Heart Touching Story What Is The Use of Crying Nowgj

Heart Touching story what is the use of crying now?
My mom only had one eye. I hated her... she was such an embarrassment. My mom ran a small shop at a flea market. She collected little weeds and such to sell... anything for the money we needed she was such an embarrassment. There was this one day during elementary school. I remember that it was field day, and my mom came. I was so embarrassed. How could she do this to me? I threw her a hateful look and ran out. The next day at school..."Your mom only has one eye?!" and they taunted me. I wished that my mom would just disappear from this world so I said to my mom, "Mom, why don't you have the other eye?! You're only going to make me a laughing stock. Why don't you just die?" My mom did not respond. I guess I felt a little bad, but at the same time, it felt good to think that I had said what I'd wanted to say all this time. Maybe it was because my mom hadn't punished me, but I didn't think that I had hurt her feelings very badly. That night...I woke up, and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. My mom was crying there, so quietly, as if she was afraid that she might wake me. I took a look at her, and then turned away. Then I studied really hard. I left my mother and came to Seoul and studied, and got accepted in the Seoul University with all the confidence I had. Then, I got married. I bought a house of my own. Then I had kids, too. Now I'm living happily as a successful man. I like it here because it's a place that doesn't remind me of my mom. This happiness was getting bigger and bigger, when someone unexpected came to see me "What?! Who's this?!" ...It was my mother...Still with her one eye. It felt as if the whole sky was falling apart on me. My little girl ran away, scared of my mom's eye. And I asked her, "Who are you? I don't know you!!!" as if I tried to make that real. I screamed at her "How dare you come to my house and scare my daughter! GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!!" And to this, my mother quietly answered, "oh, I'm so sorry. I may have gotten the wrong address," and she disappeared. Thank good ness... she doesn't recognize me. I was quite relieved. I told myself that I wasn't going to care, or think about this for the rest of my life. Then a wave of relief came upon me...one day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my house. I lied to my wife saying that I was going on a business trip. After the reunion, I went down to the old shack, that I used to call a house...just out of curiosity there, I found my mother fallen on the cold ground. But I did not shed a single tear. She had a piece of paper in her hand.... it was a letter to me. She wrote: My son... I think my life has been long enough now. And... I won't visit Seoul anymore... but would it be too much to ask if I wanted you to come visit me once in a while? I miss you so much. And I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion. But I decided not to go to the school.... For you... I'm sorry that I only have one eye, and I was an embarrassment for you. You see, when you were very little, you got into an accident, and lost your eye. As a mother, I couldn't stand watching you having to grow up with only one eye... so I gave you mine...I was so proud of my son that was seeing a whole new world for me, in my place, with that eye. I was never upset at you for anything you did. The couple times that you were angry with me. I thought to myself, 'it's because he loves me.' I miss the times when you were still young around me.
I miss you so much. I love you. You mean the world to me. My world shattered!!! Then I cried for the person who lived for me... My Mother...i am crying and crying...still now crying..
2 years ago Report Abuse
Shoum
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

I hope while he is crying the eye he got from his mother would have shed more tears finding its place as hallow not filled with love & for seated in a worthless gap. The eye would have felt ashamed whenever the son saw her mother to show only a ugly face, & failed to point out him the scarified love hole due to its absence. Though the mother donated him an eye but forget to open his inner eyes which is lost for ever. Thanks for sharing. Source(s): shoum
1 person rated this as good
Asker's Rating: Asker's Comment: Thanks. i thank all.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 12stars - mark this asInteresting!
o o o o
Email Comment (0) Save
Other Answers (19)

Kaylie Wow, when I read this story I can't help thinking what a d*ck, poor mother, and how come they couldn't sort this out long ago. o o o
Arya Nikhil This story touched me more. The answer of Bernard touched more than the story. o o o
SHIVA I have read this story many times and every time i read it makes me sad . Source(s): bn o o o
Really a heart stirring story. o o o

Jumping Sun
Heart touching story :'( o o o

Liz
sridaran What a wonderful story!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!..really its heart touching story.. o

