Stephen Colbert, Perez Hilton, Sanjaya Malakar are Influential People

It may seem a bit early, but Time magazine is already gathering votes for its 100 Most Influential People of the Year issue.

And, no, Spencer Pratt is not on the list.

But Stephen Colbert is. The humorous talk show host is current leading reader voting. It's not hard to see why. Aside from having an ice cream flavor named after him, the guy is putting people On Notice left and right. Watch out.

Sadly, no one on The Hollywood Gossip staff will be in the issue. Not this year, at least. But a fellow celebrity gossip monger is currently listed in the top 20. We can't figure out the reason, but Time is under the impression that Perez Hilton influences people. Maybe. Stupid people, that is.

Meanwhile, Sanjaya Malakar is ranked above Barack Obama. This could be the most depressing news we find all day.

As we said, though, it's early.

A lot can change as 2007 progresses. But you can bet Sacha Baron Cohen will be on there no matter what. Borat affects us on a daily basis.