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The List: CNBC First 25

Rebels, Icons and Leaders
COMMENTS Join the Discussion
Here is our ranked list of the 25 people we judge to have had the most profound impact on business and finance since 1989, the year
CNBC went live. They have disrupted industries, sparked change and exercised an influence far beyond their own companies.
As CNBC embarks on its second quarter-century, it faces a world completely altered from when it started. Then, the Dow was
below 2,400, Wal-Mart didn't make the list of America's 500 largest companies and there was no World Wide Web. Only four U.S.
companies had annual revenue of more than $50 billion. Today there are more than 50, including upstarts such as Apple, Microsoft,
Amazon and Google. No dictionary contained the words "e-commerce" or "app." A blog was still archaic slang for a servant boy.
The 25 men and women listed belowfrom different parts of the world and across different industrieshave, for better or worse, been
the rebels, icons and leaders in the vanguard of that change.
Curious as to how we chose the 25? Tyler Mathisen explains the (difficult!) process.
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285
1
Steve Jobs Apple's iVisionary
2
Bill Gates
Microsoft founder and philanthropist
3
Ben Bernanke & Alan Greenspan
Former U.S. Fed chairs
4
Sergey Brin Larry Page & Eric Schmidt
Google's internet and media disruptors
5
Jeff Bezos
Amazon's retail revolutionary
6
Warren Buffett
Legendary American investor
7
Oprah Winfrey
Billionaire talk-show entrepreneur
8
Mark Zuckerberg
Facebook founder
9
Jack Bogle
Index mutual fund pioneer
10
Larry Ellison
Oracle co-founder
11
Rupert Murdoch
Global media mogul
12
Jack Welch
20-year chairman and CEO of GE
13
NR Narayana Murthy
Infosys founder; "father of Indian IT"
14
Howard Schultz
Starbucks CEO
15
Bernard Arnault
Luxury baron of LVMH
16
Li Ka-shing
Hong Kong tycoon; Asia's richest man
17
Carl Icahn
American activist investor
18
Meg Whitman
Hewlett-Packard and former eBay CEO
Amancio Ortega
Founder of Zara fashion stores
19
20
Michael Bloomberg
Wall Street data pioneer and ex-NYC mayor
21
Sandy Weill
Banker and Wall Street dealmaker
22
Cher Wang
Founder of Taiwan smartphone maker HTC
23
Aliko Dangote
Billionaire African entrepreneur
24
Martha Stewart
Founder of home-making media empire
25
Carlos Slim
Billionaire Mexican business magnate
285 Comments CNBC Login
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shankar narayan 10 minutes ago
Twenty five years very people knew the words cell phone, internet or world wide web. Most applications like facebook, amazon, would
not have happened without them. Yet, the people who made this happen are not disruptors: Qualcom founder Jacobs, Tim Berners-
Lee, Netscape founders? Al this is made possible by the development of semiconductor technologies. Where is Intel I this?


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Alex 28 minutes ago
Where is Andy Grove. We forget


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SteveG an hour ago
Jeff Beezos at #5 , ahead of Warren Buffet and among Jobs/Gates/Zuckerberg/and the Google guys, is a JOKE. All he has proven so
far is that if you sell stuff and really low prices you'll sell a lot of stuff. He was create no real weath (i.e.- profit)


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Gustave Lipman 2 hours ago
Mark Haines should have made the list. He was everyone's favorite teacher. Business news could be fast, accurate , serious and fun.

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nocnurzfred 2 hours ago
Was really hoping to see Elon Musk on the list. Pioneering solar energy, fully electric vehicles, private company space flight, and he
ain't done. Want to send a manned mission to Mars before the end of this decade? Musk & the teams he would assemble would be the
only logical choice.

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JERRY COLBURN 15 hours ago
Wheres Bob Taylor, who effectively gave Jobs the Mac and Gates
Windows (the mouse-based graphical user interface) as well as all the rest of the
core equipment of the computer revolution Ethernet, laser printers, etc.?
Taylor worked for Xerox, which developed these breakthroughs to see if the much-rumored
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paperless office would challenge its paper-based business model. Concluding no,
Xerox told Taylor to give the work away.
Taylor had earlier served as chief of the Defence Departments ARPA advanced
R&D, where he approved and supervised development of the network that quickly
evolved into the Internet.


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headly 18 hours ago
how can cnbc put a convicted felon, especially one convicted of insider trading who shows no remorse, on the "list"?

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John H. Long 14 hours ago headly
Who is that? You can't be referring to Martha Stewart, as she was never convicted of insider trading.


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jones 19 hours ago
How about the dummies who undid Glass-Steagall!


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JeffreyHF 19 hours ago
The omission of Irwin Jacobs and Andrew Viterbi, founders of Qualcomm, is shameful. Were it not for their disruptive RF engineering
ideas, there would be no explosive markets for mobile data devices, and the untethered world would be a figment of the imagination of
futurists.

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PrincessBarry 20 hours ago
Oprah? This must be a joke.

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strausdavis 20 hours ago PrincessBarry
PrincessBerry! Oprah is not a joke, but perhaps you are. What contributions have you made and given to the world?
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bartolomeo 17 hours ago strausdavis
yeah! Oprah is right up there with Teresa of Calcutta. And she ran a marathon.
next she will probably get a Nobel Peace prize.


