Time for TIME

Every year, it’s a tradition. December is the time when TIME magazine comes out with its “Person of the year” on the cover page. This year, as we all know, it is Angela Merkel and she has been lauded for her open border policy for refugees. TIME said she was chosen for her deft leadership as it has helped preserve and promote an open, borderless Europe in the face of economic turmoil, ongoing refugee and the Ukraine crises.

She pipped other contenders like Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Russian President Vladimir Putin, ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump.

This tradition of TIME is 88 years old – they began in 1927 and at that time, it was titled as “Man of the year”. The first title was held by aviator Charles Lindbergh – he was the first person ever to fly a plane solo non-stop across the Atlantic, from New York to Paris. Mahatama Gandhi held this honour in 1930

TIME has also put on its cover some very controversial faces – Adolf Hitler in 1938, Joseph Stalin in 1939 and 1942, Nikita Khrushchev in 1857 and Ayatollah Khomeini in 1979 for which it drew maximum ire. After that, it stays away from such controversial figures, which explains why 2011 did not have Osama Bin Laden but New York Mayor, Giulliani. In 1982, there was no Person of the Year; it was Machine of the Year and that was the Computer.  And way back in 1998, The Endangered Earth was the Planet of the Year.

And no, the coveted title is not decided by a poll; it is decided by the editors. Do you remember who it was last year? It was the Ebola Fighters, referring to the healthcare workers who worked relentlessly to prevent the spread of the disease.