Mark Zuckerberg: Nobel Peace Prize Winner?

The 2011 Nobel Peace Prize will be awarded this Friday. And rumor has it that a certain tow-headed Californian whose name rhymes with Bark Tuckerberg is in serious contention to win.

From the LA Times:

It may seem unlikely, but on Wednesday Thorbjorn Jagland, the chairman of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, made some provocative comments that fueled speculation Zuckerberg could be a contender for the prestigious award.

“For me and the committee it is quite obvious if you look at the world today and see what is happening out there,” Jagland said in an interview with the Associated Press. “What are the major forces pushing the world in the right direction?”

Could he be referring to a Web platform that allows users to connect around the world?

We sure hope not. Then again, stranger things have happened. Barack Obama sure seemed like a stretch to win the prize back in 2009. Wonder if the committee wants that one back?

Update – 10/07/11: Zuckerberg did not win. The Peace Prize has been awarded to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia (the first woman to be elected president in modern Africa), her fellow peace activist Leymah Gbowee and Yemen pro-democracy campaigner Tawakul Karman.

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