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JERRY COLBURN 15 hours ago bartolomeo
Why not a Nobel; her boy Obama did, while BP oil still spilled into the Gulf, without Obie's doing much about it, to
maintain his golf, vacation, and fund-raising itinerary.


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Moneynthapower 18 hours ago strausdavis
She's a token diversity pick. No way she'd be on the list if she were a white male.

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Rick Lepow 18 hours ago strausdavis
Joke! Lucky poor woman who started a tv show should be recognized as having changed the world?
Get off of my cloud clown.


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Ga@rsf 21 hours ago
Two guys in the late eighties revolutionized the cell phone universe. They are responsible for CDMA, smart phones, systems on a chip,
lowering the amount of power needed to run a complex phone, increasing greatly usable bandwidth, revolutionizing what will be the
new Wi-Fi, and in sum, creating intellectual competition and creative destruction in a formerly conformist industry that would never
have achieved it without them. Jacobs and Viterbi, were the founders of QUALCOMM Irwin Jacobs deserves recognition for creating an
innovative technology that dwarfs at least 10 of cnbc's choices combined.

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Santhosh a day ago
Jamie dimon, Lloyd blankfein, Laurence Fink, Henry Paulson, Timothy Geithner ,Tata and Alan Mulally ?

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PrincessBarry 20 hours ago Santhosh
Yeah, TurboTax Timmy was a glaring omission.

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Rick Lepow a day ago
I vote for Shaq

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gil goldstein a day ago
Rachel Maddow is more valuable to the people than some of your picks. Does that bother you?


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joeyd200166 20 hours ago gil goldstein
C'mon Gil........Find someone who is known to more than 43 people........family members not included

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gil goldstein 20 hours ago joeyd200166
More like 2,200,165. WOW, you counted to 43.


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fredcarl a day ago
You have several people right there at CNBC that should be on the list. Did they get any consideration?


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gil goldstein 20 hours ago fredcarl
MSNBC has someone. Rachel Maddow.

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aksmilin a day ago
where is Fred Smith - FedEx - if you bought it, he brought it - globally


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Rick Lepow a day ago
Shame on you CNBC! Martha Stewart is a convicted felon for INSIDER STOCK TRADING!!! I would put Latrell Sprewell on this list
before Martha Stewpot. Really, she should have been stripped of all her assets, banned from buying a single stock for the remainder of
her life and she is exactly the reason the American public thinks stock investing is a joke. So is CNBC. Shame on you.

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Michael Foster a day ago
Bernie Madoff and Pablo Escobar belong on this list before Martha Stewart

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Possum336 a day ago
This is an inane exercise. If CNBC does not understand that we, the viewer. we the citizen, and we the investor matter the most, each
and everyone of at the center of our universe, then they don't deserve more viewers


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ledoy a day ago
Ted Turner....got so rich selling his companies,TBS,CNN,TNT,TCM,etc. to Time Warner and AOL that he bought an entire state;
Montana. Oprah Winfrey and Martha Steward? You have to be kidding.

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Soh Ah Lien a day ago
Jack Ma of Alibaba ? This list is obviously flawed and very American-centric.

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toplcame 16 hours ago Soh Ah Lien
well of course it is American Centric. It is a Tv show started in American, created by Americans, for Americans. Wow, that was
tough one to figure out!

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Barry steinberg 2 days ago
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Andy grove of Intel. Genius

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This comment was deleted.
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Moishe Israel 2 days ago John Malone
????
You mean every one of them is Jewish? I'm Jewish and I know this is not true.
The list is about success and power through business acumen, tech advancement, and opportunity in timing.

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Will Robin 2 days ago
How about Robert Rubin - Wall Street shill - who convinced the Clinton Administration to accede to the greed grab of the "Big Money"
banks & Wall Street shysters to deregulate "financial services" (see repeal Glass Steagall) causing the "Great Recession" and then
convinced the Obama Administration to bail out the perpetrators of said recession and not the victims?

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Kevin 2 days ago
Putin? He has been affecting many (good or bad - you judge) the longest ... seemingly. He could be in place of Meg Whitman.

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Sam 2 days ago
I'm glad to see Martha on here. She did change the game when it came to American traditions. She made an enormous impact with
keeping the American homemaking customs alive that we all cherish, but to also prove that in this great country, we have a system of
freedom that works. She made a mistake, she did her time, paid her price to society, kept her focus and moved on. Great example of
the use of freedom. "The decisions you make lead to the life you live." Good for you, Martha!

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Cabin Springs 2 days ago
Intel's chips were the heart of the majority of personal computer for the last twenty plus years. Time and again producing faster
designs to do quicker and more functions. Think what it would have been like without such a leadership tool. Consider the founders,
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Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore, and Andy Grove.
You have a person on your list that is credited for destroying the Glass-Stegall act which set the market up the 2008 crash. He now
admits it was a mistake which is to his credit.

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Manny 2 days ago
Winner: Mark Zuckerberg. No question about it.

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Brian Pasch 2 days ago
I don't understand Oprah in the context of CNBC. Is this a Teavanna chia advertorial?

