Every year AskMen.com, polls its readers to find the most influential man of the year. The idea, according to the Web site, is to list the "men who had the greatest impact on how other men behave, dress, buy and think."
The poll annually lists 49 most influential men. The order of the list is configured by combining the votes of the public plus the choices of the site editors. In 2006 the winner was George Clooney. In 2007 the winner was David Beckham. Last year at the top of the list as 2008’s most influential man was Barak Barack Obama.
This year the winner is … Don Draper, the adman protrayed by John Hamm in AMC’s Emmy-winning best drama "Mad Men."
Says the site, "Draper illustrates old-school values even though he often fails to meet them himself. His human flaws are what make him so relevant to men today. He is by turns a chain-smoking, drinking-in-the-office emblem of a bygone age, and an unusually real, earnest human being who illustrates the struggles modern men know all too well."
Hell (we say, our testosterone raging this morning), if we knew fictional TV characters were eligible, we would have started a big write-in campaign for Stewie. Yes, "Family Guy’s" baby Stewie, who once said , as his mother Lois tried to get him to eat broccoli "airplane style," "Damn you, damn the broccoli, and damn the Wright Brothers." That’s our man!
–Chuck Ross
Where are Seth and Amy when you need them to say “Really? Can’t spell the first name of the President of the United States? REALLY?”
Let’s inject some common sense in this silly story.
The headline is generated by a self-promoting poll by an obscure website. The conclusion of this poll is that the “most influential man” of 2009 is the lead character of a TV show with a relatively tiny rating.
Now how can a man be the “most influential” when the vast majority have never seen or heard him?
Media hype is one thing. This is hype upon hype upon hype.
It appears even a pro like me can still be taught a few things. Thanks for your post.