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Topic: Business Culture
Rob Enderle
says:
Nature of the Christmas Holidays. I wrote this well in advance so I could take most of the week off. I only found out today.
Mo
says:
Nick Ciarelli violated an NDA, and encouraged others to do the same. He is not a journalist. At best, he's a gossip columnist who lucked out.
Had you similarly breached an NDA on this site (or any of the ones you "consult" for), you'd be "exploring other opportunities" by now as well.
This isn't about free speech, it's about throwing mud at Apple, something you (and Forrester) seem to do with great enthusiasm, but few facts. It's fortunate that mercenaries can make a good living this way without full disclosure.
Rob Enderle
says:
It wasn't an NDA with him though so he should have been under no obligation to uphold it.
Coverage here: http://blog.wired.com/business/2007/12/apple-and-think.html?src=rss
But the case was not based on the NDA but on Trade Secrets: http://daringfireball.net/2005/03/new_york_times
But the point is the action made Apple into a bully and for a firm that manages its image as well as Apple does, that's not a good thing.
Greg
says:
I just wish today's 'journalists' / 'bloggers' would check facts and do real research before they jump the gun and spout off on things they really don't know anything about. When I wrote for my college newspaper I was taught to always check my facts and get verification of the things I would put in my articles. That doesn't seem to be taught anymore. What a shame.
Rob Enderle
says:
Given this was sourced at Dan's own site I actually thought I had confirmation. Had I only been working off third party material you'd be right. It fooled a lot of us... No excuse but the "joke" part wasn't as clear as it could have been.
Scott Lewis
says:
The joke part wasn't clear?? It was posted at a parody site. Besides don't journalists research? At the very least I would have tried to contact him for a comment.
please
says:
"Given this was sourced at Dans own site I actually thought I had confirmation."
Please Rob, Dan's site is all about satire. Satire, have you heard of it? 
PhoeniX42
says:
Furthering a previous argument in what was supposed to be an apology is entirely unwarranted. You tried to minimize your mistake by continuing the previous article.
You undeniably failed as a journalist, yet you blame your mistakes on "drinking way too much eggnog" and you don't address the important problem that you didn't bother to verify your sources. You're little better than Stephen Glass.
By the way, you never address the obvious counter-argument that, yes, if one is WILLING to sell out to Apple, then Apple can in fact buy them out. Make no mistake, (again) Nick Ciarelli shut down his website because Apple paid him an undisclosed sum of money. Only Nick Ciarelli is to blame.
Marcos El Malo
says:
You linked to the Slashdot article again? That's supposed to excuse you? Slashdot's editors are notoriously stupid and infamously bad at fact checking. Slashdot is not a news site (regardless of their claims), it's a news aggregation site with commenting. The editors do very little work in vetting and almost no work editing stories that get posted. (As a side note, kdawson is particularly bad. Zonk is at least a little better.)
I wasn't really holding my breath for an apology (to anyone that read you first "piece". It's not like a proper mea culpa would salvage your reputation and credibility. Those have been beyond retrieval for a long time now.
I could be wrong, but I think you're really unable to feel ashamed or embarrassed by this. You've taken unflappability to some strange level of impenetrability, where a clue could not enter your brain even if it was sharpened into a spike and pounded in with a sledgehammer.
darren copeland
says:
"It was kind of ironic that it was a Slashdot post that got me going in the first place."
What is also "ironic" is that many of the comments, dating back to 12.22, are proposing that it was a joke. How was it that these comments did not "get you going" in the other direction as well? I love quotation marks, by the way.
Here's another one: "The Real Truth about Technology and IT". Geeeeeez Louizzzzzzzze
Andrew
says:
"sourced at Dan's own site" .... ?
"I wrote this well in advance so I could take most of the week off."
Wow. That's nonsensical and lazy, dude.
Next: The Onion as primary source for election coverage? Late night talk show monologue reruns as primary sources for current events? "Bhutto addresses thousands at campaign rally in Rawalpindi"...?
I've read articles for several months gleefully slamming the Enderle name and all it represents. I've enjoyed them for their snarky tone and presumably exaggerated or at least lopsided details. I presumed incorrectly. Thou art yellow, sir.