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WHUT 2 days ago
Sorry to see Oprah on the list, she hasn't done anything with her money to help Black Neighborhoods, and when asked to make a
comment about racial issues she has only one answer, we ain't on the Plantation no more!!!

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WixosTrix 2 days ago WHUT
Oprah has helped the black community in ways money never could. Historically, blacks are seen as, unintelligent and
incapable. The massive success of Oprah, and many other black icons, throws those claims in the face of those who think
such, thus putting such ideas to rest. Here's a video where Neil Degrasse Tyson describes his psychological battle he had with
his passion of astrophysics and his "responsibility" to society, specifically the black community, as a intelligent black man.
http://bit.ly/1u1RMGy

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WHUT a day ago WixosTrix
Is your many other Black icons Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, snoop dog, two of these three alone are pure Race Baiter's
and snoop dog well he certainly is not a role model for anyone, he is nothing more than a dope head!!! My choice for
Black Leaders are Dr Ben Carson, Lt Col Allen West, Allen Keys, Herman Cain, and there are many more!!!
These people want to make America a better place for you and I, not just for a selected class. One of My Favorate Black
leaders is Dr Martin Luther King, if he were alive today I promise you he would not like what is happening in America!!!
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leaders is Dr Martin Luther King, if he were alive today I promise you he would not like what is happening in America!!!
Also Justice Thomas, Many of these Black Leaders the Black community likes to label them as Uncle Tom's, because
they take a stand against the very first icons I mention in this article. What do you call a Black Person who stands up
and takes a stand against the norm!!!


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Rick Lepow 18 hours ago WHUT
Colin Powell?


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WHUT 18 hours ago Rick Lepow
Rick are you saying Colin Powell is a good Black icon? I did like and respect him until he showed that he was a
RINO and voted for NOBAMA, there is one reason and one reason only that he voted for NOBAMA and that was
because he was Black!!!
He said it was because he was the best qualified but that has certainly be proven not to be the case!!! He is
SOCIALIST and destroying America by living up to his campaign pledge "I WILL FUNDAMENTALLY
TRANSFORM AMERICA", translation I will redistribute the wealth, destroy the Constitution of the United States of
America!!!


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WixosTrix 18 hours ago WHUT
Uncle Ruckus? Is that you?


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WHUT 18 hours ago WixosTrix
See, you people can't get over the fact that I had nothing to do with the slavery of your ancestors. Until you stop
the blame game we will never get pass the race issue!!!


BernardProfitendieu 20 hours ago WHUT
wow, you're really down with the lunatic fringe extreme right Black man! and you think that qualifies you for some
kinda civil rights medal? guess again ... you're in some laughable bad company. Allen West?!? Herman Cain?!?
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kinda civil rights medal? guess again ... you're in some laughable bad company. Allen West?!? Herman Cain?!?
Ben Carson?!?
Alan Keyes?!? (Note correct spelling)
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
The only thing these chumps have in common beside their extremist views is their lack of ability to hold onto
elective office!!

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lrjoseph 31 minutes ago BernardProfitendieu
Since none have held elective office, how dumb is that comment? Whut said it best. Today's whites are still
being blamed for being slave owners. And to insult guys like Allen West or Ben Carson, really? You need to
crawl back in your hole, stupid.


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WHUT 18 hours ago BernardProfitendieu
Wow, I'm really surprised you even knew who these fine, intelligent Black Leaders are. You prove my point that
you like to call Smart Black Men Uncle Toms, although you didn't actually say it I know what you meant!!!


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BernardProfitendieu 2 days ago WHUT
... and what have you personally done to help Black neighborhoods, sweetie?
Always easier to spend someone elses money than your own, isn't it?

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WHUT 11 hours ago BernardProfitendieu
You have me confused with a DEMOCRAT, I believe my money is my money and your money is your money!!!


WHUT a day ago BernardProfitendieu
First of all I live smack dab in the middle of a predominately Black area. When I was employed I was instrumental in
promoting many Blacks that were capable and just needed a chance, I made sure that became a reality. I'm also a
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promoting many Blacks that were capable and just needed a chance, I made sure that became a reality. I'm also a
member of our Neighborhood Watch, are you one, I'm not afraid to tell the POPO what I seen so that my neighbor will
be a better place and ensure the scum is off the street. As far as Oprah's money I don't need it, I have my own, I'm
retired.
Oprah's money is her's and my money is mine!!!

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BernardProfitendieu 21 hours ago WHUT
so basically you followed EEO mandates ... not much personal effort there ... not doing same would result in a
lawsuit ... not impressed

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WHUT 18 hours ago BernardProfitendieu
What kind of wacky weed are you smoking, I'm smart enough to follow my own conscience and treat a person
by their character and not their color!!! I'm not worried about a lawsuit because I always treated people the way I
wanted to be treated!!! Get over it, not all White People are Racist just like all Black People are not Racist. God
be with you and hopefully you'll see the light!!!


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mactechcert1 9 hours ago WHUT
The nuts are out again.


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jdurning 2 days ago
Martha Stewart over Donald Trump? WTF?

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Joe_Friend a day ago jdurning
Donald Trump? WTF?