2 years ago
Report Abuse
Dont cry . Cry is No solution o o o

davanees...
? very great heart touching story. This is i read some months back in a magazine. o o o
Pearl L i think you should have more respect for your mother and shouldve treated her better o o o
you cant give up an eye. just sayin o o

Stanley Goodwrench
smiley s i read this story three years ago and it touched my heart. still can't help reading it. wonderful o o o
I cried. Good story, real sad. Is it okay if i share it with my friends? Thank you for sharing it, it's worth reading.
per poeo
I know sometimes they're "embarrassing" or whatever, but they're your mom. They did everything for ya.. BTW, is this a true story? o o
Edited 2 years ago Report Abuse
JAMES In everyone's life one has choices to make. Some are noble while others suck. Search ways to make more noble choices by finding role models, reading books, listening to those wiser than yourself, search every possible option at your fingertips. After all of that, and years in this pursuit, admit that you still don't know it all and more is to be learned. And upon your passing, ask whatever Creator you may believe in, "Did I do okay?" I'm willing to be content with, "Most of your choices didn't suck." o o
C@$H what kind of person u r ???? a less quality person who diidnt care for own mother ....???? ohhh.... today i came to knw the meaning of the sentence "Hell is on the earth"..???? devils like person in the story......???? oh god o o
VIVI brother. Cry loud. But not alone. Go to ur mom and hug her cry . Tel her wats in ur heart. Bring her hme. Brother dnt delay ya. Source(s): u really made me cry. Am working in tamilnadu under an intelenet company. If u going 2 leave ur mom like tis. Plz give her address , i wil take care of her. Am not married, am alone, lost my family while am 5. Plz brother, u dnt knw d value of love, care, , , mom. I misd them al. And never ever felt tat. I used to cry a lot when i see . Moms taking care of babies, dads spnds tme with thr son. Lot brother. Catch me in 9790646639. o o o
2 people rated this as good
? Sometimes crying makes things better. I know i'm very young but, I have a very heart touching story like yours. Although, yours is very dramatic. In a good way. Talk to people about it and maybe you may need to see a counselor. That sounds childish but, i know a few people i'm guessing your age that see a counselor. Yes, keep crying and let out all of your emotions. Don't keep them locked up inside. It will only make thing worse. I have a family member and she has got batten disease. You can look it up, but that's
not the point. The point is to never keep your emotions locked up inside. I'm very sorry for you. That must be difficult for you. I hope you start doing better when you try this. o o
out of order very sad , its said that we don't value the person while they living , but we cry and decorate their photo when they gone , many people are like that , they doesn't know the value of a sacrifice of the person who is alive . but when he die they say " great man " " very humble person " " very generous minded " etc , what is the use of praising a person who is no more to hear that . so lastly for you i can say only don't worry , past is past , we cant change that , at least what you can do is bring up your child with lots of good moral qualities , tell this story to him . be a role model to him . :) o o
Edited 2 years ago Report Abuse
alexis Sad story and you are a bastard for thinking your mother (the one who gave you life and cherished you) was an embarrassment to you hope live on knowing how bad you treated your mother o o o
AkWaRd no offense but what type of person could do that it was your mother if she is alive go to her if she isnt you should feel ahamed of what you have done Source(s): p.s you should tell your kids that story if you havent already o
2 years ago
Resolved Question Show me another
What is the most inspiring and touching story you've ever read?

Additional Details
these are my favourites :) >http://www.bestinspiration.com/stories/W http://varietyreading.carlsguides.com/fo http://www.myfavoriteezines.com/articles http://www.heartnsouls.com/stories/m/s12

