“Sometime in 2006, Steve Jobs will probably get hosed. That’s not so much a prediction as it is playing the odds. Nobody in America gets such a long ride on the oh-we-sooooo-adore-you bandwagon,” kevin Maney writes for USA Today. “Well, except maybe Jennifer Aniston. But look what happened to Martha Stewart. Or Hootie and the Blowfish. For that reason, Jobs’ popularity will be one development to watch in 2006.”
Maney predicts some things for 2006 such as “cellphone cameras will actually become useful” and “RSS will be big” and the debut of the “digital living room” – about which he doesn’t once mention Apple or Steve Jobs, presumably because he’ll already have fallen or been pushed off the pedestal upon which Maney says he’s standing.
Of “tech’s celebrity superstar,” Apple CEO Steve Jobs, Maney writes, “He seems due. Maybe he’ll humiliate a bumbling underling on stage at Macworld, unleashing a torrent of stories saying Jobs is the Lord Voldemort of managers. Or someone will discover malicious spyware hidden deep inside iTunes. The only sure thing is that society, as if striving for equilibrium, will then knock Jobs as far down as we boosted him up. It’s just what we do, no?”
Full article here.
The point of this article is what, exactly? That a USA Today tech columnist can make social commentary on America’s penchant for building people up and then knocking them down while using highly-googled words like “Apple” and iPod?” Is it supposed to be droll or witty or something? America does like to build some people up only to knock them down. That’s hardly a news flash. Maney misses one important thing, though: Steve Jobs built himself into what he is today. He’s not a prepackaged pop star built to sell tabloids on the way up, then taken down to sell tabloids with stories about their “fall,” and then prepped for ultimate “redemption” in order to sell more tabloids. Steve Jobs is a rarity and exceptional talent. USA Today is, well, let’s face it, it’s a rag that’s not at all rare, featuring tech columnists whose only exceptional talent seems to be topping each others’ inanity.
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Related articles:
USA Today columinst angry about Windows viruses, adware, spyware – September 15, 2004
USA Today writer mistakenly thinks iPod could go the way of the Mac – August 04, 2004
USA Today: Apple’s ‘1984’ ad a watershed event; Mac ‘now a niche machine for graphics snobs’ – January 28, 2004
USA Today columnist: onlne music biz is ‘still broke and Jobs hasn’t fixed it’ – January 21, 2004
What SJ’s been doing is building a business — not trying to become a pop star. I think this is the fundamental point that the writer is overlooking.
Jobs has spent his time in the desert, and had a brush with death (see his Stanford commencement)not long after Apple had its near death experience. I think he is fully focused on results, not spinning. It seems to me that it is primarily the spinners that get taken down a notch in our society (‘ignore that man behind the curtain’). For example Bush’s approval numbers, imho, are a reflection of spinning the war in Iraq instead of focusing exclusively on fighting it well.
Abraham Lincoln said something like “I do the best I can everyday. If the end brings me out all wrong -a dozen angels proclaiming my good intentions won’t amount to anything, and if the end turns out right, then whatever is said against me won’t matter”.
Jobs uses innovation to drive his company forward, and as long as he nutures the creative spirit and sets high standards – the same secret to success at Pixar, then he will have the results to withstand the waxing and waning of public adoration
Onr thing for sure by going to Intel processors, Steve has lost the edge of surprising us all with what the processors will be. In the last couple of days both Dell and NEC have announced the basic specs of their new notebooks using the same Yonah Intel processor that Apple will use in their products. No surprise there anymore.
I am having a hard time deciding whether this shift to Intel is so great for Apple. Now its hardware will be just like everyone elses. Yah, the OS is different and the virus thing, but people have known about these two factors for a long time and still keep buying PCs.
Remember OSX was supposed to be the big thing that got the masses to switch to Apple, then the Mac mini…well, the masses are still buying masses of Windows PCs. And now the specs for Apples and Windows PCs will be basically the same, but the Apple price tag will be lots higher.
Hard to convince mom and pop to cough up dough for the Apple name. Kind of like why buy $150 Calvin Klein jeans when the $19.95 WalMart brand jeans work just fine.
iPod is where Apple is at.
Apple is the last great American company, dickbrains like Maney do not recognize the real deal when it’s right in front of them.
I bet that Manly wouldn’t be saying that if Steve worked for Microsoft.
Point well taken ron.
Conservative propaganda sheet.
Maney is trying to be the techie Jeane Dixon. Spout enough nonsensical predictions and odds are one will happen. Then you can say “See, I predicted it! Aren’t I clever!”
Maney’s a moron. He needs to realize, Steve Jobs and Bill Clinton are good friends and a lot alike. Even after Billy didn’t have “sexual relations” in the White House, his popularity was incredible, still is. SJ could shove a truckload of cigars into dark places and still not bring himself down.
While I don’t think it will immediately catapult the Mac’s market share higher, it will be invaluable to maintaining the strong growth Apple saw in 2005 (40%+ unit sales growth, double the general market rate). It will finally eliminate the issue of CPU clock speed. There will also be increased compatibility with Windows software (at least the capacity to run Windows).
Mac fans will still have the best computers, which would NOT have been true if Apple had stayed with Power chips as IBM sat on its hands and Intel passed them by (as it already has, on laptop chips). Having the best computers ought to be enough for Mac fans, even if their hardware is not quite as different from everybody else’s as it used to be (except in appearance).