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Jonathan 2 days ago
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Jonathan 2 days ago
How is it that Steven Hirsch and Bill Asher, co-founders of Vivid Video, are not on this list? In the 1990s Vivid began to win industry
honors, and today has more AVN Awards than any other studio. Vivid Girls in the 90s included the actresses who were known by their
first names alone: Janine, Lexus and Savannah, plus stars such as Christy Canyon, Nikki Tyler, Racquel Darrian (the "brunette
goddess of porn"), Chasey Lain,Heather Hunter and Kobe Tai. Those who have attained fame in more recent years include Jenna
Jameson, Tera Patrick, Savanna Samson, Sunny Leone and others.
Vivid became the first studio to introduce celebrity sex tapes, including Pamela Anderson & Tommy Lee: Hardcore & Uncensored,
Janine & Vince Neil: Hardcore and Uncensored, Kim Kardashian Superstar, Jimi Hendrix: The Sex Tape, and others.
Additional brand-name awareness has been created with marketing and licensing programs for Vivid Vodka, condoms, snowboards,
skateboards, tee shirts, playing cards, advertising, calendars, comic books and book publishing.

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Pighead 2 days ago
How did Martha Stewart (a convicted felon) make the list...? Perhaps we should we be considering Bernard Madoff as well - he clearly
had some impact...??? Maybe we should set the bar a little higher - couldn't (shouldn't) she be subbed on for Condoleeza Rice?

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Sam 2 days ago Pighead
A good Rebel can be just as bad as they are good! Back off a bit on her past. We all have them. She made a mistake and she
paid her time. She no longer has a mark on her back. So, because she did time she can't succeed? Pretty narrow minded
seeing is how we are to be so "forgiving". I know, let's ask Michael Vicks how he feels about success in America?


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Snobyrd51 a day ago Sam
Exactly what the German people are saying about the bad rap on Adolph Hitler. Poor guy boosted Germany from ruins
and the world only looks at one incident in his past.

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M.J.M 2 days ago
hey did all you pick are the moneygrabers,how about BONO or jimmy carter,they do more for this world then all of the dollar-chasers

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Mikado_Wu 2 days ago
WoW!!! Seriously, do you know anything about Technology or the world. Bill Gates has done 20x more for the Technology industry and
100X more for people in the world in general, then the Dead Pot Head on top. Get real many.... Bill Gates #1

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A. Nony Mous a day ago Mikado_Wu
Gates = convicted monopolist. He didn't even create DOS, his most famous product. Gates bought that from Seattle Computer
Products and rebranded it. Windows was originally a poor clone of the Mac UI. Nowadays he's making up for past crimes by
giving away money so people will like him and maybe forget about that little monopoly issue. He stays #2.
Jobs revolutionized the computer industry with the Apple II and Macintosh, revolutionized the portable music industry with the
iPod, revolutionized the post-PC era with the iPad, revolutionized the mobile phone industry with the iPhone, and revolutionized
the movie industry with Pixar (all those blockbuster digital animated movies you see nowadays owe their success to Toy Story
for paving the way). He stays #1.


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Mikado_Wu 21 hours ago A. Nony Mous
Jobs did not create anything........ And he too stole all his idea's from other company's. Job's like Google, Manipulative
Marketing Masters, that is all.
A. Gates was not Convicted, Microsoft was.
B. They did nothing that Google and Apple have been doing for years.
Stop. rewind........ You know, I am not going to teach you. Probably over you head anyways.


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A. Nony Mous 21 hours ago Mikado_Wu
Over my head? You argue like a 5 year old child.


spigpen 2 days ago
I would have liked to see Wilbur Ross on the list since he has turned around so many failing industries in really rough times and kept so
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I would have liked to see Wilbur Ross on the list since he has turned around so many failing industries in really rough times and kept so
many Americans from losing their jobs in extremely rough times(including me). You will always be on my list of 25.


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SHOCKPROOF 2 days ago
Where's Elon Musk & James Cameron?

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thewags05 2 days ago SHOCKPROOF
Musk's biggest undertaking have been fairly recent. If SpaceX and Tesla end up working out well in the long term he should
definitely be on the list though.

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WHUT 2 days ago thewags05
Don't forget Solar City.

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pillpoppinpuppy 2 days ago
Not one O&G entrepreneur? How about George Mitchell, who started the fracking revolution?

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warren white 2 days ago
I'm surprised that the Craig & John MaCaw are not mentioned with their vision and start up of Cellular 1 mobile cell service. How would
Steve Jobs and Apple have been as successful without the I Phone???

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Hman612 2 days ago
#5 put thousands of independent bookstores in the U.S out of business and you reward this guy with that?!?!?! No Way should he be
on the list! ANd #7!! Are you kidding me? WHat a joke!

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BernardProfitendieu 2 days ago Hman612
LOL!!!
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LOL!!!


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thewags05 2 days ago Hman612
The world moves on and business models must adjust or perish. He's certainly has been a major disruptive force in
commerce, that's sort of the point of this list.


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Chris Fruitrich 2 days ago Hman612
This was a list of people who made the most profound changes in commerce ... not people who fit your personal view of the
world.

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Kevin McArdle 2 days ago
I'm with RGthree!!!!

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Turkey42 2 days ago
Just wandered, was Ted Turner considered?


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Sam 2 days ago Turkey42
For what?


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A. Nony Mous 2 days ago
So no business leader in Japan, the world's 3rd largest economy, had as much worldwide influence as Martha Stewart?

