ICON SELECTIONS: I'm looking out for a hero...

This week I've been tasked with identifying 3 contemporary icons.

Now while this may seem like an easy task, I found that after staring at my computer screen for 2 hrs., I was still drawing a blank on who to highlight as my 3 favorite contemporary icons.

I chose these 3 icons because of what each person represents in our society today. In my mind, an icon is someone or something that serves as a symbol that defines an era or period in time. Now, it really is a matter of opinion as to what type of impact that person has made on society or what that person represents to society.

So, without further delay, after making my way through a whole pint of Ben & Jerry's "Chunky Monkey" Ice Cream (yeah, yeah...I cheated on my bridezilla diet), I finally decided on my top 3 icons of my generation. Drum roll please...

#1 - Britney Spears (Generation Y icon)



My first icon is Britney Spears. Now I know while some might say that Britney Spears is actually a BAD role model today we need to look at this person objectively. Say what you may about Britney's current personal problems, but you cannot deny the fact that Britney grosses $770,000 per month...yes, I said per month! Britney has sold over 83 million records worldwide and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) ranks her as the eighth best-selling female artist in American music history, having sold 31 million albums in the U.S. Spear's debut single "...Baby One More Time", released in the end of 1998 became an instant international success. "...Baby One More Time", peaked at number one on the Billboard's Hot 100 and garnered nine million unit sales worldwide. The album was ranked 25th on Rolling Stone and MTV's "100 Greatest Pop Songs of all time". The music video accompanying the song featured Spears dressed in a schoolgirl uniform and soon after, it was not uncommon to see legions of girls dressing in schoolgirl outfits in honor of their new idol. The album of the same title was released in January 1999, reaching number one on the Billboard 200. "...Baby One More Time" was certified Diamond, with 25 million copies sold worldwide. As staggering as some of these figures might seem, it looks to me as though it's inevitable that Britney Spears will always be remembered as a public figure that has captured the attention of the international community. Personally, I love Britney, love *some*, not all of her songs, and truly respect all the hard work and dedication that she invested to make it to the level of infamy currently attributed to her. I just feel really bad that after all the hard work that she and her family invested in her career, that she is now being panned and even mocked by the media today...the same media that built her up to be the pop icon that she is today, is making millions themselves tearing her down and capitalizing on her personal problems. I think it is so sad that people are criticizing her so badly as though she is not like you and me with the same problems. Her problems just seem more grave because her every move is held under a microscope.


#2 - Hillary Clinton (Baby Boomer icon)



Having lived in Ohio for almost 5 years now, I know better than to publicly declare who I am voting for President in 2008. Heck, at this early stage of the political cycle, I wouldn't even dare tell you what party I am affiliated with since there's still so much time for the Presidential candidates to prove why they are the most electable candidate! LOL.

For the purposes of this post, I am just focused on who I think is in a position to be called an icon. Hillary Clinton, as we all know, is running to become the 44th President of the United States....and the first female President of the United States. WHOA! Does everyone in this Country understand how significant that is??????

Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton is the junior United States Senator representing New York (my home state - YAY!) and actually made history by becoming the first female Senator to represent the State of New York. She is married to Bill Clinton, who served as the 42nd President of the United States. She was also the First Lady of the United States from 1993 to 2001. She was the first, First Lady to hold a post-graduate degree and also the first to have her own professional career up until the time of entering the White House. She was also the first, First Lady to take up an office in the West Wing of the White House...First Ladies usually stay in the East Wing. Hillary Clinton is widely regarded as the most openly empowered presidential wife in American history...that is of course, next to Eleanor Roosevelt. She has been ranked among the world's most powerful people by Forbes magazine and Time magazine's Time 100 lists.

For young girls and women all over the world, Hillary Clinton serves as a role model and an icon. She proves to women everywhere that we can accomplish anything that we put our minds to...even running for President of the greatest Country in the world!


#3 - Tiger Woods (Generation X icon)



Eldrick Tiger Woods is an American professional Golfer and is ranked as one of the most successful Golfers of all time. Let's be frank...currently the World's No. 1 Golfer, Tiger Woods was the highest paid professional athlete in 2006, having earned an estimated $100 million from winnings and endorsements...how many Football, Basketball, or even Baseball athletes can touch that title????

Tiger has won 13 professional major golf championships, the second-most of any male player, and 61 PGA Tour events, the fifth-most of all time. He has more career major wins and career PGA Tour wins than any other active golfer. He is the youngest player to achieve the Career Grand Slam, and the youngest and fastest to win 50 tournaments on Tour. If I listed all of Tiger Woods' accomplishments and records, you might be reading all night, but instead I will only focus on "a few" of his accomplishments.

At the age of 15, he became the youngest ever U.S. Junior Amateur Champion, was voted Southern California Amateur Player of the Year for the second consecutive year, and was named Golf Digest's Amateur Player of the Year in 1991. He successfully defended his title at the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, becoming the first multiple winner, competed in his first PGA Tour event, the Nissan Los Angeles Open and was named Golf Digest Amateur Player of the Year, Golf World Player of the Year and Golfweek National Amateur of the Year in 1992. WHOA!!!!!!!

To this day, Tiger Woods remains the event's youngest-ever and only multiple winner. In 1994, Woods became the youngest ever winner of the U.S. Amateur Championship. He was a member of the American team at the 1994 Eisenhower Trophy World Amateur Golf Team Championships and 1995 Walker Cup. Later that year, he enrolled at Stanford University, and won his first collegiate event, the William Tucker Invitational. In 1995, Woods defended his U.S. Amateur title, and was voted Pac-10 Player of the Year, NCAA First Team All-American, and Stanford's Male Freshman of the Year (an award that encompasses all sports). Tiger participated in his first PGA Tour major, The Masters, and tied for 41st as the only amateur to make the cut. At age 20 in 1996, Woods became the first golfer to win three consecutive U.S. Amateur titles and won the NCAA individual golf championship. In winning the Silver Medal as leading amateur at The Open Championship, Woods tied the record for an amateur aggregate score of 281. He left college after two years and turned Pro.

Tiger Woods has held the number one position in the world rankings for the most consecutive weeks and for the greatest total number of winning weeks. He has been awarded PGA Player of the Year a record NINE....yes, I said NINE TIMES, the Byron Nelson Award for lowest adjusted scoring average a record EIGHT times, and has tied Jack Nicklaus's record of leading the money list in eight different seasons, most recently earning $10,867,052 in 2007! He has also been named Associated Press' Male Athlete of the Year four times, a record he shares only with Lance Armstrong.

One thing I find appealing about Tiger Woods is that he is multiracial in a sport that is predominately white. He has been credited with prompting a major surge of interest in the game of golf for a variety of people. He has opened many doors in the Golf world, having even broken down some racial barriers by being the first African-American male to play on Golf courses that historically only allowed whites to play their courses. Tiger has had a MAJOR impact on the world of Golf, having doubled attendance and TV ratings, and generating interest among a multicultural audience in a game that used to be considered insular and elitist for many years. Most importantly, I along with many other individuals admire Tiger Woods and consider him to be an American and International icon because he has conducted his career with the utmost class, style, and charisma! I love Tiger Woods and look forward to watching him impact American history and sports for many years to come.

He made it cool to Golf!!!!!