Last week, when Steve Jobs announced that his recent weight loss was due to “a hormone imbalance,” I got calls from reporters and others (which, I must admit, I ducked) asking me if that was the medical problem he had confessed to when he and I had had our infamous phone call last summer — the one where he called me a slime bucket and denied that he had a recurrence of cancer. The answer is no, it wasn’t. It was something else — which of course I still can’t disclose because the conversation was off the record.
I said at the time that I knew I was being spun by Mr. Jobs. But I didn’t think I was being lied to. Now, I’m not sure what to think. It is certainly possible that he had the condition he described to me last summer. It is also possible that he did, in fact, have “a hormone imbalance,” as he announced last week, as rumors swirled again about his health. And it is even possible that a few days later he discovered that his problems were “more complex” — whatever that means — and that he only just realized that he needs to take a medical leave. It is possible, in other words, that he and Apple are telling the truth.
Possible — but unlikely. Apple’s stock was hammered in after-hours trading on Thursday because, to be blunt, investors simply don’t believe Mr. Jobs. Charlie Wolf, the Apple analyst at Needham & Company, wrote a note to clients, describing Mr. Jobs’s e-mail message to employees, in which he said he was taking a temporary medical leave, as “a can of worms.” He added: “The fact that Mr. Jobs did not resign nor did the board call for his resignation suggests that he may well be telling the truth.” The clear implication of that sentence is that most people (including, perhaps, Mr. Wolf himself) think Mr. Jobs is not telling the truth.
The most indispensable chief executive in the United States, beloved by customers and investors for his magnificent turnaround of the company he founded — and for the amazing gadgets his company produces — can no longer be trusted on the subject of whether he is healthy enough to continue running the company. Although Mr. Jobs says he will return in June, Mr. Wolf wrote in his note that investors were likely to “assume the worst — at the extreme, the possibility that Mr. Jobs will never return to Apple as full-time C.E.O.” And Mr. Wolf has always been a big supporter of Steve Jobs. Incredible.
It is really hard to write about Steve Jobs and his health. Nobody wants to see another human being suffer a recurrence of cancer. Everybody — myself very much included — hopes that Mr. Jobs will get well and come back to work. I can even understand why he doesn’t want to disclose details about his medical problems to the world — it’s very distasteful, and Mr. Jobs also believes strongly that it’s nobody’s business except his and his family’s.
But he’s wrong. There are certain people who simply don’t have the same privacy rights as others, whether they like it or not. Presidents. Celebrities. Sports figures. And, at least in terms of his health, Steve Jobs. His health has become a material fact for Apple shareholders. His vagueness about his health, his dissembling, his constantly changing story line — it is simply not an appropriate way to act when you are the most important person at one of the most high-profile companies in America. On the contrary: it is infuriating.
Enough is enough. If Apple refuses to talk more openly about Mr. Jobs’s health, it will continue to be “a distraction,” as he himself put it in his e-mail message to employees. The time has come for Apple’s board to take control of this subject from Mr. Jobs and do the right thing by the company’s investors. Tell us, once and for all, what is going on with Mr. Jobs’s health. Put the subject to rest. End the constant rumor-mongering. And then get back to the business of making the coolest products on earth.
There's no business like big business — or at least there isn't to Joe Nocera, the Talking Business columnist for The Times. He loves exposing the hurly-burly of clashing executive egos, the deal-making bravura, and the occasional (or not so occasional) stumbles that powerful executives make. But he also loves pointing out those (more than occasional) times when they get it right. Executive Suite offers his take on topics from Steve Jobs and iPhones to the future of General Motors — and much more.
From 1 to 25 of 511 Comments
Why hasn’t it occurred to anyone that Steve Jobs is lying to himself about his health and ergo to the rest of the world. I believe it’s called denial.
— MarciaI think Steve was right about the slime bucket comment. A can of worms means a serious problem, not untruth. “The fact that Mr. Jobs did not resign nor did the board call for his resignation suggests that he may well be telling the truth.” = he is not telling the truth … and you talk about being spun.