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warren white 2 days ago A. Nony Mous
Name me 1 invention out of Japan?


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A. Nony Mous 2 days ago warren white
I'm sure you're kidding, but inventions or ideas pioneered in Japan include Blu-ray discs, compact discs, flash RAM,
lean manufacturing techniques, general anesthesia, methamphetamine, portable calculators, quartz wristwatches,
Walkmans, "bullet" train, flat panel displays, and hundreds more inventions or pioneering developments. Probably you've
heard or even used some of those.
Not to mention instant noodles and ninjas. :)

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warren white 2 days ago A. Nony Mous
I wasn't implying that Japan does not have skill's!!! Their manufacturing is second to non that is their strength
they take other company inventions and improve on them. ie Lexus!!!!


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UtahDave 2 days ago
Generally an interesting and fairly complete list. The silliness leading up to the selections were nonsense, but usually always need hype
and smoked mirrors to build the anticipation. If someone got "angry" as advertised at this list, then CNBC marketing won, not your
displeasure. The network provides a lot of useful information, but it also needs to be recognized for what it is and that is a marketing
platform for Wall Street and those who handsomely profit from being part of it. Whether an increasing amount of our GDP associated
with all this monkeying, manipulation, and trading really adds the value claimed for it, should be viewed with great skepticism.


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GusK 2 days ago
Was Martha Stewart's contribution that she brought attention to insider trading?

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Tom Trainor 2 days ago
anyone above #10 couldn't shine Andy Grove's shoes, make that number 9


Jonathan 2 days ago
Interesting choice at #24: a convicted felon.
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Interesting choice at #24: a convicted felon.

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RGthree 2 days ago
Does it only bother me that there are 28 people on this list of top 25?

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WHUT 2 days ago RGthree
Some of them tied for that position!!!


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strausdavis 2 days ago
I looked at the list, and overall, I think it is a pretty good list. A few movement here or there, might have added some others, and
removed some others. You have to consider world impact and significance. A few who made negative comments about Oprah and/or
Martha Stewart being on this list surely do not understand what these two women have done. Oprah's impact on the world, and the so-
called Oprah Impact, is recognized by those in the know. I know of no other person, given where she started from, who has had more
of a impact on the world. She is the only the second woman, who has owned or headed a movie studio. Lucille Ball, was the first, and
now Oprah. Also, no one can deny the impact Lucille Ball, had of the world. So it has been with Oprah.


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Rick Lepow a day ago strausdavis
You forgot Mary Pickford. Only three woman in the US to own their own studios. And BTW, who cares. Oprah didn't change the
world. Lucy didn't change the world. And Mary Pickford didn't change the world. The were great for the entertainment industry
but really, Elon Musk, Eric Schmidt and Reed Hastings changed the world. Changed it, not entertained it.....


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strausdavis 20 hours ago Rick Lepow
Rick, you are clueless. You seem to think one need to change or accomplishment, needs to be physical. Remember, if
you do not know. The Oprah Effect, and her series of empowering people, surely have an effect on people and is a
significant accomplishing. Perhaps what she has done, has had no effect on you.


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Rick Lepow 18 hours ago strausdavis
First off, please use English. Preferred language in the US. Second, candidly, Oprah never did anything for me,
my neighborhood, my state or my country -- the US. She made an unGodly amount of money hosting a
show....and then builds a school in Africa with all her wealth at her disposal and doesn't build one single school
in the US. She's immaterial to our world...i.e., had she not existed, my life would not be affected one iota. How
many rooms are there in her LA mansion? Do you know about Oprah and Gayle and what they do with their
money? Never ever puts $$$ into start-ups or any enterprise that will employ people in the future or distrupt
technology like Bill and iMan or Musk....


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MichaelTison 2 days ago
Sam Walton. He was still active growing America's largest business from 1989-1992. He had a tremendous impact on business in
America during the 25 years of your list. 4 while living, 21 with his team keeping his company growing. He maybe should have been #1.

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Mark Matheson 2 days ago
Jobs, really? iVisionary? Give me a break. After decades of fumbling Apple make the iPod (which wasn't a big success until iTunes got
to the Windows platform), then they made the iPod with phone functionality, then they made the huge iPod. Whilst the design may have
been new, they were ideas taken from other companies (Creative Labs and Blackberry spring to mind). Just like Apple OS was stolen
from Xerox. Very visionary.

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Sam 2 days ago Mark Matheson
Seriously guys? I guess you don't listen to music as you travel through life huh? Whose idea was that? Let me guess, yours?
NOT.
Oh, right I guess you don't use that feature. Or wait, he STOLE it. I forgot!


Kevin McArdle 2 days ago Mark Matheson
Agree with you Mark! Jobs is primarily a high profile thief!!! Stole everything!!! Including the software behavior of the iPhone!!!
(Stole it from a NY engineering professor!) Amazing how financial success can blind people (the media especially) to the truth!!
Actually most of these "founders" are primarily thieves!
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Actually most of these "founders" are primarily thieves!


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Rie 2 days ago Mark Matheson
I am going to bite. He is. Number one he created the icon programming that Bill stole. Okay, and Pixar was his baby before
coming back in to the apple fold. Okay when apple was struggling Steve was not there. Call a spade a spade.

