Twitter Reacts To Greta Thunberg Being Named TIME's Person Of The Year

Sorry Baby Yoda, but Greta Thunberg was named TIME's Person of the Year this morning, and Twitter had quite a lot to say about it. At just 16-years-old, Thunberg becomes the youngest person ever awarded this recognition, and while many applauded the magazine for choosing the environmental activist, some couldn't help but wonder why more prominent people weren't chosen instead. What appears to add fuel to that fire is that following the announcement, TIME released the results of their 2019 Person of the Year reader poll where Thunberg placed fifth.

Despite 30% of the 27 million voters sending the Hong Kong protestors to first place, it was TIME's editors who ultimately determined who the Person of the Year was. It also feels important to mention that Keanu Reeves placed third with 4.5% of the vote.

Wow, this is unbelievable! I share this great honour with everyone in the #FridaysForFuture movement and climate activists everywhere. #climatestrike https://t.co/2t2JyA6AnM pic.twitter.com/u4JUD4cgCz

— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) December 11, 2019

Soon, the praise for TIME's selection came in quickly.

Just 16 months apart.#TIMEPersonoftheYear2019 pic.twitter.com/1G0f4mcpx6

— Charlotte Clymer🏳️‍🌈 (@cmclymer) December 11, 2019

“No one is too small to have an impact and change the world.” Congratulations to Time’s Person of the Year @GretaThunberg who continues to prove just how true her words are. pic.twitter.com/IcX25mPTGp

— The Obama Foundation (@ObamaFoundation) December 11, 2019

 
Some even reflected on how the 16-year-old inspired them.

I’d like to congratulate Greta Thunberg, TIME’s 2019 Person of the Year.

I’ve organized cleanups where we picked up 29 tons of trash in Baltimore, 6 tons in Chicago, 20 tons in Houston, & 50 tons in Los Angeles.

More to come in 2020.#TIMEPersonoftheYear2019

— #ThePersistence (@ScottPresler) December 11, 2019

Congratulations to @GretaThunberg! #TIMEPersonoftheYear2019 pic.twitter.com/ZyUbwFVcfY

— Lorenzo The Cat (@LorenzoTheCat) December 11, 2019

Congrats to @GretaThunberg from the old dinosaur. I think her dream is unrealistic but it’s hers and it’s shared by millions of others

— Jeremy Clarkson (@JeremyClarkson) December 11, 2019

Several were happy to step in to defend the 16-year-old.

What Greta Thunberg’s haters don’t get is that ultimately her message is one of hope and resilience. It is a language they cannot understand.

— Dan Rather (@DanRather) December 11, 2019

 
And had fun photoshopping her victory.

If this gets 100k retweets realDonaldTrump</a> will resign. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TIMEPersonoftheYear2019?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TIMEPersonoftheYear2019</a> <a href="https://t.co/2SFMIM2AQ3">pic.twitter.com/2SFMIM2AQ3</a></p>&mdash; Saint Hoax (SaintHoax) December 11, 2019

Confused users who were clearly expecting someone else, began to tweet out their thoughts.

Not that Time magazine is legitimate… but I'm not sure how you'd pick Greta Thunberg as person of the year over the Hong Kong protestors who are putting their lives on the line every day to fight for their freedom.

— Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) December 11, 2019

 
It appeared that the Hong Kong protestors were the assumed favorite for this recognition.

Time leaves out the Hong Kong Protesters fighting for their lives and freedoms to push a teen being used as a marketing gimmick.

How dare you? https://t.co/dnV9mESM6G

— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) December 11, 2019

No hate to Greta, I am a vegan with a degree in enviromental engineering, BUT how did she win over Hong Kong protesters????#hongkong #gretathumberg #TIMEPersonoftheYear2019 pic.twitter.com/dmwqbETv8y

— Kate (@Katlin_Eer) December 11, 2019

The fact that GretaThunberg</a> beat out a poll that had the Hong Kong protestors winning the <a href="https://twitter.com/TIME?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">TIME magazine 90+ percent of the votes just shows how much people don’t care and are in it to just push their agenda down everyone’s throats.

— Tyler (@hexpro21) December 11, 2019

 
Several even jumped in to photoshop their own TIME magazine covers.

I found the leaked cover for the #TIMEPersonoftheYear2019 and, yes, it’s #BabyYoda! pic.twitter.com/tBaCNLdzwV

— Garret Brubaker (@ItsGarret) December 11, 2019

Obviously. #TIMEPersonoftheYear2019 pic.twitter.com/dudTrKuI7r

— Caleb Howe (@CalebHowe) December 10, 2019

Of course I support Greta Thunberg but this upstanding individual was robbed for TIME person of the year pic.twitter.com/Fe9LBz6jDc

— Hebes (@andrewheeb) December 11, 2019

 
But mostly confusion remained with TIME's choice.

mrbeast has:
- given a homeless man a home
- bought an entire food store and donated it
- started #TeamTrees (which, in the long term, will be more effective than anything Greta has done for the environment)
- literally gives away thousands of dollars

why choose her over Jimmy https://t.co/Q7E9DNa4ja

— ♡Linea♡ (@LineaMahayla) December 11, 2019

And of course downright disdain resulted as well.

Precisely the same honor she received from INSUFFERABLE CHILD-SCOLD GAZETTE.

BREAKING: TIME Magazine names 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg its 2019 "Person of the Year" pic.twitter.com/dyAHfOWsVd

— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) December 11, 2019

the downfall of @TIME Magazine continues and is just about concluded. They just named a little girl who has no clue about climate or her own future, their #PersonOfTheYear. What has she actually done of note? Skipped school a bunch of times. Great job, Time!#GretaThunberg

— Joe Pags Pagliarulo (@JoeTalkShow) December 11, 2019

 
Some users wondered why anyone really cared that much anyway.

People always give a damm about the #TIMEPersonoftheYear2019 like they read Time magazine every week(¿¿month??) instead of at doctor’s appointments ten years ago

— Will Hamm (@willhammo) December 11, 2019

Regardless, learning this fact alone today, was enough to set the week right.

Time's Person of the Year, climate activist Greta Thunberg, has a Disney animation connection. Her grandfather, Olof Thunberg, was the voice of Shere Khan in the Swedish dub of Disney's The Jungle Book (1967). pic.twitter.com/1cvoGQ9jU4

— cartoonbrew.com (@cartoonbrew) December 11, 2019