PS: While we're talking about things Apple has not done wrong.. It's worth noting that the non sequitur mention of a Christmas themed virus can be safely ignored by OSX users; as with 100% of other viruses in existence, they are thoroughly immune.
PPS: While I'm being pedantic, you should review the meaning of the phrase "begs the question".
May your holidays be filled with light and joy.
SuperMatt
says:
Despite the fact that your premise was totally wrong, you still find a way to try and paint Apple as an evil bully because of the ThinkSecret thing. Apple went through legal channels to protect their trade secrets, and in the end the settlement doesn't appear to be fiscally harmful to the owner of ThinkSecret, so where's the evil bullying?
ChrissyOne
says:
Rob, I honestly don't know how you do it.
You're a master of your craft, and my hat is off.
-c
Joseph
says:
A 'hoax' is intended to fool people. But Lyon's blog is titled 'Fake Steve Jobs' and it's been a parody from day 1. It's not intended to fool anyone. It's intended to entertain them. It's comedy. It's fake. The lay audience is expected to understand that it's fake. You are being way to kind to yourself in saying you fell for a 'hoax'.
Rip Ragged
says:
So, even though you're admitting that although your previous piece based on a bullied take-down and a threat of repeat was really about an amicable agreement and a joke, you're not changing any of your conclusions.
All the facts are polar opposite of the initial supposition, but the meaning is the same. Apple has done absolutely nothing wrong, but is still the bad guy in both scenarios.
Have I missed anything?
Get a grip, Rob.
Joseph
says:
A 'hoax' is intended to fool people. But Lyon's blog is titled 'Fake Steve Jobs' and it's been a parody from day 1. It's not intended to fool anyone. It's intended to entertain them. It's comedy. It's fake. The lay audience is expected to understand that it's fake. So come on, you are supposed to be a tech analyst. You're being way to kind to yourself in saying you fell for a 'hoax'. In your eagerness to make up something bad to say about a company you don't like, you forgot to think.
darren copeland
says:
"The question comes down to trust and the reality that we probably cant trust things, and maybe never could, at face value anymore."
This beautiful quote (I still love quotation marks), from this article, is the confession many of us have been waiting for. Thank you Rob, you've finally managed to tell the truth.
ps. I did not know you were a former employee of forrester "research". The mis-information from that "agency" finally makes sense.
Squidward
says:
I think everyone has missed what really happened here. The original post was by FAKE Rob Enderle. Of course, Fake Rob has had control of Real Rob for quite a few years now ...
mr_matalino
says:
"According to the Apple Death Knell Counter at macobserver.com, Enderle has predicted the demise of the Macintosh more times since 1995 than any other industry observer." -wikipedia.org
Does this latest "oops" REALLY surprise anyone?
bob_c_b
says:
Enderle got pwnd again, do yourself a favor and retire before you stay to long like Dvorak... Never mind, too late.
Anthony
says:
Hi Dan,
I run a site called FakeBridges4Sale.com.
How many can i sign you up for?
Anthony
says:
Hi Rob,
I run a site called FakeBridges4Sale.com.
How many can i sign you up for?
George
says:
Rob,
I've read you commentaries and find it hard to believe anyone actually pays for your advice. Vague, weird, flat out wrong, year after year no insight that would be actionable by any company.
Candace
says:
Mr. Enderle, here's another great site for Christian news:
I mean, since you seem to have a problem with parody and irony.
chuck
says:
Rob, I don't believe you should be covering Apple. Perhaps you have a better track record/understanding of other companies, but its been obvious for a long time you don't grok Apple.
Randy Smith
says:
Apple shutting down Think Secret does suck big time but this hardly the first time a company has used it muscle to push a company or website around. It was a common practice for Microsoft to do this, they just did it in a different way buy using wads of cash to either buy companies out right or ply them with lots of advertising dollars. If you want to see what advertising dollars can buy you have to look no further than C|net. Recently CNET fired GameSpot editorial director Jeff Gerstmann for slamming a game that was the biggest game advertiser on GameSpot. Microsoft has fired employees that have blogs for even mentioning the innocent goings on inside Microsoft. Again Microsoft sent out fully loaded Vista computers to bloggers who always take Microsofts side or gives them glowing reviews.
