TIME announces Person of the Year 2017

For their 91st year, TIME magazine chose 'The Silence Breakers' as their Person (People) of the Year 2017.

This is the title given for the collective of individuals who set off an international conversation over the prevalence of sexual harassment.

The magazine's editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal revealed the selection on Wednesday morning on American news channel TODAY, along with the cover. The composite cover photo features a group which includes actress Ashley Judd, singer Taylor Swift, former Uber engineer Susan Fowler, amongst others.

"The galvanizing actions of the women on our cover…along with those of hundreds of others, and of many men as well, have unleashed one of the highest-velocity shifts in our culture since the 1960s," Felsenthal said in a statement.

The Silence Breakers received international attention following a series of allegations of sexual misconduct and assault by film executive Harvey Weinstein. As his list of accusers grew, so did the number of people who spoke up to expose dozens of other famous individuals in Hollywood, politics, journalism and other industries.

Allegations then emerged about actor Kevin Spacey, journalist Charlie Rose, comedian Louis CK and dozens of other high profile figures in the US.

In Ireland, accusations were made against several notable Irish figures, including Michael Colgan and Al Porter (who lost his job at Today FM over groping allegations).

The women, and men, who broke their silence to share their stories of victimization gave traction to the #MeToo campaign, which took off on social media and fueled a worldwide discussion on just how endemic sexual harassment has been.