3 years ago
David A
Best Answer - Chosen by Voters
my own
o o o o
67% 2 Votes
stars - mark this asInteresting! Email Comment (0) Save
This question about "What is the most ins " was originally asked on Yahoo! Answers United States
Other Answers (2) ? The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
o o
33% 1 Vote
window of opportunity its a true story to o o

irish_ma...
Resolved Question
Show me another
Isnt this the sweetest love story ever.... i got this as a mail..so thought of sharing it with u ppl...?
He met her at a party. She was so outstanding, many guys chasing after her, while he was so normal, nobody paid attention to him. At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him, she was surprised but due to being polite, she promised. They sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, she felt uncomfortable, and she thought to herself, "Please, let me go home..." Suddenly he asked the waiter, "Would you please give me some salt? I'd like to put it in my coffee." Everybody stared at him, so strange! His face turned red but still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it. She asked him curiously, "Why you have this hobby?" He replied, "When I was a little boy, I lived near the sea, I liked playing in the sea, I could feel the taste of
the sea, just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee, I always think of my childhood, think of my hometown, I miss my hometown so much, I miss my parents who are still living there." While saying that tears filled his eyes. She was deeply touched. That's his true feelings, from the bottom of his heart. A man who can tell out his homesickness, he must be a man who loves home, cares about home, has responsibility of home... Then she also started to speak, spoke about her faraway hometown, her childhood, her family. That was a really nice talk, also a beautiful beginning of their story. They continued to date. She found that actually he was a man who meets all her demands; he had tolerance, was kind hearted, warm, careful. He was such a good person but she almost missed him! Thanks to his salty coffee! Then the story was just like every beautiful love story, the princess married to the prince, and then they were living the happy life... And, every time she made coffee for him, she put some salt in the coffee, as she knew that's the way he liked it. After 40 years, he passed away, left her a letter which said, "My dearest, please forgive me, forgive my whole life's lie. This was the only lie I said to you---the salty coffee. Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous at that time, actually I wanted some sugar, but I said salt. It was hard for me to change so I just went ahead. I never thought that could be the start of our communication! I tried to tell you the truth many times in my life, but I was too afraid to do that, as I have promised not to lie to you for anything... Now I'm dying, I afraid of nothing so I tell you the truth, I don't like the salty coffee, what a strange bad taste... But I have had the salty coffee for my whole life! Since I knew you, I never feel sorry for anything I do for you. Having you with me is my biggest happiness for my whole life. If I can live for the second time, still want to know you and have you for my whole life, even though I have to drink the salty coffee again." Her tears made the letter totally wet. Someday, someone asked her, "What's the taste of salty coffee?" She replied, "It's sweet."
Additional Details oh my gosh tulip... your story gave me tears.. very rare for me... lovely story.. i nvr believed in love,niethir will i ever.. but few of these touch my heart real deep.. :)
5 years ago
papasays
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

This story looks mine as I still eat lady fingers vegetable which I do not like but continuously eating it for last 15 years. When I first met my would be, i knew that she is vegetarian and likes lady finger vegetable, i told her that i too like it. first time after marriage when she cooked this vegetable and i took it, practically i swallowed it, but gadually i too became fond of this. Five years back my wife died in an accident, she proceeded first and did not give me chance to disclose my lie. I do not know why now I can't eat food without lady fingers veg. i realy love this veg, it always reminds me her sweet, inocent face
Asker's Rating:
Asker's Comment: your wife mst be soooooo happy when she would hv seen u wrting this from her wonderful abode in heaven....
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 6stars - mark this asInteresting!
o o o o
Email Comment (0) Save
Other Answers (14)

It is sad ... The moral of the story is ... Girls like to hear white lies and speak white lies (*~*) Honest guys, who are bad liars don't have any chances (>_<) Source(s): :-( o o o
Irony Man
niceeeeeee o o
kezia
PREET G heart touching.i love this,beutiful.its a example of true love.thanks alot for sharing. Source(s): dil apna punjabi. o
5 years ago
Report Abuse
klarebea... very sweet! but it was probably all that salt that killed him o o
rose yes,its very sweet story.I hope u have another one to share. o o
so salty/sweet of you for sharing o o

