It's hard to keep a poker face over this news: Hillary Clinton barely outranks Lady GaGa on a list of the world's most powerful women.
The globe-trotting Secretary of State landed the No. 5 spot in this year's Forbes.com ratings, just two notches above the outrageous chart-topping singer.
The former senator - known for her pants suits - ranked 36th last year. The former Stefani Germanotta - known for her all-meat outfit - didn't make the cut in 2009.
Lady GaGa moved from the Top 40 to the Forbes' top 10 thanks to the introduction of a new process in ranking the world's 100 most powerful women.
The new system mixed an earnings component with a "buzz factor," as opposed to past lists focused more on wealth and executive position.
Soaring to the top spot was First Lady Michelle Obama, who was ranked a distant No. 40 in 2009.
Second was Krafts Food CEO Irene Rosenfeld, followed by the ubiquitous Oprah Winfrey at No. 3, German Chancellor Angela Merkel at No. 4 and Clinton at No. 5.
Merkel was named the previous year's most powerful woman.
Rounding out the top 10 was a mix of business and show business: Pepsico CEO Indra Nooyi, Lady GaGa, Westpac CEO Gail Kelly, singer Beyonce Knowles and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres.
Other bold-faced names included Sarah Palin (No. 16), Angelina Jolie (21), Arianna Huffington (28) and Chelsea Handler (33).
There were three news anchors: CBS' Katie Couric (22), MSNBC's Rachel Maddow (50) and ABC's Christiane Amanpour. And there were two sisters: Tennis stars Serena (55) and Venus Williams (60).
"The women on our list, through their respective realms of power and influence, are shaping many of the agenda-setting conversations of our day," said Moira Forbes, the vice president and publisher of Forbes Woman.
"They have built companies and brands, sometimes by non-traditional mean, and they have broken through gender barriers in areas of commerce, politics, sports and media."
The full list is available at www.forbes.com/powerwomen.
Source: NY Daily News
}
Comments