2013 Forbes’ Celebrity 100: Oprah Winfrey back on top of world’s most powerful celebrities

Oprah Winfrey is back on top of Forbes‘ list of the world’s most powerful celebrities – Forbes’ Celebrity 100 – after a two-year stint in the runner-up seat.

Oprah Winfrey, 59, knocked Jennifer Lopez off the spot and into number 12, but still shares the top ten winners’ enclosure arena with a multitude of women.

There are six girls in the plum positions – and the only man to make it into the top five is film director Steven Spielberg, who, coming third, is sandwiched between Lady Gaga in second and Beyonce in fourth.

Madonna comes fifth and Taylor Swift makes her top 10 debut at number six in the annual Top 100 compiled by Forbes magazine, which is based on income over a 12-month period and fame, as defined by a media presence across all platforms, as well as social media power.

Writer E.L. James is newcomer to the list at number 42, proving that celebrities with clout can come from anywhere. E.L. James has sold 70 million copies of her books and earned an estimated $77 million in the last 12 months.

Forbes calculated celebrity’s earnings on income from tours, books, contracts, endorsements, movies and residuals and each star was given a marketability score, created by California market research firm E-Poll.

The magazine credits Oprah Winfrey’s $77 million earnings between June 2012 and June 2013 – as well as her prominence on TV, on social media and in the press – for her placing.

Forbes writer Dorothy Pomerantz said: “She still wields an enormous amount of power, which is really what we look for in our fame matrix.

“She is taking this cable network and turning it around just through the sheer force of her will, her connections and her ability.”

Oprah Winfrey, who has topped the list on four previous occasions, is one of three celebrities who have featured on the prestigious list every year since its inception in 1999, along with radio DJ Howard Stern and director Steven Spielberg.

But she wasn’t the highest earning star over the last year. Madonna earned $125 million between June 2012 and June 2013.

Last year’s number one, Jennifer Lopez – who topped the chart thanks to her public profile and earnings of $52 million – drops to 12 on this year’s countdown.

Meanwhile, Lady Gaga, despite being forced to cancel numerous dates on her moneymaking Born This Way Ball tour due to hip surgery earlier this year, earned $80 million from the global jaunt.

Forbes also cites the 27-year-old star’s devoted fan following on social media for her lofty ranking.

Dorothy Pomerantz said: “She is still a huge force in pop music. Even when she is not playing, people are talking about her and speculating about her.”

Forbes also deciphered how often individual stars appeared in the media and used Starcount – a Singapore-based company that studies celebrity’s presence on 11 different social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, to assess popularity and influence.

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