chidambaram k
good one, thanx for sharing o o o

marry
good one if we read from a lovely mind o o o

AaSHEK
NICE,SWEET. THANK YOU FOR SHARING. o o

hari
Another story! It is a story of a girl who smiled again.
Diya
She was sad as some one broke her heart so harshly. Her heart was bleeding badly. He was a friend. An on-line friend. He consoled her, showed her the true fact behind her broken relation. He tried a lot to return back the girl her lost smile, her trust in love, her true self which she might lose in her bitter experience.
And one day the girl turns over the page of sorrow to feel the friendship of that guy. Her world lit up with bright sunlight of love, friendship, smile and beauty of life. She got back her smile, trust in love, trust in life and may be love. She started to feel for him --- she didn't know from when. They used to chat, fight like the teenagers though they were quite grown up. The days keep on passing so beautifully like the seasons. Every season has its own beauty. And every single thing they shared had its own beauty and feel. They never met in person. It was 14th Feb. The girl returned from work and opened the messenger to find out that the guy was waiting on-line for her. After their daily dose of fight they talked for some time and some how the girl came to know that the guy also loves her. She was so scared to reveal her feeling coz she was afraid to loose him. She lost one thing for ever long ago --- her trust in her own fate! One day the guy asked what her true feeling is! But she could not get out of her fear and couldn't express her true feeling, her Love. The guy thought that it is he who is pushing her in the relation and probably stepped back a little. But still they used to chat as before. The girl used to pass the night awakened waiting for the morning to come so that she can talk with him in the morning! But she never told that guy about this. When she poured out her heart it was too late. The guy got engaged with someone else. Her worst fear came true at last. She lost her love again. She girl cried a lot. The guy said I want to remain your friend for ever. And I want when ever we will talk you will great me happily. I love your smile and happiness. I always want to see you happy. The girl hide her tears this time and smiled and said Hi friend! How are you! as before. o o o
- proud d *Wow* What a touching story. I am truly touched.... I know another story too which is also very sad...but it is kind of long to share on here. But anyways, thanks for sharing!! .*.(*..*).*... .Think` ..*(.*`*.)`*.... o o
tulip i hav read dis one too.......n its so beautiful n sweet......n hav u heard d other one....its different bt abt luv.......ok......dere was a guy n he saw a gal n fell in luv wid her....n he walked to her n told her how mch he luves her......n den gal told him dat she was blind....bt d guy truly luved her n he was ok wid her blindness......so dey started going out.....n one day she said my only wish is dat somehow i can see u.......n den he took her to d doc n got her eyes operated......n d gal actually got her vision......n she found out dat d guy was blind.......n she rejected him.......n said dat she doesnt luv him anymore......n asked him to get out of her lyf......d guy started crying n said ok he wont bother her if she is happy in it.....bt his last
wrds were: "i luve u so mch n i alwayz want to see u happy n if it makes u happy den i wil not bother u ever...bt plz tak care of my eyes...bye forevr" Source(s): i saw another love story....dats was touching too.....bt i cant find it ryt now.....bt i m trying.....n wen i find it i wil post it..... EDIT: ok i hav one more........so dere was dis guy who luved a girl very mch.....d girl worked in a music shop/cd shop......so guy used to go dere almost everyday......he used to buy a cd everyday so dat while paying d money he can talk to dat girl (at least he could hear her voice)........so he used to do dis everyday........n a lot of tyms he tried to express his feelings bt he couldnt......n one day d guy met wid an accident n died......d girl came to know abt his death....so she went to his house.....n she went to his room.....n dere he saw all d cds dat she sold to dat guy........all d cds were as its packed....d guy never even unpacked dem......d gal cried a lot coz she had left letters expressing her luv to dat guy in dose cds dat he never evn opened........ ALWAYZ EXPRESS UR FEELINGS TO UR LUVED ONes.....WHO KNOWS WAT WIL HAPPEN D NXT MINUTE...... o o o
Grandmas... was a very touching one...but do u know the cause of the man's death??? answer- too much intake of salt!!!..lol Tulip ur story was also a nice one but i had read it b4. o o
sweet_gi... Oh God!!!This is indeed the sweetest love story I have ever heard.It is a heart-touching story.My own eyes got wet I moment I finished it.Thank u so much for sharing this sweet story. TRUE LOVE is a great gift from God.Don't ever lose it if u get the same n try to make it the world's loveliest relationship. ***Be Happy!!!Spread Smiles!!!!**** Source(s): My heart. o
5 years ago
Resolved Question Show me another
Do you know any touching stories?

