Visual Capitalist‘s ‘Generational Power Index‘ for 2021 has found that millennials have the highest share of power in terms of digital platform and celebrity.
Despite coming second last in terms of overall economic, political and cultural power (with Gen Zs at the bottom), Millennials hold significant power in terms of the digital world, particularly in the influencer realm.
As part of their research, Visual Capitalist also determined the world’s top 50 influencers across social media platforms, with Millennials taking out 33 of the 50 spots. There were four Gen Zs on the list, three Baby Boomers and ten Gen X-ers.
The study combined all of the influencers’ social media platforms to create a more comprehensive analysis of their online presence.
At the top of the social media power list was footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, who has a total of 517 million followers.
Also in the top ten were Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, Dwayne Johnson, Katy Perry, Kylie Jenner, Rihanna, and Kim Kardashian in spots two to ten.
All of the top ten had Instagram as their biggest platform, except Rihanna, whose biggest following was on Twitter. Indeed, 67 per cent of the top 50’s biggest platforms was Instagram.
The research also found that artists accounted for half of the top 50, though social media stars such as Charlie D’Amelio and Germán Garmendia, and politicians like Barack Obama and Narendra Modi also featured.
Interestingly, the study found that former US President Donald Trump would have previously made the list. However, he was banned from a range of platforms in January 2021 after an insurrection on the US Capitol by violent Trump supports.
Before the ban, he had over 140 million social media followers, which would have placed him in the leagues of actor and TV personality Akshay Kuma (#44), YouTubers Felix “PewDiePie” Kjellberg and Germán Garmendia (#43 and #41), rapper Wiz Khalifa (#42) and actor Priyanka Chopra (#40).
Feature Image: instagram/@cristiano
