Posted on 10/03/2008 7:41:05 AM PDT by Red Badger
"Citizen journalism" apparently just failed its first significant test. A CNN iReport poster reported this morning that Steve Jobs had been rushed to the ER after a severe heart attack. Fortunately, it appears the story was false. We contacted an Apple spokeswoman, who categorically denied it.
CNN's iReport kept the report up until at least 10:15 AM, about 20 minutes after we published Apple's denial. The story has since been removed.
CNN's iReport, Original Story
Steve Jobs was rushed to the ER just a few hours ago after suffering a major heart attack. I have an insider who tells me that paramedics were called after Steve claimed to be suffering from severe chest pains and shortness of breath. My source has opted to remain anonymous, but he is quite reliable. I haven't seen anything about this anywhere else yet, and as of right now, I have no further information, so I thought this would be a good place to start. If anyone else has more information, please share it.
We contacted Apple. Katie Cotton, Vice President of Worldwide Communications, replied quickly, saying "It is not true."
Twitter is abuzz. (See the live Twitter feed, which we've embedded below). Apple's stock also took a major hit before bouncing back:
Applechart.png
We expect this will lead to an SEC investigation. The IP address of the iReport poster will be easily traceable, and we expect the SEC will want to interview him or her to see if the story was "placed." You don't have to be George Soros to figure out how the stock would react to a story like this.
It is significant that this report appeared on a site owned by CNN. CNN does not profess to be directly responsible for iReport, but its name is at the top of the site. It's possible that reports like this will significantly damage CNN's credibility, and we wouldn't be surprised if this caused them to pull back from association with "citizen journalism." As of 10:07 AM ET, ten minutes after we published Apple's denial, iReport was still "reporting" the story. By 10:20, the story had been removed and replaced with this:
iReportstory.png
Here's CNN's vision for iReport:
With this site, we want to share our passion about the news in a way that invites you -- and everyone else -- to share your passion about the news. At CNN we live for news. We love talking about it. And we know that there's a whole lot more to it than what you see on TV or read on your favorite Web site. So we've launched an independent world where you, the iReport.com community, tell the stories we're not used to seeing. And the most compelling, important, and urgent ones may get seen on CNN.
So head on over the homepage and jump in. Tell your story and see how it connects to someone on the other side of the world -- and build a new kind of news site, one made from communities of shared interests, impassioned discussions and great storytelling.
An apple a day......
Seems like a great way to tweak the market for a short-seller.
Anything to destroy the economy in time to spook the electorate right before an election.
Steve has been looking alarmingly thin and peaked lately, he’s denying rumors that his pancreatic cancer may have come back but it’s got people worried.
Having said that, there’s a whole rogue’s gallery of “science journalists” who have released bogus or slanted stories and reports in recent years in blatant attempts to manipulate stock prices.
ping
I bet CNN or the FBI could trace it’s origin from the I’net addresses and such........
Isn’t that illegal?.......
Im sure he did not get the blue screen of death
HEH HEH..........
not much different than harry reid’s comment about insurance companies yesterday.
Tank stocks then get in while they a low
He and his hired cronies can deny it all they want; Steve Job is obviously VERY ill, deathly ill. I do not know what it is but Steve Jobs has something and it looks like it is killing him.
He's 53, never been fat and his appearance can be directly attributed to the surgical procedure done, replumbing his digestive tract, removing the cancer and his pescatarian diet.
Steve Jobs is going to die.
So will you, and so will I.
Stock holders lawsuit.
Roller coaster.
I can’t ping the Mac Ping list because I’m not at my computer right now. I’m responding on my iPhone. I should be able to do it within the hour.
I do think that FUD season is open because Apple is due in the next week or so to release new Macs. When that is imminent, the FUD hits the fan. One recent one from France is that MacPros are exuding Benzene in odiferous quantities and that iBooks eventually start to smell like BO (no, not Barack Obama... Human body odor). Sheesh. Now they’re killing off Steve Jobs.
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