President Hinckley still number 8 in Time's on-line Poll (Hitler trailing Elvis in poll to find person of the century)
South China Morning Post 27Nov99 N1
President Hinckley still number 8 in Time's on-line Poll (Hitler

In spite of the fact that Time's on-line poll for person of the year has turned into a meaningless 'cultural cyberwar,' supporters of LDS Church president Gordon B. Hinckley have pushed him into eighth place, just behind such notables as Yitzhak Rabin, Albert Einstein and the Pope but ahead of Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi.

The continued presence of President Hinckley in the poll may be due in part to e-mail messages spread through Mormon groups on the Internet promoting Hinckley as Time's Man of the Century. The messages sometimes give the impression that the on-line poll will determine who Time chooses as its Man of the Century. However, Time has repeatedly stated that the poll is "unscientific and informal" and that its editors will make the final choice. In addition, the editors are limiting their choices to those on the Time 100, chosen earlier this year. President Hinckley was not on that list and is therefore not a candidate for the Man of the Century.

Time officials had to adjust the poll data earlier this fall due to individuals voting multiple times. At that time, President Hinckley's vote were cut by more than half due to such multiple votes.

The poll currently is led by Elvis, with 615,000 votes, due to promotion by Radio DJs. The Morning Post attributes a high number of votes for Hitler, now third with more than half a million votes, to neo-Nazis.