Amal Clooney was named the most fascinating person of the year during Barbara Walters' annual (and aptly named) year-end special, The 10 Most Fascinating People of 2014. While we certainly agree that her September marriage to George Clooney played out like a real life fairy tale, it was hardly her greatest accomplishment.
Mrs. Clooney (formerly Alamuddin) is a top-level human rights lawyer who just recently gave legal advice to Greece's prime minister in his country's bid to reclaim some centuries-old antiquities from the British.
Walters inexplicably decided to ignore all that, and instead chose to lavish her top pick with praise because of who she married. "This is Amal Alamuddin, George Clooney’s beautiful bride. You could say hers was the wedding of the year,” Walters said. “But, let’s put it into perspective: It was really one of the greatest achievements in human history.”
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Sure, Clooney famously told Walters that he would never wed again, but calling their marriage "one of the greatest achievements in human history" feels just a tad far-fetched. That didn't stop Walters from continuing to focus on the famous pair's relationship, saying, "Amazingly, Amal has been the subject of very little snark or envy. Maybe because we, like George Clooney, find it impossible to resist perfection.”
While we don't give too much credence to a list that is essentially a ratings grab, it was surprising to see Walters focus so much on Mrs. Clooney's newfound celebrity and ignoring her personal achievements — especially considering her previous picks for the most fascinating person included Bill Clinton, Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama, Colin Powell, and Hillary Clinton, who topped the list in 2013.
Walters has claimed that this will be her last year-end special, and after last night's showing, we can't say we'll miss it. (USA Today)