Chances are that after you watch this clip of Anna Wintour on “The Colbert Report,” you’ll appreciate the fashion diva more. First, she displays some pretty solid comedic timing when she comments on Stephen Colbert’s outfit. Then she admits that “there were tears in the office of Vogue in support of gay marriage.”

Wintour was referring to President Barack Obama’s backing of gay marriage, and the disclosure — although not exactly surprising — was touching, in that we typically don’t get to experience Vogue’s editor in such a casual way. It’s nice to see, and we’re hoping for more of it.

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Honorees Matt Lauer and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, with Time managing editor Rick Stengel.

They come from all walks of life. They are actors, musicians, world leaders, and sports figures–and that just scratches the surface. Time Magazine held its annual 100 Most Influential People in the World gala last night at the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.

While more than half of the honorees were unable to attend, there was still no shortage of stars lighting the red carpet.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was on the guest list, and although she failed to take the stroll, a Homeland Security officer complete with a sniffing dog canvassed the confines.

Pres. Barack Obama was chosen in the magazine’s Leaders category, along with the presumptive Republican nominee, Mitt Rommey. Both were, not surprisingly, no shows. Romney was winning primaries in the Northeast, while Obama was appearing on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” from North Carolina.

NBC’s Matt Lauer was listed among a group of Icons. Lauer recently signed a contract extension with the Today show at a reported $25 million per year.

FishbowlNY chatted with “Today” show third hour co-host Savannah Guthrie who praised her friend and colleague.

More video clips from the red carpet after the jump…

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The additional workload may be a major reason why Cooper saw huge gains in this year’s Zeta report, up from ninth place in 2010.

The Daily Show‘s Jon Stewart is as steady as ever, holding at number two for the second straight year.

Zeta Interactive CEO Al DiGuido says his company uses a specific algorithm to create the report.

“It basically kind of jogs the most often used word,” DiGuido says.

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Behold the vastness of Rain’s influence: by the time the poll closed, he had gotten 406,252 “influential” votes. Compare these numbers to President Obama‘s, who took 46th place with a paltry 5,543 “influential” votes.

But demolishing President Obama this year is nothing new for Rain, who was also voted the most influential person in 2006 and 2007, and placed in second in 2008.

And with such unstoppable power naturally comes a little jealousy: Stephen Colbert (who, along with Jon Stewart, comes in at a disappointing 53rd place) recorded a Korean R&B video in retaliation in 2007. The two even had a dance-off. (Videos after the jump).

But Rain cannot be stopped! Coming in a distant second this year was Jay Chou, Taiwanese star of The Green Hornet, getting 207,239 “influential” votes, followed by Britain’s Got Talent‘s Susan Boyle with 151,324 “influential” votes. Right. Makes perfect sense.

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Last night, Time magazine presented a panel discussion on the candidates for its upcoming Person of the Year issue, due on newsstands December 15th. This year’s panel, moderated by the magazine’s managing editor, Richard Stengel [pictured above, far left], included Daisy Khan, the executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement and wife of Person of the Year candidate Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf; Democratic campaign worker and political consultant Joe Trippi; Marissa Mayer, Google’s vice president of geographic and local services; musician, producer and one-time hopeful for Haiti’s presidency Wyclef Jean (Jean said he was “bamboozled” out of running); and blogger and author Meghan McCain.

Among the topics discussed by the panelists were their top picks for the annual honor. McCain selected members of the Tea Party and was interested in seeing how those running on an “anti-Washington platform” would eventually fare in Washington, as well as Glenn Beck. Jean picked the people of Haiti for their resilience in the face of recent earthquakes and an outbreak of cholera, as well as for their ability to show how technology can help bring different parts of the globe together for a common cause. Khan lamented that she couldn’t pick Time itself for its recent thought-provoking cover story on Islamophobia in the United States. Her picks, in order, were Mayor Michael Bloomberg, her husband, and Jon Stewart, who nominated as a candidate alongside Stephen Colbert. Trippi, in keeping with his background in politics, selected Nancy Pelosi as his number one pick, followed by the Tea Party members. Mayer, drawing on her own interest in tech, selected either Steve Jobs of the smartphone for their continued impact. She also recounted how Time‘s 1982 Person of the Year pick (then dubbed “Man of the Year”), the personal computer, marked her very first encounter with that type of technology.

The discussion took an interesting turn when candidates were asked to defend one another’s choices (most were not exactly game), and then asked to select their “Bad Guy of the Year.” Khan selected Beck for his stance on immigration and religion, opining that his views went against “the American ethos.” Trippi colorfully referred to the iPod and iPad as “slingshots for Goliath, and McCain felt that Australian Julian Assange‘s decision to reveal military information through his WikiLeaks site was “un-American” and likened him to a Bond villain.

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So the week of nail-biting is over, and Conan O’Brien is signing off as host of “The Tonight Show”… well, tonight. Fans are not the only ones sad to see CoCo go: both NBC and Jay Leno are doing major damage control to try and spin all the ill-will they’ve garnered lately for muscling Conan out of the 11:35 slot.