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Kevin McArdle 2 days ago Rie
Dude (or Dudette) since I can't tell... Jobs did not create the "icon" software, or more precisely, the Graphical User
Interface (or GUI) or also called, the "desktop metaphor" interface!!! He stole that concept from Xerox!!! He went for a
tour of the Xerox Palo Alto Labs and saw the "Star" interface (as it was called there) and brought the concept back to his
people!!! Kudos for Apple for running with the idea, and shame on the "empty suits" at Xerox for allowing the concept to
languish in the labs and not marketing it themselves!!!!


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Mark Matheson 2 days ago Rie
I am sure neither of them are innocent of stealing each others toys through the years but a quick Google and I cannot
see any association between Jobs and Icon programming language. I'll give you Pixar but much like Apple he was there
at the beginning, he drummed up the money but he didn't have much to do with the development of their products
(probably other than to express delight or disdain at the work being produced).


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utrph77004 2 days ago Mark Matheson
If it weren't for Jobs VISION of the Xerox GUI at PARC, then it probably would've never even made it to consumers en masse
via the Mac. Yes, Jobs had a VISION that few could rival. He envisioned a PC, which he popularized with the Apple II. He
envisioned a GUI and mouse, which he popularized with the Mac. He envisioned a better MP3, and introduced the world to the
iPod, the most popular music player, still to this very day. He envisioned a better, easier to use smartphone and tablet, which
have become the best selling phone and tablet models in the world. He didn't invent; he reinvented. Could another have come
up with the same things? Probably so, but he had his own vision and had the means to carry it through. All of the things Jobs
pushed into Apple's products ended up becoming industry standards and things that rivals (Microsoft, Samsung, Google's
Android) borrowed from liberally. Now stop being a hater and smile.

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SE 2 days ago utrph77004
I don't think the world would be worse off without the Mac or other Apple computers, which have always been expensive,
niche products. Even desktop publishing, graphic design and advertising, their top markets, went to Adobe products
which are made for Windows also, thus obviating the Mac's apparent advantages in the design world. To me the best
advances were the i-products. His accomplishment is one of execution more than vision, in my opinion. I'm nearing the
end of his famous biography, read exclusively on the iphone 4, and it would appear he was alone in having the
resources and the will to get good design done. Of course, he built most of his own resources, so you have to give him
credit as an entrepreneur and manager as well as a very hard working guy. The book doesn't say enough about Apple's
organization, although that info. is probably off limits. He may also be an unheralded organization man. The snippets you
get suggest Apple had very smart, forward thinking policies about team building and people placement.

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crh02 2 days ago
imho, no serious list of top 25 should exclude Michael Milken, who made vast amounts of capital available to aspiring businessmen. W
While not all the deals were laudatory, still he opened doors to many.

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Christophe 2 days ago
Sorry, but I think given the number of people who actually use the products, I'd say Zuck should be ahead of Greenspan/Bernanke,
Bezos, Winfrey and Buffett. Facebook changed the whole world, Oprah has not been relevant for the better part of a decade. Bezos is
certainly up there as well given Amazon's lasting impact. I don't get Buffett--non-activist investor is relevant to EVERYONE how?


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Rie 2 days ago Christophe
Bernanke is getting a bum rap. Give him some credit for trying to dig us out of this hole. Buffet, you are wrong on Buffet save
several banks in the heat of the crisis. Okay then look at Hank Paulson who did he go to.

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naapi 2 days ago
Where's Draghi? Should be in the top ten at least. Those CEOs like Jobs, Gates, Bezos, Zuckerberg etc just happened to be in the
right place at the right time. If it wasn't them there would have been someone else doing the exact same thing. iPhone was not the first
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right place at the right time. If it wasn't them there would have been someone else doing the exact same thing. iPhone was not the first
smartphone, Windows was not the first window-based OS, Google wasn't the first search engine, Facebook wasn't the first social
networking site, Tesla is not the first electric car ... so why praise them?

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Christophe 2 days ago naapi
Oh, I don't know, because all the other people who were there at the right time did not do those things? Facebook displaced
other social networking sites--it won. Are you being serious? Mario Draghi has made more of an impact than Facebook?
European monetary policy changes lives globally in a meaningful way? DOHKAY!


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Free Your Mind 2 days ago
Where is Kim Kardashian on this list? She revolutionized the way you gold dig. This thing is clearly rigged...

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Manuel_Labor 2 days ago
No George Mitchell? He figured out fracking and made it work.

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Ross Carver 2 days ago
It seems there is a bent on capitalism (rich people) - not that this is necessarily wrong, but I don't understand why Linus Torvalds isn't
on this list - what he did makes SO many more people rich every day. Facebook, for one example, wouldn't be without Linus and Linux.

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RogerMercer 2 days ago Ross Carver
Capitalism does not mean rich people. it means all our poor people have a good chance to get rich, if they want to. If you do not
have that, you do not have capitalism. Who are the rich? The 1 percent changes from week to week and year to year. A very
high percentage of the very rich have become middle class over the last couple of decades. And a great many middle class
and poor have become very rich. This is America, where free markets and investments create incredible wealth that is
accessible to anyone who is smart and works hard. Or is inventive, creative and organized. Or who has special athletic talent.
Or musical talent. Under capitalism, all have an equal chance to be great. Some choose not to. Some lack the talent and
intellect to achieve greatness, but they can be darned good plumbers. Some of the wealthiest people I know are very good
electricians, plumbers, welders and brick layers who work for themselves or have their own small businesses.
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electricians, plumbers, welders and brick layers who work for themselves or have their own small businesses.


