Obama-called-Person-of-the-Year- in-Times

President-elect Barack Obama has been named the Person of the Year by Time magazine.

Time's Person of the Year is the person who most affected the news and our lives, for good or ill, and embodied what was important about the year, according to the magazine.

The runners-up were Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and film director Zhang Yimou, who designed the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony.

Those also acknowledged were the people who mattered. There were 17 people including, President George W. Bush, Sen. John McCain, Sen. Hillary Clinton and actor Robert Downey Jr. among others.

The issue is set to hit stands Friday.