An American publishing media-company - Forbes - is well-known for its long-established lists of the world's richest people and its list of billionaires. Nowadays, Forbes Magazine has started a new list of those who hold the most power in the world.
To determine who has 'most power in the world', Forbes used a four-part formula, considering the following:
- if the nominee has influence over a large number of other people
- if they are powerful in multiple spheres
- if they control substantial financial resources
- if they actively use their power
Forbes' Most Powerful
- U.S. President Barak Obama, 48
- Chinese President Hu Jintao, 66
- Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, 57
- U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernarke, 55
- Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, 36
- Telmex chief executive Carlos Slim Helu, 69
- News Corp. Chairman Rupert Merdoch, 78
- Wal-Mart chief executive Michael T. Duke, 59
- Saudi King Abdullah bin Adbul Aziz al Saud, 85
- Microsoft founder Bill Gates, 54
How Many People on the List
There are only 67 slots in Forbes' list. This number is based on the concept that one can reduce the world's 6.7 billion people to the one in every 100 million that matters.
The 67-person list is dominated by billionaires, politicians, criminals and religious leaders, such as Pope Benedict XVI - the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, who is number 11. There are only three women on the list: German Chancellor Angela Merkel - 15, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton - 17 and TV Star Oprah Winfrey - 45.
Also on the list are: 'Al-Qaeda' lider - Osama bin Laden, Italian Prime Minister - Silvio Berlusconi, ex-President of the USA - Bill Clinton and Israeli Prime Minister - Benjamin Netanyahu. The leader of a Mexican drug cartel also made Forbes' Magazine list. Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman reportedly heads ones of Mexico's most powerful drug gangs. He is on the country's most wanted list. Joaquin Guzman at number 41, ahead of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
Meanwhile, Chavez, the leader of Venezuela, is in the last place. Forbes noted he "seems certain to be president for life after willing vote to eliminate term limits in February."
Forbes intends to turn the list into an annual index to chart how quickly power can be lost or gained.
The list for the most powerful man in history was topped by the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar, followed by China's Emperor Qin Shi Huang, the Russian Empire Czar Peter the Great, the Indian Independence Movement leader Mahatma Gandhi, the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and the U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt.
Sources
www.forbes.com is an online source for the latest business & financial news & analysis. Covering personal finance, lifestyle, technology & stock markets
The Worlds' Most Powerful People by Michael Noer and Nicole Perlroth, Nov. 11, 2009
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