This made Mr Venediktov almost untouchable.

ECONOMIST: The media in Russia

School aid is usually considered untouchable, but Mr Christie appeared to chop without blinking.

ECONOMIST: Heady days for the new governor and his team

The government's message is that not even a person of Mr Ibrahim's stature is untouchable.

ECONOMIST: Egypt

If that admiration filters down to the Social Liberals, Mr Fogh Rasmussen will no longer look so untouchable.

ECONOMIST: Denmark's cartoons

Inspired by the Venus of Willendorf, a tiny fertility goddess discovered in Austria and dating from around 23, 000BC, Mr Koons's sculpture proposes a new kind of idol a high-tech grande dame whose untouchable polished surfaces reflect the viewer.

ECONOMIST: Goddesses, hulks and cartoons inspire Jeff Koons