12 People Whose Reputation Fell in 2022... Including Musk and Former UK Prime Minister

Forbes Selects 12 Celebrities with Reputation Decline in 2022
Hip-Hop Artist Ye and Actress Amber Heard Also on the List

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyun-jung] Elon Musk, former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss, Hollywood stars Will Smith and Amber Heard were listed among the celebrities whose reputations plummeted in 2022.

The American business magazine Forbes selected 12 celebrities whose careers fell in 2022 and reported on the 28th (local time). Although no ranking was given, the most notable figure among these 12 is undoubtedly Elon Musk. Musk's erratic behavior after acquiring the social networking service (SNS) Twitter was the reason. Forbes criticized, "The period during which Musk took over Twitter and became its CEO served as a prime example of what terrible leadership looks like," adding, "He ruined the company with reckless mass layoffs, showed disregard for users, and frequently reversed policy decisions on a whim."

Elon Musk. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

Musk restored accounts that had been banned for various controversies immediately after acquiring Twitter, citing 'freedom of expression.' He then started charging for verified accounts and suspended many journalists critical of him. He also blocked posts he disliked. He conducted mass layoffs citing business normalization and forced employees to work overtime. He exhibited dictatorial management behavior, including retaliatory personnel actions against employees who opposed him.

To make matters worse, Twitter is reportedly struggling financially and seeking additional investors. Musk also earned the dishonor of being the billionaire with the largest asset loss this year. His asset loss amounts to $115 billion (approximately 146 trillion KRW). Tesla's stock price has fallen nearly 70% this year. He also lost the title of the world's richest person to Bernard Arnault (73), chairman of Louis Vuitton Mo?t Hennessy (LVMH).

Former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss announcing her resignation. Photo by Yonhap News

Among the 12 people on Forbes' list, 11 are Americans. The only foreigner is former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss. She resigned from the prime minister position after just 44 days. She ambitiously started her tenure with bold tax cut policies aimed at economic stimulus. However, her premature policy announcements caused turmoil in the global asset markets, and she quietly stepped down from the prime ministership. A British tabloid conducted a poll asking whether Truss would resign faster or lettuce would spoil faster, and Truss suffered the humiliation of losing even to lettuce.

The most recently fallen celebrity is Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Just a year ago, he was a young genius entrepreneur with assets worth $26.5 billion (approximately 33.5 trillion KRW). Now, his entire fortune is only $100,000 (approximately 130 million KRW). Facing trial on fraud charges, he has been reduced to house arrest. Forbes stated, "Although the trial results are not yet out, his downfall has prompted the US Congress and investors to reconsider the risks of digital assets."

Hollywood stars Will Smith and Amber Heard were also named on the list.

Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Academy Awards ceremony. Photo by Yonhap News

At the Academy Awards ceremony last March, Will Smith faced massive backlash after slapping comedian Chris Rock, who joked about his wife's hair loss. Smith, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the film 'King Richard,' has been banned from attending the Academy Awards for 10 years. Even his recently released film 'Emancipation' has recorded poor box office performance.

Amber Heard, after losing a defamation lawsuit against her ex-husband Johnny Depp, in which she claimed Depp's alcohol abuse and violence, ultimately settled with a mutual agreement and paid $1 million (approximately 1.3 billion KRW) in damages. Other names on the list include Elizabeth Holmes of the biotech venture Theranos, once hailed as the 'female Steve Jobs' but later exposed for fraud; Trevor Milton of the electric truck company Nikola; rapper Ye (formerly Kanye West), who caused controversy with hate speech; and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.