Best and worst CEO buzz of 2009

    Worst buzz: John Thain
    Former CEO of Merrill Lynch

    If there was such a thing as Public Enemy No. 1 on Wall Street, Thain would still be the man.

    The words most commonly associated with the disgraced former Merrill Lynch CEO, "broke" and "financial crisis," helped him earn Zeta's lowest rating for positive chatter, just 27%, after he was slated to head global banking, securities, and wealth management at Bank of America following its merger with Merrill Lynch.

    In January 2009, when it turned out Merrill's losses were much deeper than expected, BofA CEO Ken Lewis is said to have forced Thain to resign. Meanwhile, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo opened an investigation into $4 million in bonuses Thain pushed through prior to the close of the merger.

    The nail in the coffin, though, was likely the now-famous reports that Thain had spent $1.22 million in early 2008 to redecorate his office at Merrill.

    Worst: Vikram Pandit
    CEO, Citigroup

    Pandit has had a tough go in his two years as chief of Citigroup, as shown by his meager 45% positive rating, according to Zeta.

    But he has done little to endear himself to shareholders, employees, and the government after Citi received $45 million in federal bailout money.

    Early in the year, Pandit tried to make amends by asking for a one-dollar salary until the company returned to profitability. A month later he claimed Citi was profitable in the first two months of the year. But when better-than-expected first-quarter results were reported in April, observers warned that the numbers were padded.

    Things only got worse: by June, FDIC chairman Sheila Bair was said to be lobbying for his removal.

    Worst: Edward Liddy
    Former chairman and CEO, AIG

    The former Allstate CEO signed on to revive the ailing insurance giant after its $84 billion rescue by the U.S. government in September 2008.

    But Liddy quickly made headlines for his clashes with legislators on Capitol Hill, starting with his defense of an extravagant company retreat held shortly after the government bailout. Then came well-publicized attacks over employee bonuses.

    By May, after only eight months on the job, Liddy had had enough of being lambasted by the government and the blogosphere, only 50% of which had positive things to say about him -- earning him one of the lowest scores in Zeta's buzz survey.

    He resigned his position, but stuck around until August, when former MetLife boss Robert Benmosche stepped in as CEO.

    Worst: Jamie Dimon
    Chairman and CEO, JPMorgan Chase

    With his skilled steering of JPMorgan Chase through the financial crisis, calm demeanor, and deferential behavior -- Dimon hasn't rankled legislators who are trying to clean up the banking industry, and he was one of the few heavyweight banking CEOs who didn't blow off a high-profile meeting with Obama in December -- you might assume he would escape the blogosphere's wrath.

    Unfortunately, in the populist eye, Dimon is guilty by association, with just a 50% positive score, according to Zeta Interactive, on par with former AIG chief Liddy.

    Worst: Lloyd Blankfein
    Chairman and CEO, Goldman Sachs

    Goldman's success amidst widespread financial hardship hasn't won its CEO many fans.

    Internet chatter gave Blankfein a 53% positive rating, no doubt influenced by the rage of a Rolling Stone writer who, in an oft-repeated quote, called Goldman "a vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity."

    Blankfein only made things worse for himself when he told a reporter in November that he was just a banker "doing God's work."

    Days later he insisted the statement was meant as a joke, but a $500 million pledge to support small businesses showed he realized Goldman's image problem was no laughing matter.