Lady Gaga Tops Oprah on Forbes’ ‘Most Powerful Women’ List

“You and I” belter bests the former Queen of Daytime Talk in Forbes’ annual ranking of influential females

Oprah Winfrey might be the top banana where her network OWN is concerned, but according to Forbes, she ain't got nada on Gaga.

According to Forbes' newly released list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women, Lady Gaga has overtaken the former Queen of Daytime Talk, besting the Big O by a decisive three slots.

Also read: Lady Gaga's 5 Most Outrageous Moments (So Far)

Though both ladies slipped in prestige compared to last year's list, Winfrey's drop was particularly precipitous, from number 3 to number 14. (Is this a sign that OWN is in more trouble than people thought?)

"Poker Face" songbird Gaga, meanwhile, fell from number 7 to number 11, which placed her above Winfrey on the list for the first time.

German chancellor Angela Merkel tops the list, followed by U.S. Secretary Hillary Clinton, for those interested in powerful women in the non-celebrity arena. Other women deemed worthy for inclusion on the list include FIrst Lady Michelle Obama (who comes in at number 8), New York Times Executive Editor Jill Abramson (number 12) and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, who took the number 34 position.

Barely scraping onto the list at the number 100 spot? Ernst & Young global vice chair Beth Brooke. (Yeah, exactly — who?)

Here are the Top 10 World's Most Powerful Women:

1. Angela Merkel, German chancellor

2. Hillary Clinton, U.S. Secretary of State

3. Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil

4. Indra Nooyi, Chief Executive, PepsiCo

5. Sheryl Sandberg COO, Facebook

6. Melinda Gates, Cofounder, Cochair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

7. Sonia Gandhi, President, Indian National Congress Party

8. Michelle Obama, First Lady of the United States

9. Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund

10. Irene Rosenfeld, CEO, Kraft Foods

Forbes compiled the list by applying "three metrics: dollars, a traditional and social and media component" and "power base points." The latter of the criteria considers whether the women have an impact "over multiple spheres of influence rather than … a single source of authority."

 

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