Person of the Year started on a whim. at
the end of 1927, the editors realized they had made
it through the year without putting the 25-year-old
aviator Charles Lindbergh on the cover to com-
memorate his historic solo flight that May across
the Atlantic. The solution was to make him “Man
of the Year,” launching what has become one of the
most enduring franchises in journalism. Lindbergh
was not only the first but until now also the young-
est individual to be named TIME Person of the Year.
This year we name 16-year-old Greta Thun-
berg, who—via seemingly every
mode of transportation except
Lindbergh’s—journeyed around
the globe while leading a move-
ment to protect it. Of course,
the power of youth is hardly
a new theme: in 1966, TIME
chose an entire generation, peo-
ple under 25, as Person of the
Year. “In the closing third of the
20th century, that generation
looms larger than all the expo-
nential promises of science or
technology: it will soon be the
majority in charge,” the editors
wrote.
For our team, a joy of work-
ing on Person of the Year is the opportunity to look
at the year through the prism of the people who
shaped it. The formal process begins in early fall
with a meeting where staff from all over the world
make recommendations. We then launch numer-
ous projects that could become the choice, led by
teams of reporters and editors who themselves
don’t know the choice until the end.TIME has been on our own journey this year, set-
ting up as an independent company with support-
ive new owners, Marc and Lynne Benioff; adding
new franchises and events; growing our team; and
deepening the ambition of our coverage.
We are also expanding Person of the Year to re-
flect the full range of subjects that TIME covers. For
the first time, we’re choosing the most influential
person in a range of fields: Bob Iger, the meticulous
CEO who is rewriting Disney’s story with block-
buster deals, is our Businessperson of the Year. The
U.S. women’s soccer team, who inspired millions
with their play on the field and their persistence off
of it, is the 2019 Athlete of the Year. And our En-
tertainer of the Year is the irrepressible performer
Lizzo, nominated for eight Grammys this year,
whose message of positivity captured the culture.Edward Felsenthal,
editor-in-chief & ceo
@efelsenthalA NEW ERA
There is one other category this year that is spe-
cial to us at TIME. Last year for Person of the Year,
we chose “The Guardians,” four journalists and one
news organization who took great risks in pursuit
of greater truths, standing up for free expression
and democratic values. This year, we are recogniz-
ing a different group of Guardians, who took to the
stand and risked their careers in the defense of the
rule of law. That project, led by TIME’s Massimo
Calabresi and Vera Bergengruen in Washington
and Simon Shuster reporting from Kyiv, provides
one of the most detailed ac-
counts to date of the nonparti-
san public servants who exposed
the evidence that prompted the
impeachment of a President.
Our reporting on Greta
Thunberg this year actually
kicked off well before we had
begun to think about Person of
the Year, when Suyin Haynes
journeyed with her over 1,
miles by train for a profile in our
Next Generation Leaders series.
For this project, Suyin rode with
Thunberg again as she headed
to the Madrid conference on
climate change. “Compared
to when I traveled with her across Europe in the
spring,” says Suyin, it was “a complete frenzy.” The
resulting story, written by Suyin, Justin Worland
and Charlotte Alter and edited by Haley Sweetland
Edwards, is a remarkable portrait of what influ-
ence looks like in 2019.
“Despite the dire urgency of her message, there
is optimism at the heart of this year’s choice,” says
executive editor Ben Goldberger, who oversees
Person of the Year. “To a generation let down by
traditional power structures, Thunberg’s selection
shows that you don’t need to be part of them to
shape history.”
Perhaps it’s fitting that in his final years, Lind-
bergh became an environmentalist. “If I had to
choose,” he said, “I would rather have birds than
airplanes.”FINISHING
TOUCHES
In the Person of
the Year bunker
in our New York
office, the team
works on this
year’s choice10 time December 23–30, 2019