Zogby: Palin Person of the Year, Bush, of Decade

Former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin is the Person of the Year for 2010, according to a new survey by Zogby International, which also designated George W. Bush as Person of the Decade (2000-2010).

Palin was cited by 21 percent of the respondents, while 16 percent chose President Barack Obama. Glenn Beck and Julian Assange of WikiLeaks notoriety tied with 13 percent.

None of the other seven possible choices for Person of the Year — Gen. David Petraeus, Hillary Clinton, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Conan O’Brien, Apple’s Steve Jobs, basketball star LeBron James, and Defense Secretary Robert Gates — garnered more than 6 percent.

Democrats favored Obama with 33 percent, while Palin won among Republicans (39 percent) and independents (17 percent).

In the Person of the Decade polling, Bush was chosen by 44 percent of respondents, followed by Obama with 20 percent, and Osama bin Laden with 11 percent.

Zogby’s poll of nearly 2,000 adults found that 40 percent of respondents believe the BP oil spill is the news story of the year, with the midterm elections second at 34 percent.

The 2001 terrorist attacks is the news story of the decade, according to 73 percent of respondents.

The most significant political story of 2010 is the emergence of the tea party, Zogby found, while the most significant international news story of the year is the Haiti earthquake, and the most significant issue of the decade is the rise in terrorism.