Jake
Couple of points:
Didn’t Steve already have his fall when he was removed from Apple the first time? Isn’t it already widely known that he’s the “boss from hell?”
And why is it that this guy isn’t taking Bill Gates to task. Heck, the guy was just named Person of the Year by Time Magazine for his contributions after the sunami. Nobody mind that the Gates made his fortune off the backs of every computer user and monopolistic tactics for years. High time he gave more of his fortune away.
What I think really has gone on for a long time in the media is that they don’t like the personality choices they have in the computer business to write about. On one hand you have Jobs who’s brash and Gates who’s a wimp, hack, whatever you want to call him. They love (now finally) Apple products, but hate Steve. On the other hand nobody really loves Windows and MS, but given the choice they root for the wimp because they can clothe him however they see fit. And, let’s face it, most journalists are wimps so, they root for their homer everytime.
Clinton was never popular. Unlike the current White House occupant, Clinton never won more than 50% of the US vote for President. If it wasn’t for Ross Perot, Clinton certainly would never have been elected in the first place. Old man Bush would have been re-elected instead and we’d all be in a much better place right now as he would have taken Bin Laden when he was offered the opportunity. As the former head of the CIA, he’d have been in a position to recognize the situation, instead of scheming to get interns into situations, so he could try out new positions.
Bill Clinton has the blood of thousands of World Trade Center victims on his hands. And no amount of sucking up to old man Bush (41) will be able to wipe the stain away..
Everyone and every corporation stumbles. What’s the big deal? The trick is to avoid major screw-ups a la SONY, and get back on your feet. Yes, there’s risks ahead in ’06 … but … no risk, no gain; no pain, no glory.
As for TIME, money can’t buy me love. But what’s with putting Bono between the Bill and Melinda? I mean, there is no end as to how you could play that.
SJ gets attacked all the time. If he gets hit by the media in 2006, how would that be any different?
Personally I don’t buy Apple products because of SJ. I buy them because I like the products.
I concure with MDN: The ever enigmatic Steve Jobs may be alot of things, but he’s not an America’s-Sweetheart of any sort. Not even Mac users/advocators see him as perfect. For those of us who were already born and are old enough to remember, lets not forget that Steve had a rough start at his own business – Yes, he was even booted out of his own company.
But here’s the point, he came back a better person and a better CEO, with a very clear vision for Apple computer and its products. And thanks to uncle Steve and the Good Lord in heaven there is, continues to be, and will continue to be, a cost effective and exceptionally high quality alternative to the scorge of mediocrity we call Windows.
all this FUD regarding Local Leader Steve J will soon be show to be nothing more than that. the hapless individual will be spirited away to Relnac for intensive ana$ investigation before being brought back “rehabilitated” and on the side of righteousness.
What a bunch of crap writing. It must of been a slow Windows news day or something. Hey Maney I got some news for you. Steve Jobs and Apple have only just begun.
Here is his e-mail address if you want to offer your opinion.
kmaney@usatoday.com.
Already happened. Steve got fired from Apple, fell from grace and is on the “redemption” road the writer mentions.
ForTheRecord:
You might like to check the “record” before you go off the deep end with partisan politics.
1996-Clinton 50% Dole 42%
2000-Bush 48% Gore 48%
2004-Bush 51% Kerry 48%
Oh no, Steve will be unpopular! Apple will suffer. People, sell your AAPL pronto! Let it drop to, say, $10. I will do you all a favor and buy it from you at $11. Oh wait, isn’t that what Maney REALLY wants? To drop the price of AAPL so he can make a killing? Heck, I would.
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MW: level. For the $, I would stoop to his level.
Maney….I poop on you
This is the type of person that makes up the majority of journalists today. Instead of reporting they inject their own bias and hate into everything they write. 99% of them hate Pres Bush and their articles reflect it. Same thing here. This guy hates SJ and wishes bad things for him. What a guy.
Journalists are now reaching new lows and soon will be right up there with used car salesmen.
jay (liar),
1992: Clinton – 43.01% (http://uselectionatlas.org/USPRESIDENT/national.php?year=1992)
1996: Clinton – 49.23% (http://uselectionatlas.org/USPRESIDENT/national.php?year=1996)
2000: Bush – 47.87% (http://uselectionatlas.org/USPRESIDENT/national.php?year=2000)
2004: Bush – 50.73% (http://uselectionatlas.org/USPRESIDENT/national.php?year=2004)
Note that I provide supporting links while “jay” calls names and lies like the typical liberal.
Once again: Clinton was never popular. Unlike the current White House occupant, Clinton never won more than 50% of the US vote for President. If it wasn’t for Ross Perot, Clinton certainly would never have been elected in the first place. Old man Bush would have been re-elected instead and we’d all be in a much better place right now as he would have taken Bin Laden when he was offered the opportunity. As the former head of the CIA, he’d have been in a position to recognize the situation, instead of scheming to get interns into situations, so he could try out new positions.
Bill Clinton has the blood of thousands of World Trade Center victims on his hands. And no amount of sucking up to old man Bush (41) will be able to wipe the stain away.
Schadenfreude is never attractive, especially from a ‘writer’ for the McPaper.
ForTheRecord,
Yes… Clinton is the real reason this country is tanking.
It has nothing to do with all of the Republican leadership in office who are being indicted, are under investigation for criminal behavior, or are shredding the Constitution with our War on Terror. Normally I like to steer clear of partisan discussions here, but blaming Clinton for anything with all the shenanigans going on in D.C. these days is absolutely asinine.