Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Time 100: Michelle Obama, Chrissy Teigen and Christine Blasey Ford ranked among most influential people in the world

'She empowers all of us to interrogate our fears and surpass greatness,' Beyoncé writes of the former first lady

Sabrina Barr
Wednesday 17 April 2019 15:40 BST
Comments

Former first lady Michelle Obama, model Chrissy Teigen and psychology professor Christine Blasey Ford have been named among the most influential people in the world by Time magazine.

The annual list of 100 most influential individuals across the globe has been collated by the American publication for the past two decades.

The blurbs about said chosen individuals are then written by other high-profile figures, with whom they share a close relationship.

This year, singer Beyoncé Knowles-Carter penned a touching tribute to Obama, thanking her for providing a "beacon of hope" to future generations during her tenure in the White House.

"She would’ve been impactful simply by being in the White House, the first African-American first lady. But she also used her position of power to improve the world around her," Knowles-Carter wrote.

Kamala Harris, a US senator who recently launched her campaign for the 2020 US presidential election, expressed her admiration for Dr Ford, also featured on the list.

In September 2018, Dr Ford testified against Brett Kavanaugh in court, where she publicly accused the politician of sexually assaulting her at a party in 1982 when she was 15 and he was 17.

"Her story, spoken while holding back tears, shook Washington and the country," Harris wrote about Dr Ford, adding that the professor forced America to "reckon with an issue that has too often been ignored and kept in the dark".

Another notable figure included on the Time 100 list is model and social media star Teigen, who boasts an impressive 11 million followers on Twitter and 23.7 million on Instagram.

Her tribute was worded by chef Éric Ripert, with whom she appeared on cooking television show On the Table.

"Her father is of Norwegian descent, her mother is Thai and she’s American, and she’s bringing her culture to the food world," Ripert wrote about Teigen, whose first cooking book, released in 2016, became a New York Times bestseller.

In May 2018, Givenchy artistic director Clare Waight-Keller made headlines around the world when it was revealed she had designed the Duchess of Sussex's wedding dress.

Oscar-winning actor Julianne Moore praised the fashion designer's talent and business acumen in her blurb for the Time 100 list.

"Clare stood out because she learned the business so successfully and artfully, and because her clothes reflected the innately human and beautiful," Moore stated.

"Clare’s simple wedding gown for ­Meghan ­Markle was exactly that—a reflection of the lovely and modern young woman who just happens to be a 21st-century princess."

Other distinguished individuals to have been included in the 2019 Time 100 list include US congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, comedian Hasan Minhaj and two-time Oscar-winning actor Mahershala Ali.

Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events

For all the latest on Time magazine, click here.

For the full list of those included in the Time 100 list, click here.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in