The 2023 Person of the Year nominees for Time magazine include prominent figures from the entertainment industry and politics.
On Monday morning, December 4, the contenders for the annual Person of the Year were unveiled by the magazine and worldwide media brand. On Wednesday morning, December 6, the 2023 honoree will be formally unveiled.
This year's contenders include Taylor Swift, Barbie, and the Hollywood strike members at SAG-AFTRA and WGA, as well as political elites such as Russian President Vladimir Putin, British monarch King Charles III, and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The list, which was first leaked to NBC's Today Show, also includes OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell.
People who have had the largest impact on the world in the past twelve months are recognized as the Person of the Year by TIME. This honor is not based on a person's goodness, evil, or power, but on the impact they have made, The Hollywood Reporter said.
The Candidates
Previously, Swift's net worth reached $1 billion, and is widely recognized as one of the most influential musicians of all time. According to the source, the 1989 singer-songwriter is among the select few artists who have managed to amass such substantial wealth via the exclusivity of their music and live performances.
In terms of making money off of her skill, Swift is in a league of her own. According to branding expert Doug Eldridge, who spoke to Fox News, "She's actually riding the tech wave, instead of going out with the digital tide," ignoring the fact that artists have lost millions of dollars in sales due to vinyl records being replaced by digital downloads.
During the press conference that ended the United States and China summit in San Francisco in November, President Biden referred to Xi as a "dictator." In June, Biden used that word for the first time during the Chinese spy balloon's controversial journey across the US. "He's a dictator in the sense that he's a guy who runs a country that is a communist country, that is based on a form of government that is totally different than ours," Biden explained.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have received more attention this year than King Charles, who just turned 75.
Although Russia is still engaged in a conflict with Ukraine, its president, Vladimir Putin, was named to the finalist list by TIME editors. Notably, Putin has already been named TIME Person of the Year in 2007.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, president of Ukraine, was named Person of the Year by TIME in 2022 after he was chosen from among ten other nominees. As a tribute to the Ukrainian people's valiant fight against Russia's invasion, the "spirit of Ukraine" was also celebrated.
