Canadians Vote Royal Newlyweds Wills and Kate as
Top International Newsmakers of 2011

Toronto, ON - From among a list of 15 possible contenders, four in ten (37%) Canadians believe that Royal Newlyweds Prince William and Kate - the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge - are the top international newsmakers of 2011, according to a new poll conducted on behalf of Postmedia News and Global Television. In a year filled with economic turmoil, political unrest and the death of numerous world leaders, Canadians chose the two most famous newlyweds in the world as the top newsmakers of the year. Nearly half of Atlantic Canadians (46%) and British Columbians (45%) say Wills and Kate are the top newsmakers, followed by those living in Alberta (38%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (37%), Ontario (37%) and Quebec (29%). Women (48%) were twice as likely (25%) to believe they're the biggest newsmakers of the year.

A distant second on the list is deceased Libyan Dictator Moammar Gadhafi (17%) who was deposed as decades-long leader of Libya by a NATO-backed mission and forced to flee the capital. He was eventually found by Libyan rebels and killed. Those aged 18 to 34 (22%) are most likely to think he was the top newsmaker of 2011, followed by those aged 55+ (15%) or 35 to 54 (14%).

Tied for third place are U.S. President Barack Obama (13%) and deceased Apple CEO Steve Jobs. The U.S. President, by nature of the office, is typically near the top of the list. However, by comparison, in 2009 Barack Obama was on the top of the newsmaker's list. Men (16%) are more likely than women (11%) to have chosen the U.S. President, as are Quebecers (20%) compared to the national average (13%). Steve Jobs, the visionary CEO who led Apple for years, but died of cancer this year was also named by 13% of Canadians as the top international newsmaker.

Rounding out the top-five positions is hot-tempered Hollywood star Charlie Sheen (6%), who is perhaps better known for his off-camera antics than on camera. He's made headlines this year due to reports of alcohol and drug abuse, marital problems, as well as allegations of domestic violence. He was also fired this year from his role on hit series "Two and a Half Men".

Newsmakers who were named by fewer Canadians include: Mohamed Bouazizi, the Tunisian vender who set himself on fire to protest governments and whose death sparked Arab Spring (3%), Arizona Congresswomen Gabrielle Giffords who was shot at a press event, but has made a strong recovery (2%), German Chancellor Angela Merkel (2%), Norwegian Gunman Anders Breivik (2%), deceased singer Amy Winehouse (2%), former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak (1%), media tycoon Rupert Murdoch (1%), former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi (1%), French President Nicolas Sarkozy (1%), and finally former Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou (1%).

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between December 14 and 19, 2011, on behalf of Postmedia News and Global Television. For this survey, a sample of 1,021 Canadians who season from Ipsos' Canadian online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. A survey with an unweighted probability sample of this size and a 100% response rate would have an estimated margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what the results would have been had the entire population of adults in Canada been polled. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

John Wright
Senior Vice President
Ipsos Reid, Public Affairs
416.324.2002
[email protected]

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