TIME magazine has named Donald J. Trump as its 2016 Person of the Year.
On its cover, the magazine subtitled the photo of the America’s new president-elect, “President of the Divided States of America.”
Trump called in his thanks to NBC’s “Today” show, where TIME editor-in-chief Nancy Gibbs revealed the magazine’s choice on Wednesday morning.
But the president-elect said the “divided” bit on the cover was snarky – his words – and pointed out, “I’m not president yet, so I didn’t do anything to divide.”
Nevertheless, “It’s a great honor,” he said. “It means a lot.”
Gibbs said the choice was “straightforward,” as she referenced Trump’s zoom to the top, from a Washington outsider and complete political novice to the Number One seat in the nation when he enters the White House on January 20, 2017.
Democratic presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was named runner-up by the magazine. Computer hackers were in third place.
The magazine tradition began in 1927, citing the person who “had the greatest influence, for better or worse, on the events of the year.”
That didn’t always mean it was the best person of the year. In 1938, the magazine chose to feature Adolf Hitler, for instance.
Fidel Castro was on the cover. So was Joseph Stalin, in 1939 and 1942.
Gibbs coyly asked the magazine’s readership, “So which is it this year, better or worse?
“The challenge for Donald Trump is how profoundly the country disagrees about the answer… Like all newly elected leaders, he has a chance to fulfill his promises, and defy expectations.”
As Gibbs reminded the readership, “truth is only as powerful as the trust in those who speak it.”