Still Apple taking down Think Secret does suck, it sucks as much as Microsoft doing the same thing but we are less likely to hear about that in the news. I wonder whay?
Zato
says:
Enderle says: "This is why the Think Secret thing is kind of scary. We dont know how often things like this happen because there would be every reason to not want to disclose the change. What if, instead of shutting the site down, Apple had taken it over? Given sites that cover Apple appear largely funded by Apple advertising (which may simply be because that is where youd put those ads, but might imply a cause and effect), you might wonder how independent they really are."
Rob, for those sentences , I award you the first annual (2007) Aholie award. They are the best work you've ever done. Not only are they a flat-out lie, but they accuse Apple of the very strategy your bosses at Microsoft have used to control IT news on the internet for years.
Again, congratulations to Rob Enderle, winner of the 2007 aholie award for the best in Black PR.
Pietro Watanabe
says:
You talk a lot of words on thrust, yet all along you have been eager to jump to any conclusions that disfavors Apple, whether they deserve it or not. So I don't believe your excuses that you were fooled and can not forgive you your gaffe.
Oskar L-B
says:
And here I thought you couldn't possibly be more arrogant;
"We moved, and many older reporters lament about this, from covering the facts to being sensational without a lot of regard for the facts."
Replace "We" with "I", then that sentence read absolute truth.
macsimcon
says:
Everyone on Slashdot knew five or six days before you wrote this that Don's posts were a hoax; several of us wrote Steve and he indicated that it was. We posted Steve's replies on Slashdot as soon as we got them.
Why would Steve lie? What motive would Apple have to create bad press only a few weeks before Macworld? It makes no sense.
You are quite the hack, Rob.
kevin-john black
says:
whew.. well I don't think you need to apologize. It might be in order if you were a respected "journalist" and not a common joe. If you're just one of us ... we don't really have to trust, believe, or listen to your opinions. You're in the clear. Right?
Not my real name
says:
Rob, I typically dont comment on blogs like this, but having learned of this, I feel compelled to share my thoughts.
I dont see how anyone could take you seriously after you took Dan seriously for such an obvious joke, and one widely disclosed prior to your own publication. There were many clues, from the timing, to the alleged infractions (e.g. publishing that new hardware will be announced at Macworld). You are discredited not only by your failure to get the joke, but also by your failure to confirm a spectacular (and in your mind serious) story published on a satirical site.
Using the occasion of your mea culpa to continue your original thesis only makes you sound more foolish, and to everyone, not just your critics. Please know that even your friends and colleagues are laughing at you behind your back, and no editor will ever read you again without chuckling. This is your asterisk.
You are right about one thing, though, the irony. Here you are, trying to be serious, and you have become a joke because there Dan is trying to make a joke, and you took him seriously.
Chris Thompson
says:
Mr. Enderle, in response to your comment above: "It wasnt an NDA with him though so he should have been under no obligation to uphold it."
Your understanding of the law is incorrect, though what you're saying is a common misconception. See the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, s.1(2). A person misappropriates a trade secret if he discloses it knowing that the person he received it from was under a non-disclosure agreement, even if he himself is not bound by that agreement.
The law has to be this way otherwise it would be trivially easy to destroy trade secrets by disseminating them through arms-length third parties.
(BTW, Massachusetts is one of only three or four states not a signatory to the UTSA, but the common law on this point is the same.)
Bruno Dexter
says:
My only concern is for your clients. As a consultant, my livelihood is absolutely dependent on rigorous fact checking and exercising absolute due diligence.
If I make a recommendation to a client they know that it is a fully vetted solution and that I didn't base my position on bias, rumor, or suspect sources.
Maybe a policy of "confirm first, publish second" is something you might look at.
OS2Guy
says:
There has been no real evidence that Apple actually shutdown ThinkSecret. What there has been is an announcement that an agreement has been made resulting in the owner of ThinkSecret deciding to shut down his site at a specified time (it is still viable today).
