The world’s most powerful women: the billionaires on the 2019 list
Forbes highlighted the world’s most powerful women of 2019 and specifically called out the billionaires who made the list. “Lean In” writer Sheryl Sandberg hit number 18 with a net worth of $1.8 billion. Oprah Winfrey was number 20 at $2.7 billion. Founder and President of Emerson Collective Lauren Powell Jobs made number 33 on the most powerful list, but she holds the highest net worth at $23.5 billion.
Greta Thunberg named Time’s person of the year
This week, 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg received the honor of being named Time magazine’s Person of the Year for 2019. She is the youngest person to receive the honor in the publication’s 92-year history. The teenager made a huge splash when she chastised United Nations representatives in September for their inaction during the climate crisis. She said she was surprised to receive the honor, and she dedicated it to her fellow young activists.
The year 2018 was deemed “the year of the woman,” but the 2020 election shows just as much female traction. Four women are running for president, as well as a surge of women who ran previously, and a surge of new women who were motivated to run for the first time after President Donald J. Trump was elected. One example is Emily Weber, who is aiming to become the first Asian-American woman elected to the Missouri state house.
“Comeback Careers” is the ultimate roadmap for women in their 40s, 50s and beyond
Know Your Value founder Mika Brzezinski teamed up with her sister-in-law Ginny Brzezinski to write “Comeback Careers,” a how-to for women in the workforce at age 40, 50 and beyond. The collaboration began when Ginny Brzezinski wanted to change her career at age 50. In the book, which is available for pre-order, the authors support women who are undergoing similar transitions. They found that the issue is very common: according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women over 55 are the fastest growing age and gender workforce category.
Sports Illustrated person of the year: Megan Rapinoe
U.S. Women’s Soccer champion Megan Rapinoe has been named “Sports Illustrated Person of the Year” for 2019. Rapinoe helped usher the team into winning the World Cup this year and was a top scorer overall. She has publicly fought for equal pay for players on both the men’s and women’s teams. Rapinoe is one of the very few female athletes who have received the honor since 1954. Other female recipients included Serena Williams in 2015 and the entire U.S. women’s soccer team in 1999.
Three years after Fox News CEO Roger Ailes resigned after a 20-year reign, the writer of “The Big Short” wrote a screenplay about the whole sordid story. “Bombshell” debuts this weekend, and it stars Charlize Theron as Megyn Kelly, Nicole Kidman as Gretchen Carlson and Margot Robbie as the fictional Kayla Pospisil. The story details Ailes’ history of abusing and harassing the women at Fox News who wanted to get ahead.
Women will direct four major superhero movies in 2020, and Hollywood may never be the same
The face of Hollywood is finally changing. Five of the biggest titles coming out in 2020 — including all four major superhero movies — will be directed by women. “Birds of Prey” will be directed by Cathy Ya; “Mulan” by Niki Caro; “Black Widow” by Cate Shortland, “Wonder Woman 1984” by Patty Jenkins; and “Eternals” by Chloé Zhao. If the films are blockbuster hits, 2020 would mark the first year ever that men and women directors will be equally represented in the top-10 grossing films.
Physicist accuses ‘white men in North America’ Wikipedia editors of sexism
Physician and Wikipedia writer Dr. Jess Wade was shocked to find that editors deleted entries she’d written about female physicians. Fifty of the entries were flagged for not being significant enough to warrant their own Wikipedia page. She said one of the flagged entries featured chemist Clarice Phelps, who was the only African-American woman to contribute to the discovery of an element. She called upon more women and people of color to contribute to the online encyclopedia.
Halley Bondy