— GaryJoe they can continue to make the coolest products on earth without fulfilling your nosy need to hear what is ailing Steve Jobs. He’s obviously gravely ill, and trying to get well enough to stay in the game. Isn’t that enough for you? The patriarch of Apple is fighting something hard, and that’s going to hurt his stock no matter what, it isn’t going to be cured by Jobs announcing exactly how he’s ill. If he gets worse, so will the stock. So please try and appreciate his privacy, you should.
— Jeannette KJobs has vision unlike anyone else I have heard of………I am a bit suprised he hasn;t found a cure for pancreatic cancer……….An amazing creative man
— tobyI agree with Mr. Jobs–you are a slime bucket. This “article” is rubbish. He does have a right to medical privacy and it is no one’s business but his family and his medical providers. Someone who runs a company is still allowed privacy no matter how much stock this writer seems to own in Apple. And take your own advice and stop pandering to rumor mongering as you so quaintly put it.
— eveApple’s explanations don’t make sense. We don’t know the original diagnosis, surgery, or the prognosis. There are different types of pancreatic cancer. Some have a better prognosis than others. The failure to disclose the real picture only makes me think that the prognosis is bleak. If all Mr. Jobs needs is pancreatic enzyme replacement, that is not a major problem. If it is more complex, Apple should be making plans for a future without him. This is only my opinion based on 38 years of practicing medicine.
— Jared FrazinIt’s time for everyone to scale down their Jobs worshipping–including tech bloggers.
People who have had the Whipple procedure typically have weight-loss problems. Steve’s being a vegan probably complicates his already precarious nutrition situation.
Just wait: at WWDC 09, Apple will announce the immortal Steve 3.0 anyways.
— Couch PunditOk, Apple is innovating, continuing to lead, and you’re worried about the health of the person at the top? How about if you were focused on healthy execs who can’t get the job done? Isn’t that more of a problem? Apple doesn’t need a bailout, and it continues to innovate and move forward. Who cares if he’s telling the truth about his personal health. How about focusing on execs who won’t talk about the real health and future of their companies? It’s pathetic when journalists decide to throw blood in the water just to see what happens. This is a time for investigatory journalism, not hacks looking for attention. If this is the best the writer can do, and the Times can do, your days are both numbered, and Steve Jobs won’t save you.
— Mark Adams, ColoradoYou are right on this, Joe. As right on this as you were wrong on Starbuck’s breakfast sandwitches…
— Charlie in BostonGive the guy a break. He’s obviously dying. He has a right to handle it his way, with whatever privacy he can scrape up.
It’s not like he’s President and the free world depends on his health. If Apple stockholders are concerned about Apple, they have the right to sell their stock.
— ellieGreat post Joe. As soon as the news broke, I thought how prescient you were to pursue the issue last year.
But I think you under-estimate the extent to which Apple’s board is hesitant to antagonize Steve Jobs.
Companies in which a CEO has performed as well and as publicly as Mr. Jobs have effectively don’t have a Board.
— Glenn Kelmani invest in apple and believe steve jobs is a remarkable ceo. but he has made two critical mistakes and there’s little evidence he’s taken any action to address them. the first is described in this article. the second is his failure to groom an eventual replacement that commands adequate respect.
— Bosch’s PoodleMr. Job’s health is none of our business. No more rumor-mongering now.
You don’t like it?
Sell your stock options and continue to mind “your own business.”
— Teri TowseThe most indispensable business chief executive in the U.S. is not Steve Jobs, it’s Warren Buffett.
— Mattthanks for this important bit of opinion, joe. i often wonder about ceo’s who are not forthright about their health or medical conditions - indeed, i lose sleep over it. these are certainly not personal matters when millions of dollars are at stake, as well as our national economy. there is no room for privacy of our leaders, wether they are public figures or people who run public companies. compared to somebody like, oh, bernard madoff, who seems physically healthy, but makes off with billions, i have no interest in what the health of mr. jobs is as long as the company he is running is healthy. we have lots of people doing their jobs who have the flu, are diagnosed with cancer, and nobody questions their motives or how well they are doing their job. perhaps if we all had a national health plan we could have all our health issues out in the open. imagine that for a minute.
