things many of us
disagree with, but somehow he managed to rise out of bankruptcy (his company),
rebuild his image with The Apprentice and best-selling books, and then, with no
political or military experience, win the White House while saying things other
candidates would be destroyed by.
My very
first blog entry – some 2261 posts ago – was about the great marketer and
shameless promoter Trump is. We can all learn from him and how he got to
where he is. Time has recognized him appropriately,
but others will scoff at him getting such an honor. He certainly will sell a
lot of copies at the newsstand.
What
might he do for an encore in 2017?
I am sure
the media will endlessly speculate and analyze everything he says, does or
doesn’t say or do. That is the true mark of a real newsmaker,
All-New 2017 Book Marketing & PR Toolkit
Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog
are his alone and not that of his employer. You can follow him on Twitter
@theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more
important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by
BookMarketingBuzzBlog 2016 ©.
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