First lady Michelle Obama’s powerful sense of self, style and community involvement helped her beat out heads of state, chief executives and celebrities to rank as the world’s most powerful woman on Forbes magazine’s annual list, which was published Wednesday, Oct.6
Kraft Foods CEO Irene Rosenfeld, who led a hostile $18 billion takeover of Britain’s Cadbury, came in second, followed by talk show host and media mogul Oprah Winfrey, who is ending “The Oprah Winfrey Show” next year after 25 years to launch her cable network, OWN.
Beyoncé, of course, also made the list of the “World’s Most Powerful Women,” checking in at No. 9, two places behind Lady Gaga and one spot ahead of comedian Ellen DeGeneres. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton settled in at No. 5 while Queen Elizabeth fell to 41.
Moira Forbes, vice president and publisher of ForbesWoman, said the women on the business magazine’s list were “shaping many of the agenda-setting conversations of the day.”
“They have built companies and brands, sometimes by nontraditional means and they have broken through gender barriers in areas of commerce, politics, sports and media and cultural zeitgeist, and thereby affecting the lives of millions, sometimes billions of people,” she said.
This year Forbes changed the way it ranked women, basing the list less on wealth and power and more on creative influence and entrepreneurship.
Forbes said Obama topped the list this year because “she has made the office of first lady her own” while remaining popular.
“In a telling sign of her charisma, the White House is putting her on the campaign trail to headline fundraising events in battleground states like California and Colorado,” Forbes said.
“She’s also effective: In response to her Let’s Move! campaign against childhood obesity, companies like Coca-Cola, Kellogg and General Mills have pledged to reduce the calorie content of their foods by 2015,” the publication said. –terry shropshire
