of hotels.
Johnson-Sirleaf, 70, has been a political figure since the 1980swhen she spoke against the Samuel Doe regime. A former political prisoner–she was arrested and exiled twice–she campaigned to remove former president Charles Taylor from office. In 2007, Johnson- Sirleaf was honored with the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom and received honorary doctor of law degrees from Indiana University and Brown University.
The Publishing Titan
Magnus Greaves, Founder, Doubledown Media
At a time when most magazines have lost advertisers, Greaves, founder of Doubledown Media, has experienced the reverse. His magazine group, which consists of Trader Monthly, Dealmaker, Private Air, Corporate Leader, and Cigar Report, has seen a 67% increase in advertising this year. The reason is simple, according to the 34-year-old Vancouver resident, targeting wealthy individuals shields luxury publications from downturns in the marketplace. The audience: high-net-worth men with a median income of $600,000, particularly C-suite executives, investment bankers, and private equity and venture capital investors.
As several financial institutions have fallen to bankruptcy and acquisitions, Doubledown’s subscribers have remained steady. But as the U.S. Congress was voting on a financial rescue bill, Greaves was in Dubai for the launch of his Middle Eastern version of Dealmaker, with 12,000 in circulation. He also plans to debut Trader in Brazil early next year, and he’s in negotiations with partners to launch eastern European versions of Trader and Dealmaker in Russia.
Born in Jamaica, Greaves admittedly loves magazines and has no intention of relinquishing print to the dotcom space, but believes in finding new ways to innovate publications–such as his latest venture for 2008. Greaves, in collaboration with PR/management giant Williams Morris Agency, is scheduled to launch Mymag, a new celebrity-based magazine edited by and focused on a single personality or thought leader for each issue. Doubledown reported $10 million in revenue for 2007. It projects a 50% increase for 2008.
The Quarterback
Valerie Jarrett, Senior Adviser to Sen. Barack Obama
Jarrett, at one point, tried to talk Barack Obama out of the Chicago Senate race in 2004. Obama had to convince her why he should run, and it was her validation he sought and continued to seek throughout the 2008