Zuckerberg...Really?

Every year TIME Magazine picks their 'Person of the Year'. This person is meant to be someone that they believe most influenced events throughout the year. In past years there have been politicians, rock stars, and CEOs. But is this really the year for Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook.com?

Facebook is as big as they come, and no one can deny that. The site has over 500 million users worldwide, and has changed the way in which people interact with each other. Nonetheless, did Zuckerberg and Facebook do enough this year to make him 'Person of the Year' worthy?

I'd say no.

Sure, Facebook is great for keeping in touch with old friends, sharing thoughts and photos, even as a way to kill time. But what happened this year besides profile changes? Okay, so there was a movie called The Social Network. Yes, this gave people some more insight into the creation of Facebook, but worthy enough for this honor? No. Facebook changed the way people communicate and access information a few years ago. Zuckerberg should have been given this honor then, instead of now.

In times such as these when the economy is still suffering, the jobless numbers have been the worst in years, wouldn't something with a little inspirational be uplifting? The Chilean Miners would have been an excellent choice given this direction.

That being said, TIME could have gone a different route. How about Tony Hayward, the ex-CEO of BP. The gulf incident destroyed most wildlife in the area and nearly ruined the lives of a majority of the residence in the nearby states.

Even Steve Jobs and the iPad would have been more revolutionary then what Facebook has brought this year. The iPad has already had a huge influence on society, and easily could be changing the way people use computers in the future.

Did Zuckerberg deserve this award at some point? The success of Facebook answers this for us. Whether this was the year for it, not so sure. Maybe the folks at TIME were keeping him in their back pocket for a year when they didn't like the other choices...

PS - Has anyone seen the picture on the cover of TIME? Um, yea not so sure about that either.