Friday, October 24, 2008
Publisher of Jobs Obituary Outs Jobs Heart Attack Rumor Writer
So that fraudulent “citizen journalism” report claiming Apple CEO Steve Jobs had been rushed to the hospital with severe chest pains and shortness of breath? The one that allegedly shaved about $4.8 billion off Apple’s market value after Silicon Alley Insider picked it up and published without verifying it? Securities and Exchange Commission investigators have tracked down its author and it’s not the short seller many had expected. It’s an 18-year-old with no clear motive, according to Bloomberg (ironically, the source of the Jobs obituary accidentally posted to news wires in late August).
Yahoo is certainly embracing its new market underperform rating, isn’t it? With rumors of December layoffs in the wind, shares in the company are trading in the $11 range today, after dipping below $12 Wednesday to yet another new 52-week low. That’s about half the price that Mithras Capital Partners suggested Yahoo sell itself to Microsoft last week.
