Obama seen as key to America's new-found popularity

The charisma of United States president Barack Obama and his administration is said to play a major role in why America is now ranked as the most admired country in the world. The US climbed to top spot from seventh position last year and is now ahead of France, Germany, the UK and Japan, which completed the top five.
Compiled by GFK Roper Public Affairs & Media, the Nation Brand Index (NBI) measures the global image of 50 countries each year by interviewing 20,000 people in 20 developed and developing nations. NBI founder Simon Anholt said the radical turnaround in America’s popularity must to some extent be linked to Obama’s impact.