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tkohl 2 days ago
Dangota , Wang , Whitman ????? seriously ? I dont even start to tell you who you missed .....
I know that it tough to pick THE 25 , but those 3 up there are just small figures in the big picture.


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Rie 2 days ago tkohl
I agree here. I am still reeling from that hit I to with HP.


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craig_k7283695 2 days ago
Discount brokerage pioneers Charles Schwab or Leslie Quick. For better or worse, Sandy Weill who built Shearson Loeb, helmed Am
Express, empired Citi Group and was responsible for unwinding of Glass-Steagall. Lee Kun-hee, head of Samsung since 1987.
Changed Samsung Electronics from a cheap b&w tv company to international heavyweight.

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DoughJames . 2 days ago craig_k7283695
I agree with you here! I can't believe they left certain guys off.
They also should have put Jack C.Taylor on here. How many of us don't use Enterprise Car Rentals? Or some car rental
service when we travel?

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RandallC 2 days ago craig_k7283695
Agree with the omission of discount brokerage pioneers. Good call.


RandallC 2 days ago
Warren Buffett is a very successful investor, but I don't see him as one of the 25 most influential or transformative persons of the last
25 years. It's nice to have him as a flag-bearer for buy-and-hold investing, but he's not why I chose that investment strategy; he just
confirms it as sound. Not sure if having two Fed Chairmen at #3 is a good thing. I don't think a Fed Chairmen's job is to be influential or
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confirms it as sound. Not sure if having two Fed Chairmen at #3 is a good thing. I don't think a Fed Chairmen's job is to be influential or
transformative. The list contains a lot of people who founded companies that did transform how we live our day to day lives, as it
should, but I don't understand why all the CEOs who were not the architects of the companies. Meg Whitman? Elon Musk (Paypal)
probably had more to do with the success of eBay. I'll even grudgingly give a nod to Mark Zuckerberg; and if he's on it, Musk should be
on it. If Martha Stewart's on the list, where's the founder of IKEA? Maybe it's too old. Oprah? Eeehhh, yeah, okay ... definitely influential.
Her "rise to riches" story is entertaining, but transformative? Next 25? Innovators in renewable/alternative energy and biotech (stem
cells) ... with the gaps filled in by rich people.

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Rie 2 days ago RandallC
Ok Warren Buffet save quite few banks in the crisis. When there are problems even the innovators call Buffet. For example
Hank Paulson, Dick Fuld, Lloyd Blankfien. When he gives his opinions people listen. Mark Zuckerberg is like Bill Gates as far as
i am concerned. He takes credit for other peoples finds. Bill Gates number two. Come on I know if you guys are here than you
know who he stole his icon technology. Can you say Steve Jobs.


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thewags05 2 days ago Rie
Or Xerox? It's not like apple had the first interface utilizing the "desktop" metaphor.


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DoughJames . 2 days ago
I think they should have put the CEOs of the big banks on here. Even if that influence was used in a heinous manner, they were really
influential to the lives of BILLIONS across the world.
Honestly, I really expected more from this list.

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slapppy 2 days ago
Steve Jobs is an excellent and the right choice. Thats fantastic!

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SE 2 days ago
Neither Facebook nor Google has been around for 25 years and they and their progenitors should not be on this list.
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Neither Facebook nor Google has been around for 25 years and they and their progenitors should not be on this list.

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Rob Marshall 2 days ago
Crazy uncle Jack...give me a break. He made the disastrous decision to start GE capital which almost brought the company into
bankruptcy.

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Sapir-Whorf 2 days ago
Probably a better list would be the top 25 self-made billionaires in the world. That would leave the Walton's off.

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Brad Hect 2 days ago
Jack Welch, really? Just look at the leaders he trained at GE ..... Gary Wendt, Paolo Fresco, Jeff Ihmelt, Jim McNerney, Robert
Nardelli......these guys did far more harm than good for the companies they've ran (including GE, Boeing, Fiat, and Home Depot )....I
contend this just shows how some great companies survive in spite of bad management and that most CEOs are far overrated and
over paid.

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billtxxus 2 days ago Brad Hect
Exactly, what great vision did Jack have ? GE Capital which almost bankrupted the company ? They only now are recovering
from his mess.

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V. W. 2 days ago
What about Herb Kelleher, the founder of Southwest Airlines, whose vision almost singlehandedly turned the airline industry from an
elitist luxury to a mass transportation economic necessity/utility/reality.

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Richard Roth 2 days ago V. W.
You would need to put Freddy Laker above Kelleher


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HowieFeltersnatch 2 days ago
Martha Stewart? Oprah? Great list you got here :)

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Sapir-Whorf 2 days ago
Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernanke. Really, the biggest destroyers of capital this century who have ruined millions of lives with their
boom bust cycles in 2000 and 2008 perpetuated by non-market based debt financing. I would say jail is more appropriate than the
CNBC top 25 list.