We have a movie project and we have to do a movie that is about childhood memories that is somehow comical. But it's ok to make it inspirational or some parts may be mystery but it should be mostly comical. Uhm Lastly, no love stories.
4 years ago
Report Abuse
Veggie misses you...............

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters
Jane Eyre was a touching story, by Charlotte Bronte. Try Roald Dahl's memoirs. I loved "Boy", his childhood memoirs, which were comical as well as reality-based.
Source(s):
Loved those books.

o o o
100% 1 Vote
stars - mark this asInteresting! Email Comment (0) Save
This question about "Do you know any touc " was originally asked on Yahoo! Answers United States
Other Answers (3) SoPathet... you can read this: http://www.funnyjunk.com/pages/touching_ http://www.blogcatalog.com/blog/touching http://www.blogcatalog.com/blog/touching http://www.blogcatalog.com/blog/touching
o o o
0% 0 Votes
chorle
A Long Way from Chicago

o o
0% 0 Votes
A child called It
gleever
o o
Viral video of Matt Kemp's touching gesture to young fan catches Dodger off guard
Tue, May 7, 2013 8:46 PM EDT
Email Share21410 Tweet
LOS ANGELES There was never supposed to be a video. Matt Kemp's uncommon act of kindness was never supposed to go farther than an ailing boy, his dad and the baseball star. And yet when Kemp awakened Tuesday morning, 36 hours afterward, his phone told him otherwise.The video was everywhere. No, there was never supposed to be evidence beyond the ailing boy's memory, and perhaps a shelf in his room. Maybe he's wearing Kemp's cap. Maybe he's still holding Kemp's gray road jersey and spikes. "I didn't know that anybody was filming it," Kemp said Tuesday afternoon. "I wasn't aware." A boy, Joshua Jones, and his father, Steve Jones, sat Sunday night in front-row seats at AT&T Park in San Francisco. The boy was in a wheelchair. Early in the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers andSan Francisco Giants, the father struck up a conversation with Dodgers third base coach Tim Wallach. He said his son was very sick, that he was a Dodgers fan, and that his favorite player was Kemp. The boy, who has cancer, is unable to speak.
"He just kind of looked at me," Kemp said.
Matt
Kemp made an otherwise forgettable trip to San Francisco extraordinary for one Dodger fan. (USA Today Sports)
Wallach brought them a baseball. Later in the game, he told Kemp about Joshua. And when the game ended Kemp had made the last out in a loss, the Dodgers' fourth in a row Wallach returned to the dugout and found Kemp waiting for him. He wanted to go see the boy in the stands. In the video that was recorded and uploaded by Tommy Schultz, a friend of Joshua, Kemp and Wallach walk together toward the ailing boy and his father. Kemp reaches out to shake the Joshua's hand, and instead he gets a baseball, which the boy had in his right hand. Seated below field level, the boy looks with wide eyes as Kemp signs the baseball. The boy beams silently. Kemp returns the ball and then, in a ballpark full only a few minutes before, as onlookers laugh and cheer, Kemp removes his cap and hands it to the boy. He pulls his jersey No. 27 over his head and hands that, too, over the rail. And he unties his cleats, pulls off the right and then the left, and gives them to the boy so that his lap is piled with most of Matt Kemp's uniform. [Related: Midwest sensibilities help ease Terry Francona's bitterness over Red Sox]
Wallach stands to the side. He watches. Steve had told him his boy was dying. "As a parent," Wallach said, "you can't even imagine what they're going through. You'd hate to have to imagine what they're going through." Kemp reaches back over the rail to shake the father's hand. Then the boy's. He smiles and then he is gone, and the boy's eyes follow Kemp as he leaves, cap-less, jersey-less, shoeless. And that was it. The video went dark. A minute or so that otherwise passed between the father and his ailing boy and the center fielder for the Dodgers, it would last a lifetime. And the world would witness it. "It's just something I felt probably would have cheered him up a little bit," Kemp said. "Help him out a little bit. I just did it.
Joshua Jones thanked Matt Kemp on Instagram with a message that read "Thanks Matt. I will never forget that moment!!!" "Hopefully that made that kid's day."
He paused. Such a small gesture, then it was time to go. There have been others like him. There will be others like him. "I don't even know the kid's name," Kemp said. [Related: Brandon Crawford proving he's more than 'glove-first' shortstop] By then, after another loss, in a season in which the talented Kemp is batting but .265 with a single home run and his Dodgers are in last place, Kemp had known there were smaller acts that meant
bigger things. In that, a hello and a ball and an autograph weren't enough. The cap wouldn't be enough. The jersey wouldn't be enough. None of it would, perhaps, but it's what he had to give. That and an encouraging smile from an enemy Dodger in the land of Giants. "I just saw a kid there that was a big fan," Kemp said. "Hopefully, God-willing, a miracle happens and he lives for a while." Joshua smiled back best he could in a moment that was supposed to vanish, but wouldn't. On Tuesday morning, Kemp's phone was filled with messages. "What'd I do now?" he thought. It was the ailing boy, his father, and that minute Sunday night. Just that. All that. "You have some good stories and some sad stories," Kemp said. "God puts them there to remind you." Other popular content on Yahoo! Sports: Did Tony Romo cut back on golf as part of a 'work like Peyton' mandate? Giants' Brandon Crawford more than just a 'defense-first' shortstop Leafs fan risks international scorn with 'Toronto Stronger' sign
20 Inspiring Rags-to-Riches Stories