First stop on Jay’s “I’m sorry America” tour? “Oprah,” then the White House.

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PRNewser: Should news organizations like The New York Times release the names of staffers who are laid off when they know the media will report on them either way?

Folio: Industry group the Magazine Publishers of America has eliminated 5 positions or 14 percent of its overall workforce.

Denver Busines Journal: Rick Blair has officially been named CEO of Clarity Digital Group and Examiner.com, after serving as interim CEO since March.

Vanity Fair: Putting Stephen Colbert on the cover of a magazine seems like a surefire way to boost newsstand sales. Not so with Jon Stewart.

Deadline Hollywood: Nikki Finke‘s blog amassed more unique visitors last month than Variety and The Hollywood Reporter combined.

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WebNewser: The Wall Street Journal debuted its Japanese-language Web site today.

Silicon Alley Insider: 1,100 AOL staffers took the buyout offered earlier this year, meaning the company will have to lay off 1,400 more people by the end of the first quarter of 2010.

Romenesko: The New York Observer‘s Gillian Reagan has left the paper to join The Business Insider.

Associated Press: Stephen Colbert is a cover model (again). He’s on the latest cover of Sports Illustrated in a form-fitting speed skating uniform.

Newsweek: Here’s a fun end of the year list: the oddest headlines of 2009.

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In the last 24 hours, we’ve come across two polls seeking to name someone “Person of the Year,” and looking for the public’s helpful insight in order to do it. Whether the actual winner of these polls will be named Person of the Year — or if they are just a way to draw visitors and hits — remains to be seen.

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After only a couple days on newsstands, the Colbert issue has already been called out by AOL Daily Finance’s Jeff Bercovici for mimicking a cover of satirical mag Spy from 1989.

“It’s probably impossible to commit satire in magazine form without echoing Spy,” Bercovici said. “But you’d think Colbert, as a comedian, might have a little more professional pride than this; Newsweek editor Jon Meacham says the cover treatment was Colbert’s idea.”

The issue is also getting heat from Esquire for seemingly copying a gimmick the magazine used eight years ago for an interview with Colbert’s Comedy Central lead in Jon Stewart.

What do you think? Do you think Newsweek is getting extra (and unfair) scrutiny because of its attempt to do something to draw publicity? Or do you believe Colbert could have been more original?

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The main theme of the issue is Iraq, something close to Colbert’s heart and also the place from which he is broadcasting his Comedy Central show this week. Real Newsweek editor Jon Meacham agreed the topic is timely and important, and defended the magazine against anticipated criticism that the guest editor appointment is simply a publicity stunt, calling such critiques “half-right.”

“I would argue with the term ‘stunt,’ though, but only because of the popular assumption that a stunt is something silly. (The dictionary definition is a feat of daring, but we do not live in the dictionary.) Colbert’s involvement is an exercise not in silliness but in satire, and the two are very different things. His role means more attention for Newsweek, yes, and to me that is a good thing. It also brings more readers to a serious subject — and that heightened interest is a good thing, too. The test of whether the Colbert decision was a sound one, I think, is whether readers learn something new from the following pages. I am confident that they will.”

What do you think about Colbert’s involvement? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

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On deck today: Keith Ferrazzi speaking about his book, “Who’s Got Your Back?” and the theory of interpersonal relationships, a presentation by members of The New York Times‘ digital newsroom and Cirque du Soleil. We also look at yesterday’s highlights, and get some behind-the-scenes info.

Also discussed from the newsfeed: Newsweek‘s new editor, Stephen Colbert, and who gets helped from Craigslist’s new stance on adult ads.

You can listen to all the past podcasts at BlogTalkRadio.com/mediabistro and call in at 646-929-0321.

Tomorrow’s guest: “Media Malpractice” filmmaker John Ziegler.

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Meanwhile it looks like National Review‘s Byron York, whose name had been bandied around as a possible replacement, is out of the running. FishbowlDC reports that York has accepted a position as chief political correspondent at the Washington Examiner where he will pen a twice-weekly column.

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The New Yorker‘s Big Idea scribe Malcolm Gladwell was on Stephen Colbert last night discussing his new book Outliers, which is about people who are “off the charts” (apparently this category is entirely devoid of women). Also? He has calculated, based on monetary success, the luckiest year to be born in, both in the 20th century and ever(!).

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No more nights of watching Anderson Cooper make the eager hand-off to the wise David Gergen. Keith Olbermann and Bill O’Reilly will have to make do with political autopsy, while Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert will have to find humor speculating about those first 100 days. And if the current polls hold (and don’t hold your breath), Tina Fey might have to make do without Gov. Sarah Palin, along with the rest of us.

What will we watch! Perhaps more to the point in this calamitous media environment, how will advertisers make money? The last time we heard an industry panic this much over the conclusion of their favorite product was when Harry Potter ended.

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