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SE 2 days ago
They missed Hilary Clinton. Moreso than Bill Clinton. She's had enormous influence on women.

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SE 2 days ago SE
I guess the criterion being business and finance, perhaps that's why world leaders and politicians aren't represented, although
we all know the influence they have on the economy.

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nytimes 2 days ago
Bill Gates should be #1 on the list , for Global IT revolution that made a huge dent on business or finance!

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GusK 2 days ago
The United States has the lowest cost energy of any industrialized country in the World. How that occurred over the past few years and
who helped make it happen has apparently escaped your recognition. Then I guess energy production is just not PC.

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SE 2 days ago GusK
The US has always had the lowest cost energy because they have the lowest gas taxes.

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GusK 2 days ago SE
Not when you consider the cost in blood and money to get it from the Middle East!


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SE 2 days ago GusK
They get most of it from Canada, I think they use 6 shooters.


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DoughJames . 2 days ago
I don't say this b/c I am half-black. B/c I know there is where people will want to go. However, I am not shocked but "somewhat"
surprised that Michael Jordan isn't on the list. I knew it was a long shot. But, I thought that they might put him on here.
The fact that he was able to make himself, basically, a billionaire by playing sports is amazing. He used his marketing ability to, literally,
change the landscape in the sneaker market. He made Phil Knight billions. He is majority owner in a team. And, he makes nearly $100
million a year still from his shoe brand alone. He made $80 mil and $90 mil the last two years.
When Jordan retired the first time, I remember them saying that he had brought over $150 billion into the economy. And, that was in
1998. And, many athletes white/black/Hispanic, etc. of all sports have tried to pattern themselves after Michael Jordan, especially when
it comes to branding and marketing.
He marketed himself well enough to become one of the most recognizable faces on the planet. To me, he was an absolute pioneer for
athletes marketing themselves and turning themselves into brands. He has been a horrible owner. But, he has been an astute
businessman in an age where blacks in the U.S. don't get much of a chance.

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IamAbraxas 2 days ago DoughJames .
I am a huge fan of Michael Jordan but this list is not about who has done very well for himself, or who is the greatest basketball
player, or even the greatest athlete, but about people who have had the most impact on business, and let's be honest, Jordan
doesn't belong there. If fact, as you point out, Jordan hasn't been the best business man himself.


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DoughJames . 2 days ago IamAbraxas
I am saying Jordan b/c when he retired the first time, I remember them saying that he had brought over $150 billion into
the economy. And, that was in 1998. And, many athletes white/black/Hispanic, etc. of all sports have tried to pattern
themselves after Michael Jordan, especially when it comes to branding and marketing.
We LOVE sports in the U.S. and around the world. Michael Jordan influenced many of athletes. I wasn't just saying it b/c
he was a great basketball player. I am looking how he made people buy NIKE. He is the name behind Nike AIR. The AIR
came from him.
I didn't say Jordan wasn't a good businessman. I said he was a bad team owner. I say that b/c his team sucks. Not b/c
they don't make money. I think Michael Jordan is an astute businessman. He has made almost a billion dollars. He still
has people buying his shoes and clothing 16 years after he "really" left the NBA.

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billtxxus 2 days ago DoughJames .
Again depends on the criteria, but I think a lot of black businessmen have been overlooked, like Russell Simmons, Don
Peebles, Richard Parsons for instance. Michael certainly changed how sports marketing is done. Oprah is on the list, but other
than making herself rich, and entertaining us, what has she done ? I would say Russell has had more impact, and is more of a
role model for future black businessmen, than Oprah, who is literally a one in a billion story not to be repeated.

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DoughJames . 2 days ago billtxxus
I agree businessmen should look to Russell Simmons over Oprah. Oprah is an entertainer. However, it is undeniable
that Oprah has been more "influential," which the list is "supposed" to be. Richard Parsons and Don Peebles aren't
really influential. They are good businessmen. I wouldn't say that they have done anything worthy of putting them on this
list.
I am saying Jordan b/c when he retired the first time, I remember them saying that he had brought over $150 billion into
the economy. And, that was in 1998. And, many athletes white/black/Hispanic, etc. of all sports have tried to pattern
themselves after Michael Jordan, especially when it comes to branding and marketing.
I don't really agree with the list. It looks like a billionaire list to me, with few exceptions.

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SE 2 days ago DoughJames .
I totally agree with you. MJ should be in the top 10 for how he changed sports. In fact, I think he ranks higher than the technology
people who are ranked too high. It's also amazing there are no world leaders in there.

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DoughJames . 2 days ago SE
They said they tried to stay away from world leaders and politicians.


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Ian Walker 2 days ago
Umm, the inventor of the world wide web maybe had an impact?

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DoughJames . 2 days ago Ian Walker
I don't think that has been done in the last 25 years.

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Jerry 2 days ago DoughJames .
Actually, it was. Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web in 1989. I would also say that Steve Case of AOL
should be on this list before Oprah was ever even considered.

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Ian Walker 2 days ago Jerry
The first website built was at CERN and put online on 6 August 1991:

2
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Wall Street to eye earnings, ISM survey 132 comments Those 'cool to capitalism' getting it: Billionaire 89 comments
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