— bryanwHey,
What is your problem. They continue to make those products and what you want/think of Steve’s illness is none of your business. The market will take care of itself. You just have a big chip on your shoulder because you were “called out”. You are a gossip-monger. The only on-going distraction is certain so call journalists don’t have real jobs (like the real Job) and so in their little world of make-believe they write articles like the above to gossip and stir the pot. Apple has been doing very fine at turning out great products. If you really want to end the rumor-mongering look in the mirror, and decide to stop it!
— Vaughn FolkertJoe,
Respectfully, I think that it was innapprorpiate for you to say that the condition that you discussed is different from the hormone-imbalance. Just as you couldn’t, and still can’t, say what it actually is, you shouldn’t say what it isn’t.
Off the record has just gone on the record.
— SamuelSimple solution: if you don’t like the uncertainty, don’t invest. Do you expect weekly medical reports for the exec’s at every company you own stock in?
— G SIt’s reporters like you that make people really ill. I say let Jobs handle his health as he sees fit, and let investors decide whether they care by voting with stock sales or purchases.
— DaveSounds like a slime bucket to me. I think you should leave him to his privacy if he has a medical condition that he does not wish to share publicly.
— lodishJoe, you are wrong. There is a fine dividing line between his right to privacy concerning his medical condition, and his obligation to the Apple shareholders (of which I am one). When we invest in a company we invest in the whole company and assume that it is being managed well and will continue to produce great products and great results.
Anyone who seriously believes that the value of their stock is undermined by Jobs health should sell the stock and move on. Apple is a great company that has produced terrific products and changed the face of the music and computer industry. Clearly Jobs was the inspiration and turned the company around. But we should remember that this was all done by whole company of managers, engineers, and many other workers who deserve much credit and have a solid base on which to build. Any good company depends on a lot more than just its CEO.
I also wish Mr. Jobs well, but I also know that I thoroughly enjoy using all my Apple products and I anticipate much more to come. If I didn’t believe that I would be sell my stock (which I won’t), and not scream for more inappropriate disclosure about his health.
— mistermortHe’s taking a 6 month leave of absence, I don’t see how that’s wrong? I understand his desire to keep specifics as a personal matter, and perhaps it’s getting distracting, but only because there are blogs out there that have gone as far as predicting his imminent death. I don’t live in the spotlight so it’s hard for me to understand, but if people were saying those kinds of things about me, true or not, I would not feel the need to set the record straight if people talking about me are that far off and harsh in the first place.
Jobs is certainly the brains behind the operation, but are you really suggesting that his brilliant product and software developers aren’t working because of this, or that the iphone assembly line in China is slowing down?
Leave the poor guy alone and let him come back on stage to show us the next great thing when he’s ready, hoping that that day really will come 6 months from now.
— AdamAll these rumors and presumptions are not doing Apple any good. Eventually the truth will come out.
The question is: will it come out before or after the shareholder suit?
— Tom o’Bedlam“And then get back to the business of making the coolest products on earth.”
Does anyone seriously believe that without Steve Jobs, Apple can continue to make ” the coolest products on earth?”
— RealistHow does the stock’s decline in after-hours trading necessarily indicate that investors “don’t believe Mr. Jobs”? To me it indicates two things: that investors may be less optimistic about Apple’s performance in the absence of Mr. Jobs for any reason, and that a subset of less rational investors may have been successfully whipped into a panic by innuendo laden, echo-chamber reporting (an analyst as your main source!) like this blog post.
You also succumb to the fallacy that because you’ve been given different information over time, that you were given false information. Diagnosis is hard.
Please drop your righteous indignation about not being handed everything, and either become a good enough reporter to get the information from his medical records, or evaluate Apple on its merits going forward.
Regards,
— Eliot ShepardEliot Shepard