Time magazine names Ebola fighters in 'Person of the Year' title

Dr Jerry Brown in an Ebola bio-hazard suit features on one of the Time covers Credit: Time magazine
Dr Jerry Brown in an Ebola bio-hazrad suit features on one of the Time covers Credit: Time magazine

Time magazine's famous 'Person of the Year' title has been given to the people who have been helping fight the Ebola crisis this year.

The accolade, which has been handed out since 1928, recognises the person or people whose actions has had the greatest impact that year.

The magazine today released multiple covers to celebrate the issue, which will be on sale on Friday.

They feature Ebola survivor Dr Kent Brantly, Dr Jerry Brown, nurse and survivor Salome Karwah, MSF volunteer health promoter Ella Watson-Stryker, and Foday Galla, an ambulance driver who survived the disease.

Dr Kent Brantly and Sans Frontières nurse Salome Karwah on the covers Credit: Time magazine

"It’s an incredible honour," Brantly, the first American to be affected with the virus, told NBC's Today show.

"Those who paid the highest price for their service are themselves West Africans. It’s an honour for me to be considered as a part of that group."

Foday Gallah, an ambulance driver who survived the infection and MSF volunteer health promoter Ella Watson-Stryker Credit: Time magazine

Explaining the choice, Time's managing editor Nancy Gibbs wrote in an article in the magazine: "Anyone willing to treat Ebola victims ran the risk of becoming one."

"The global health system is nowhere close to strong enough to keep us safe from infectious disease," she added. "The rest of the world can sleep at night because a group of men and women are willing to stand and fight."

Last year Pope Francis was awarded the honour, for his shake-up of the Catholic church, while President Barack Obama took the title in 2012.

In 2011 the magazine recognised "The Protester" in a year when the Arab Spring and Occupy movements dominated the news agenda.

This year's finalists included Ferguson protesters, who have rallied against the death of 18-year-old Michael Brown, who was shot dead by a police officer in August.

Time's 'Person of the Year' 2014 runners-up:

  • Apple CEO Tim Cook

  • Alibaba founder Jack Ma

  • NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell

  • Russian President Vladimir Putin

  • Iraqi Kurdish President Massoud Barzani

  • Pop singer Taylor Swift

  • Ferguson, Missouri protesters