By Max Nisen and Eric Goldschein | Business Insider Fri, Dec 28, 2012 1:23 PM EST
Email Recommend 2.1k Tweet
Print
In a time of rising inequality and sluggish growth, rags to riches stories are harder than ever to come by. Indeed, many of the richest people in the world were born into their wealth.
That makes it even more essential that we remember the people who started with nothing, and through hard work, talent, grit, and a bit of luck, managed to rise to the very top.
These 20 stories remind us that it's possible to overcome just about anything, from parents passing
away, to extreme poverty, and more.
Maria Das Gracas Silva Foster escaped a Brazilian shantytown to become Petrobras' first female CEO
financialtimes/FlickrThe current head of Brazilian oil giant
Petrobras spent her childhood in Morro do Adeus, an extremely poor neighborhood that became a shantytown. Her mother worked constantly and her father was an alcoholic. She collected cans and paper to make extra money.
She started as an intern at Petrobras in 1978, but broke through barriers to become the company's first female head of field engineering. Bloomberg reports that her tireless work ethic has earned her the nicknameCaveirao, for the armored vehicles police use to clean up crime ridden Brazilian neighborhoods. She became the company's first female CEO in February.
Source: Bloomberg
Do Won Chang worked three jobs to make ends meet before starting Forever 21
LAEDCorp via YouTubeDo Won Chang and his wife, Jin Sook,
moved to America from Korea in 1981. When they first arrived, Do Won was forced to work three jobs at the same time to support them, as a janitor, a gas station attendant, and in a coffee shop. Eventually, they were able to open their first clothing store in 1984.
That one store grew into Forever 21, which pioneered fast fashion and is now a multi-national, 480 store empire that generates around $3 billion in sales a year. It's a family business, with the couple's daughters Linda and Esther helping to run the company.
Source: Forbes
Harold Simmons grew up in a shack without electricity and became a multi-billionaire
ForbesNow a billionaire several times over, Harold Simmons
grew up in the extremely rural town of Golden, Texas, where he lived in a "shack" that had no plumbing or electricity. He still managed to make it to the University of Texas, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. and masters in Economics.
His first venture was a series of drugstores, the first of which was almost entirely financed with a loan. That became a 100 store chain that he sold to Eckerd for $50 million. From there he went on to become a master of the corporate buyout. He currently owns 6 companies traded on the NYSE, including Titanium Metals Corporation, the world's largest producer of titanium.
Source: Forbes, D Magazine
Zdenek Bakala fled communist Czechoslovakia with only $50 and is now a coal magnate
YouTube/TuckIn 1980, when he was 19 years old, Bakala fled
communist Czechoslovakia with a $50 dollar bill wrapped in plastic wrap hidden in a sandwich. He made it to Lake Tahoe, where he washed dishes at a Harrah's casino.
He eventually got an undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Dartmouth. He went into banking, and eventually back to his home company, opening Credit Suisse First Boston's first officer in Prague after the Wall fell. presides over a coal company with a $2.52 billion market cap and eight production sites across Central Europe, which broke ground on the first privately owned coal mine in Central Europe since 1992.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
George Soros survived the Nazi occupation of Hungary to become one of the world's most successful investors
Wikimedia CommonsGeorge Soros survived the Nazi
occupation of Hungary after his father paid a government employee, whose Jewish wife he had helped hide in the countryside, to let him pose as his godson. After the war, he escaped the country, which had come under communist rule, in 1947, to stay with relatives in London. Soros put himself through the London School of Economics by working as a waiter and railway porter.
