'Role model' Derek Jeter named 11th greatest leader in the world
Getty Images
Fortune Magazine is out with its list of the world's 50 greatest leaders, and many of them are the types of people you'd expect to see on there. The Pope comes in first, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is second, and Bill Clinton cracks the top five. But then you get to No. 11 and — nestled between Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and renowned social activist and Harlem Children's Zone founder Geoffrey Canada — there is New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter.
Jeter merited such a high ranking because, according to the magazine, he's the "type of role-model player that even a Red Sox fan must grudgingly respect." Well, I'm a Red Sox fan (sorry) so I'll quibble with that. For whom is Jeter a role model? Aspiring philanderers who want to send dates home with gift baskets full of autographed memorabilia?
Yes, Jeter is the leader of the most lucrative, visible, and annoying team in professional American sports. But putting him among the ranks of world leaders, famed entrepreneurs, activists and the like is insane. Then again, Fortune also put Bono — Bono! — ahead of the Dalai Lama, which is a pretty good sign the whole list is hogwash.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.
-
Homo Floresiensis: Earth’s real life ‘hobbits’Under the Radar New research suggests that ‘early human pioneers’ in Australia interbred with archaic species of hobbits at least 60,000 years ago
-
Homes by renowned architectsFeature Featuring a Leonard Willeke Tudor Revival in Detroit and modern John Storyk design in Woodstock
-
Looming drone ban has farmers and farm-state Republicans anxiousIN THE SPOTLIGHT As congressional China-hawks work to limit commercial drone sales from Beijing, a growing number of conservative lawmakers are sounding an agricultural alarm
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstancesSpeed Read
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2Speed Read
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governorSpeed Read
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditionsSpeed Read
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billionSpeed Read
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on recordSpeed Read
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homesSpeed Read
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creatureSpeed Read
