Donald Trump ‘Not Exactly’ Nominated For Nobel Peace Prize
Donald Trump was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize, or so the internet would have you believe. The Trump nomination story that’s been circulating the internet does have some factual truth behind it, but it’s not entirely accurate in the way it’s been told.
According to Snopes, a site that’s popular for debunking internet myths, someone did write in a Nobel Peace Prize nomination for Donald Trump. However, he’s not slated to win the Nobel Peace Prize, and just because he was one of over 200 people nominated doesn’t mean he’s necessarily in the running.
The Snopes article elaborates on the Trump Nobel Peace Prize claim, explaining “it emerged that Trump’s name had reportedly made it on to a list of nominees for the Nobel Peace Prize — alongside figures such as Pope Francis and a campaigner for Isis rape survivors.”
“Kristian Berg Harpviken, a Nobel watcher and head of the Peace Research Institute in Oslo, told Reuters the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden has also been tipped for an award… He also claimed to have seen a letter submitted by an unidentified US nominator who proposed Trump for ‘his vigorous peace through strength ideology, used as a threat weapon of deterrence against radical Islam, Isis, nuclear Iran and Communist China’. He did not list Trump as one of the candidates who actually has a chance of winning.”
Kristian Berg Harpviken, the Nobel insider who is likely responsible for starting this week’s trending Trump topic, also said, “I have committed not to reveal the identity of the nominator, but what I can say is that the nominator has shared a copy of his nomination letter directly with me, that the nominator has a position which gives him the right to nominate, and that I consider it valid.”
Facebook trends may also be partially responsible for this only somewhat true story spreading like wildfire. Throughout the week, news of Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize nomination, along with his loss in the Iowa caucuses, has continued to be a trending topic on Facebook and in a number of media outlets.
MSNBC reported that they had also reached out to the Nobel Foundation to confirm reports of Trump’s nomination but, as of Wednesday, had not heard back yet. Although the identity of Trump’s nominator is still a mystery, we know that he did not nominate himself. The Nobel website states that “qualified nominators” can be former prize winners, national assemblies, and governments, professors, members of international courts, and other esteemed bodies. However, someone can not nominate themselves.
Forbes Magazine pointed out the vulnerabilities in the Nobel Peace Prize nomination process in a recent article. They stated the obvious; the surprisingly simple nomination process makes it easy for politicians to use the award as a publicity tool, rather than what the award was originally intended for.
As news of Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize nomination continues to circulate, as usual, the public is chiming in on the topic. Even Trump supporters seemed surprised by the alleged nomination.
Breaking News: Someone nominated Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Even Breakier News: Someone just lost their nominating rights.
— Rock (@TheMichaelRock) February 4, 2016
What do Donald Trump, the pope and Hitler have in common? They’ve all be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize https://t.co/zIgm06x3Pd
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) February 4, 2016
#DonaldTrump nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize???
I could see him winning a “Disturbing the Peace” prize???? pic.twitter.com/PvcEDxzZv2
— Leah West (@LeahWestMusic) February 4, 2016
Until the 2016 Presidential election has come and gone, we anticipate that Donald Trump will continue to find a way to make headlines.
[Photo by Reuters & Getty Images/Joe Raedle]
