Is Obama the Most Famous Living Person Ever?
Barack Obama is the most famous living person in the history of the world.
I'm not trying to induce an acid flashback to John Lennon's infamous 1966 comment, "The Beatles are more popular than Jesus." But whether you measure fame in terms of saturation or sheer numbers, it seems indisputable to me that more people know at least something about the new American president than anyone alive, at this point -- or any -- in the planet's existence.
Who else could it be? One friend suggest Muhammad Ali, another Princess Diana, and a third said Bill Clinton. Surely all are global brands with enormous reach and broad appeal. But all fall short of the man-meets-the-moment frenzy unleashed by Obama.
To be sure, the digital revolution has made this feat of fame possible. Not only has it helped the son of an erstwhile Kenyan goatherd to become president, it has allowed a current Kenyan goatherd to follow the former's journey. And he is not alone. Exponential growth in access to the Internet, satellite television and radio, cell phones, and P.D.A.'s means that breaking news now reaches virtually every corner of the globe. At the same time, population continues to grow; there are now some 6.7 billion men, women, and children on earth, an historic high.
But technology and biology don't totally explain the Obama phenomenon. There's no denying that the world has been utterly captivated by the new American president with the international pedigree. His black African father, white American mother, Muslim middle name, and childhood spent partially in Asia make him more than the 21st-century embodiment of the classic American melting pot; his story makes him accessible to people the world over who might see in his life a few scenes from their own.
That someone like Obama could be elected president of the United States -- with its unrivaled power and prestige -- has begun to restore the country's and the world's faith in America as the land of opportunity. Gone is the hunkered-down defensiveness of the past eight years, the lock-the-doors, draw-the-curtains, load-the-guns-to-keep-out-the-bad-guys mentality that turned so much of the world against us. In its place is the restoration of that classic American optimism, eyes lifted to the horizon, reaching out across continents and oceans, not in fear, but with faith that we can help build a better world. It was no accident that President Obama's first televison interview from the White House went not to an American network but to an Arab one.
As Obama himself has acknowledged again and again, he begins his first term at a moment of profound crisis. The road ahead with be difficult, as gauzy goals give way to difficult decisions, and people from Chicago to Cairo, to Nairobi, find reasons to be disappointed. But at least for the moment, Obama has made America cool again -- and more than that, he's made his own brand arguably the most powerful the world has ever known.
Originally published in Vanity Fair.
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No. I think Adolf Hitler is still the most famous person in the world- as the most vile and evil living being ever.
Myers is talking about a living person.
What was the population of the planet in his time? And without communication technology as we now know it, he could not have trumped Obama.
That is the most boneheaded argument I have ever heard.
"Barack Obama is the most famous living person in the history of the world."
No, in the whole universe. Beings in other galaxies must surely have become aware of Obama and
have fallen in love with him too.
He's good-looking, he's smart, he's cool without having to don sunglasses and play a sax on late night tv, he seems to be really talking to us instead of fake grinning and spinning, he still emails us even after he got our money and the job, his wife acts like a human individual instead of a frozen stepford-like sidekick, his kids are cute, he loves his tech toys and, after like three decades of Bushes and Clintons, he is NEW! (Plus we are all scared silly and he is calm and mature) . He doesn't seem to suffer from Narcissistic Personality Disorder, which is a HUGE relief. So is telling us all to grow up and pitch in which is something we needed to hear. And hear again. Being youngish, photogenic and articulate is also nice after Bush who was often sighted with odd bruises and cuts on his scrunched up, mean-looking face.
So we'll see how it goes, policy and results-wise.
The most famous? For years it has been Madonna. Since she has not left the building, it still is Madonna. Famous all over the globe. MA DON NA!
but, but......L
President Obama is undoubtedly the most famous person in living memory. I personally think he is the most phenomenal guy to walk the planet since Jesus Christ. It is estimated that about 90% of mankind was tuned in to the inauguration. The guy is an international phenomenon. I think he is God's gift to America and the world. People will be talking about him for centuries to come.
Obama is greater than Jesus. We should create a new Obama calendar, because our world has been reborn. Out are BC and AD, in are BO and AO. We are the so fortunate to live in the After Obama world.
Its this kind of blind worship of Obama that angers and frightens me. He is only human, and the worse kind of human at that- a politician.
I supported Bush when he was elected, but I never, ever "liked" Bush- especially the way people think Barack will save the entire world.
You scare me.
Glad to know.
90% how is that possible when much more than 10% of the world population does not have access to televised media (TV, internet, etc.). Then you take into consideration that it was between 11 pm and 4 am for a majority of the worlds population, I think you statistic needs to be re-examined.
I'm curious where you got your numbers. I believe they are no longer accurate. Please join us in the 20th Century.
I believe it would be Michael Jordan.
yes
Obama is very popular the world over, a global superstar, the only one who can rival soccer players like Pelé, Maradona, Zidane, or Ronaldinho, the most famous human beings alive. W has to be up there too, but as the most infamous.