After graduating, Soros sold goods at a souvenir shop before writing managing directors at merchant banks in London until he finally got a job. That was the beginning of a long and enormously successful career in finance, including his famous bet against the British pound in 1992, which earned him more than a billion dollars in profit in one swoop.
Source: Soros: The Life And Times Of A Messianic Billionaire, The Telegraph
Guy Lalibert ate fire on the streets before introducing Cirque du Soleil to the world
mission_canada/FlickrThe Canadian-born Lalibert began his
circus career busking on the streets: playing accordion, walking on stilts and eating fire. He gambled by bringing a successful troupe from Quebec to the Los Angeles Arts Festival in 1987, with no return fare. The bet paid off, and the circus group was eventually brought to Las Vegas, where they became the world famous Cirque du Soleil we know today.
Today, Lalibert is the CEO of Cirque, a professional poker player and space tourist, with a total networth of $2.5 billion.
Source: Celebs101
John Paul DeJoria lived in his car before John Paul Mitchell Systems took off
REUTERS/Eric HendersonAs a first generation American,
DeJoria had it rough from the beginning. His German and Italian parents divorced when he was two, and he sold Christmas cards and newspapers to help support his family before he turned 10. He was eventually sent to live in a foster home in Los Angeles.
DeJoria spent some time as an L.A. gang member before joining the military. After trying his hand as an employee for Redken Laboratories, he took a $700 dollar loan and created John Paul Mitchell Systems. He hawked the company's shampoo door-to-door, living out of his car while doing so. But the quality of the product could not be denied, and now JPM Systems is worth over $900 million annually. He also created Patron Tequila and has a hand in a variety of industries, from diamonds to music.
Source: Forbes
Ursula Burns grew up in a housing project on Manhattan's Lower East Side and now runs Xerox
Before the Lower East Side was cool, it was a hub for gangs. Burns was raised by her single mother in a housing project there. Her mother ran a daycare center out of her home and ironed shirts so that she could afford to send Ursula to Catholic school. She went to NYU, and from there became an intern at Xerox.
She's now Xerox's CEO and chairwoman. Burns is the first African-American woman to lead a Fortune 500 Company.
Source: Bloomberg
Howard Schultz grew up in the Brooklyn projects before becoming CEO of Starbucks
REUTERS/Robert SorboSchultz grew up in the Bayview
projects of Canarsie, Brooklyn. He always wanted to climb "over the fence" and go beyond the lifestyle provided by his truck-driving father. Despite destitution, he excelled at sports and earned a football scholarship to the University of Northern Michigan.
After graduating with a degree in communications, Schultz went to work for Xerox before discovering a small coffee shop called Starbucks. Enamored with the coffee, he left Xerox to become the company's chief executive in 1987. After beginning with 60 shops, Starbucks now has over 16,000 outlets worldwide, giving Schultz a net worth of $1.5 billion. He even went on hiatus and came back as CEO to lead Starbucks out of a decline.
Source: Mirror News
Li Ka-shing quit school at 15 to work in a plastics factory and is now the world's richest East Asian
The family of Li Ka-shing fled mainland China for Hong Kong in 1940, and Li's father died of tuberculosis when he was just 15. Quitting school to work to support his family, Li made plastics and later plastic flowers for U.S. export.
By 1950 Li was able to start his own company, Cheung Kong Industries. While at first manufacturing plastics, the company later moved into real estate. Similarly, Li expanded his ownership of different companies, and today has his hand in banking, cellular phones, satellite television, cement production, retail outlets, hotels, domestic transportation, airports, electric power, steel production, ports and shipping, and investing in cool apps, among other industries.