Whether ThinkSecret was forced to shut down is all supposition - for all any of us know Apple could have simply made him a financial offer he couldn't refuse - or - maybe the guy didn't want to waste his time and money fighting off Apple in a long protracted court case for the revealing of trade secrets - which is what Apple claimed. Apple had no problem with ThinkSecret reporting on rumors. As any company should be concerned when it comes to their products, Apple was more concerned with revealing information that they regard as a tradesecret. They would have had to prove that in court. Would you want to stand up to Apple, who sits with 15 billion in reserves, in court for years and year? I think not.
In fact, the whole thing with ThinkSecret could have easily been made up. The webmaster could have simply tired of the day in/day out hassle of running the site. I say this from experience. Having run Warp City's gossip column for many years there came a time when I had had enough - not only because of the constant attacks against my character and professional life - but from the grind of it all. Even though I had over 5,000 subscribers the money wasn't that important. It was my sanity and the physical/mental grind of it all. One day I just said "no mas" and shut it down. There was all kinds of rumors and claims that I was forced, or the web host pulled the plug - you name it, it was claimed and written about throughout all of the OS/2 community. Bottom line - I was going to college and just didn't have the kind of time that was needed to keep it up.
Maybe the same thing happened to ThinkSecret but it is so much easier to claim "Apple and I have come to terms..."
As for Lyons. It drove me nuts how all these stupid web sites were promoting the guy's every word when it was clear everything he was saying was total hogwash. There is no proof whatsoever that Apple even gave a damn about what Lyons was saying. "I met with an Apple honcho today ... blah blah blah.." was entirely fabricated. Even if he did meet he could never prove it. The only claim we had was Lyons himself and he was a self-confused liar already.
Tim...(The OS2Guy)
Marcos El Malo
says:
Bruno? Why would you be concerned about Microsoft? This is not Rob's first experience with credibility suicide, and none of the previous instances threatened Rob's relationship with his patron in the least.
Dave
says:
I'd think you would have reached all of your insightful conclusions about trust, bad folks, and power long ago. Don't forget, you've been duped before.
"I saw what appeared to be a word-for-word copy of about every third line of code in the central module of the Linux kernel. The lines of code contained typos, misspellings and even copyright disclaimers. It appeared to constitute a violation of the license."
Does this sound at all familiar?
Of course, that time the hoax wasn't quite as obvious though, like this time, many, many smarter people had already figured it out before you stuck your foot in it.
Happy New Year! May 2008 be the year you finally put us out of your misery!
Zachary Pruckowski
says:
Think Secret is not a news site, it's a rumors site. To compare ThinkSecret, AppleInsider, or MacRumors to any sort of written and serious publication is a serious mistake. I mean, they're entertaining, report actual news (iPod sales numbers and product announcements and stuff), but the commentary and rumors stuff isn't at all accurate.
Also, Fake Steve Jobs already pulled the "Getting Shut Down by Apple" prank months ago. I mean, how can you take those sorts of posts on there seriously when we regularly pulls these sorts of pranks, and already pulled this exact one.
Finally, the Think Secret guy is like a senior in college or something. He wound up making a serious amount of money while still in college. I don't envy him the lawsuit, but he ended up pretty well off. Most people end college $30k in the hole.
Peter Cohen
says:
"I wrote this well in advance so I could take most of the week off. I only found out today."
So you couldn't redact it, and your editors at this site couldn't either? I find that utterly bizarre.
Brian Little
says:
I admit, Rob...I didn't need to read past the first paragraph of this piece. The very idea that you find anything humbling -- given your self-evidently monstrous ego -- is so patently ludicrous that it makes anything else you might have to say worthless.
Happy New Year, Rob, from a once-and-never-again visitor.
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"In my previous post, I got upset about what appeared to be a personal attack on Dan Lyons by Apple. Today I found out that Dan was trying to draw more attention to the Think Secret shutdown which, I agree, we should have all been more concerned about than we were. But Apple never actually went after Dan."
It was known two days before your article that it was a joke.
Try again...