Forbes has published another one of its lists this time the world’s most powerful celebrities. Since it’s a celebrity list and is (as they say) “a measure of power based on money and fame,” I’m not surprised that women dominate the top of the list. Women are the ones that buy all the tabloids mags and it seems from my perusal of the magazine shelves, Angelina Jolie is on the cover of some magazine or magazines each week. She’s also figured out that she can be the biggest female movie star by making action type films because she is one of the only stars that appeals to both men and women onscreen and off.
Oprah at number 2. No surprise. She rules the world.
The surprise to me is Madonna at number 3. It’s an impressive surprise. Just goes to show her staying power. The new attempt at another adoption kept her in the tabloids too.
Beyonce is a force to reckon with. Her music is great and her acting is great (I’ll give her a pass on Obsessed and hope she continues to act in films like Cadillac Records where she played Etta James.)
While I have nothing against Jennifer Aniston I don’t get how and why people continue to be obsessed with her.
Here are all the women on the list.
1 Angelina Jolie
2 Oprah Winfrey
3 Madonna
4 Beyonce Knowles
8 Jennifer Aniston
13 Britney Spears
26 Stephenie Meyer
29 Miley Cyrus
40 Ellen DeGeneres
52 Kimi Raikkonen- he’s a guy whoops
58 Sarah Jessica Parker
64 Meryl Streep
67 Serena Williams
69 Taylor Swift
71 Reese Witherspoon
72 Gisele Bundchen
73 Cameron Diaz
74 Nicole Kidman
75 Carrie Underwood
76 Maria Sharapova
77 Venus Williams
78 Heidi Klum
79 Rachael Ray
82 Katherine Heigl
85 Anne Hathaway
86 Tina Fey
87 Drew Barrymore
89 Eva Longoria Parker
90 Ana Ivanovic
92 Sandra Bullock
97 Kate Moss
98 Mariska Hargitay
99 Jennifer Love Hewitt
100 Danica Patrick
“The Celebrity 100, which includes film and television actors, models, chefs, athletes, authors and musicians, is a measure of entertainment-related earnings and media visibility (exposure in print, television, radio and online). The earnings estimates consist of pre-tax income between June 2008 and June 2009. Management, agent and attorney fees are not deducted.
Earnings estimates, which include income from films, television shows, endorsements, books and other entertainment ventures, are calculated between June 2008 and June 2009.”
The Celebrity 100 (Forbes)
I don’t get Jennifer Aniston, either. She’s not very versatile, she keeps doing the same ridiculous romantic comedy roles over and over and over… and OVER.
I think she’s only “popular” because she’s seen as the victim and many American women can relate to her *I just rolled my eyes while typing this* while the media portrays Jolie as a man-stealing whore. Haha.
I hate the U.S media and the celebrity worship culture sickens me. BUT anyway, I look forward to seeing Jolie in SALT and I hope she’ll continue to do many action films after this.
Melissa, check out the Time Magazine op-ed piece written by Jolie about the atrocities committed by Sudanese President Omar al Bashir. Bashir has been indicted with a dozen counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. She is calling for individuals and countries to stand up and stop the genocide that continues and to make sure that those found guilty are quickly and appropriately punished.
I don’t hold much weight with Forbes annual lists but I do believe that Jolie is powerful in her own right because she is a woman who walks her own path, speaks her mind even if what she says is sometimes unpopular, and refuses to let others define her as an actress, partner, mother, and as an advocate for refugees. She certainly knows who she is and who she is not.
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1903006,00.html?iid=tsmodule
Interesting list but number 52 Kimi Räikkönen isn’t actually a female, he’s a Finnish Formula 1 driver.
‘World’s most powerful celebrities’?? I think not.
For one thing, the list is overwelmingly American – except perhaps for tennis players … and for another thing, are we talking ‘power’ here or exposure (as in camera)?
All this list does is reinforce two of the world’s biggest mindsets – that ‘power’ in general begins and ends at the borders of the USA, and that women’s ‘power’ in particular begins and ends with their photogeneity.