. `` Liu Xiabao was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last year for his struggle for human rights , democracy and freedom of speech in China , '' blogged Norwegian lawmaker Snorre Valen of the Socialist Left Party , who nominated WikiLeaks . `` Likewise : WikiLeaks have contributed to the struggle for those very values globally , by exposing -LRB- among many other things -RRB- corruption , war crimes and torture -- some times even conducted by allies of Norway . '' Liu 's win upset the Chinese and set off a diplomatic squabble . The year before , the world gasped collectively at Barack Obama 's win , a shocker that the U.S. president had won even before he had completed his first year in office . Despite the controversy that has swirled around perhaps the world 's most prestigious prize , some experts say this year is a no-brainer , given the seismic events that have gripped the Arab world . Kristian Berg Harpviken , director of Norway 's Peace Research Institute Oslo shortlisted men and women who did their share in fomenting peaceful revolts against repressive regimes . Harpviken 's top choice is Israa Abdel Fattah
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Twitter was abuzz Thursday with the death of Apple visionary Steve Jobs but another topic was gathering steam as the day progressed . Who will win this year 's coveted Nobel Peace Prize ? Not Jobs , though many among his huge global following posted messages that he should . The Nobel is never awarded posthumously and that rule also eliminates Mohamed Bouazizi , the unemployed college graduate whose self-immolation in Tunisia sparked a popular uprising that led to the fall of Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali 's government . The Tunisian revolt began this year 's so-called Arab Spring . Some years , there are clear frontrunners -- Martin Luther King , Jr. , Mother Teresa , Nelson Mandela , Aung San Suu Kyi . This year , it 's anyone 's guess with a record number of nominations -- 241 -- received by the Nobel committee . Of those , 53 are organizations , including WikiLeaks -- the website founded by Julian Assange that facilitates the publication of classified information and made headlines for leaking documents and videos related to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan . It also released thousands of U.S. diplomatic cables