AntonioSaucedo
I wanna add to this comment. Those soccer players and the other celebs are viewed a bit like "do no wrong" people by most people. Obama is a person who has to divulge every view and opinion as he truly thinks it and his actions dont entertain, they affect life and society. He is so much more exposed, which makes him so much more susceptible to criticism, whereas those others dont really. So I suppose, depending on what the measure of "famous" is, Obama would be more but only because despite some criticism from some, people around the world are pretty cool with him (so far). Even some middle easterners are down, even if all of them can't say so publicly for fear of being labeled "America-lovers. But honestly, I wish it were Bob Marley-- he is def up there on the list-- his music has changed and will continue to change people's lives all over the world. Stay positive.
I am sure there are millions of women and non-sport watchers that have no idea of who those people you mentioned are.
Billions and several times that who don't care who those people are. Those sports people are nothing but idols for the idle. They do nothing to improve the life real lives of billions.
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen mother. She Married the second in line to the throne in 1923, Was in all the tabs as such for thirteen years, then her brother-in-law, Edward VIII, abdicated the throne and thus made her Queen of England, Scotland and those realms beyond the seas until 1952 when her husband died and her daughter became monarch. Elizabeth was then styled Queen mother and lived in the limelight until she dies at a hundred and one in 2002.
She was famous for longer than any other living person in the 20th century.
Depends in America or the World ? In America Obama, around the globe, still Bill Clinton, Obama is on his way to be......
Obama surpassed Bill Clinton even before he took office.
Don't forget Elvis!
Nat King Cole.
Why is this even necessary?
Because President Obama is the greatest person ever!
Agreed! Wouldn't it be great if we could genetically alter every person on earth so we could all become Obama. That must be what heaven is like.
Agreed! Wouldn't it be great if we could genetically alter every person on earth so we could all become Obama. That must be what heav en is like.
who cares about the fact the world's population is larger now compared to before?
How well someone is known should be based on % of the world's population, not the raw number.
If the world's population is 100 billion 100 years from now, some actor on a tv show could be known by 7 billion people. That doesn't mean that they've become more famous than what Obama was, considering that 7 billion would only be 7% of the world's population at that time (as opposed to the 90+% of the world today that know who Obama is).
Originally posted in "The Onion."
Yes OBAMA is the most famous LIVING person in the world.
In your article you mention John Lennon and Princess Di but the are not 'living'.
I saw a video not long ago of people on the streets in Europe shown photos of Bush and Clinton and lots of people did not recognize their faces.
While staying in Italy a couple of years ago their television news was not fixated on the USA. People in America need to realize that other countries have different priorities when it comes to news and the people in it.
But people all over the world know what Obama looks like and who he is and the media HAS put Obama right out first and front in the newspapers, magazines, and news coverage.
Here is a great link of the Front Pages of newspapers USA and around the WORLD the day after President Obama was inaugurated:
http://ben
And a link to the Front Pages the day after Obama won the election:
http://oba
Enjoy ;)
You raise a good point, Americans think that the U.S. is the center of the universe, they arrogantly believe that we can just do what ever we want in this world, just like Bush who believed he did'nt need U.N. approval to invade Iraq, and that he would be immune to prosecution, the funny thing is he might be right.
Kim, did Bush invade Iraq? Or did the United States invade Iraq AFTER Hussein failed to meet U.N. agreements countless times? 9/11 would not have even occurred if Clinton would have pulled the trigger on Bin Laden when he had the chance. You may hate Bush and you have every right, grow above the press though and atleast get some facts before starting your witch hunt.
"While staying in Italy a couple of years ago their television news was not fixated on the USA. People in America need to realize that other countries have different priorities when it comes to news and the people in it."
Other countries SHOULD be more concerned about themselves than America (even if America is the reason they are all not speaking German). Likewise, Americans should be more concerned about America than the rest of the world along with being slightly alarmed when the rest of the world takes such great interest in OUR leaders. When the rest of the world doesn't like our leader there is most likely a reason, because the rest of the world is more worried about their own welfare. You can be most assured when the rest of the world is happy with our leader, our welfare is suffering while theirs is not. AMERICA SHOULD BE THE CENTER OF THE WORLD FOR AMERICANS-
Internation law expert Mark Littman, "The threatened war against Iraq will be a breach of the United Nations charter and hence of international law unless it is authorized by a new and unambiguous resolution of the security council. the charter is clear no such war is permitted unless it is in self-defence or authorized by the security council."
Bush authorized a war of aggession against Iraq, his authorized conduct of the war that involved the commission of war crimes, authorized the occupation of Iraq involving the commission of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other illegal acts, Laws violated include but are not limited to, United Nations charter, universal declaration of human rights, the international covenant on civil and political rights, Geneva conventions of 1949, U.N standard minimum rules for treatment of prisoners, the Nuremberg principles and others.---
So your evidence is "I saw a video where ..". Nice.
overdog1- It was not 'evidence' it was just one example of how some people in other countries don't have a clue what the leaders of the USA look like.
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