Source: Harvard Business Publishing
Francois Pinault was a high school dropout who now leads luxury goods group PPR
FlickrPinault quit high school in 1947 after being teased for
his poor background. He joined his family's timber trading business and in the 1970s began buying up smaller firms. His ruthless business tactics including slashing jobs and selling his timber company only to buy it back at a fraction of the cost when the market crashed gave him a reputation as a "predator." He had similar tactics in the real estate business, and did well buying French junk bonds and taking government money to save businesses from bankruptcy.
His self-made worth helped him start PPR, a luxury goods group that sells brands like Gucci and Stella McCartney. At one point the richest man in France, Pinault and his family are now worth an estimated $13 billion, and have historic homes around the world.
Source: xfinity
Leonardo Del Vecchio was an orphaned factory worker whose eyeglasses empire today makes Ray-Bans and Oakleys
Getty ImagesDel Vecchio was one of five children who could
not be supported by his widowed mother. After growing up in an orphanage, he went to work in a factory making molds for auto parts and eyeglass frames, where he lost part of his finger.
At 23, he opened his own molding shop. That eyeglass frame shop expanded to the world's largest maker of sunglasses and prescription eyeware. Luxottica makes brands like Ray-Ban and Oakley, with 6,000 retail shops like Sunglass Hut and LensCrafters. His estimated net worth is now $11.5 billion dollars.
Source: Forbes
Kirk Kerkorian went from boxer and Royal Air Force pilot to Las Vegas mega-resort owner
scenestriz5/FlickrKerkorian, who learned English on the
streets, dropped out of 8th grade to become a boxer. His family was a casualty of the Great Depression, and Kerkorian went about finding skills to help bring income home. He became a daredevil pilot for the Royal Air Force during World War II, delivering supplies over the Atlantic on routes that would crash one in four planes.
From the money he made running supplies, Kerkorian became a high roller on the craps table and eventually a real estate magnate in Las Vegas: he bought The Flamingo and built The International and MGM Grand, stalwarts of the Vegas scene. He's worth a few billion dollars today.
Source: Smart Money Daily
Sheldon Adelson is another Las Vegas hotels magnate who tried his hand at a few industries
the7eye.org/FlickrAdelson grew up in tenement housing in
Massachusetts, where he shared a bedroom with his parents and three siblings. His father was a Lithuanian taxi driver and his mother had a knitting store. When he was 12 years old, he started selling newspapers and a few years later ran a vending machine scheme on the same corner.
Adelson tried his hand at a few different industries, from packing hotel toiletries to mortgage brokering. His biggest break came from developing a computer trade show. He turned that wealth into a purchase of the Sands Hotel & Casino, and later the mega-resort The Venetian.
Source: Minyanville
Ingvar Kamprad was born in a small village in Sweden and created a mail-order business that became IKEA
APKamprad lived the farm life growing up. But he always
had a knack for business, buying matches in bulk from Stockholm to sell to his neighbors. He later expanded to fish, Christmas decorations, and pens.
Not satisfied with the small stuff, Kamprad took money from his father (a reward for good grades) and created a mail-order business that eventually became IKEA (the name comes from his initials plus those of his village and family farm). Furniture became the company's biggest seller, and Kamprad's use of local manufacturers kept his prices low. Once one of the world's richest men, his net worth has fallen recently to a an estimated $3 billion.
Source: Smart Money Daily
Roman Abramovich was an orphan who turned an expensive wedding gift into an oil empire
REUTERS/Eddie KeoghAfter his parents died when he was just
four, the Russian Abramovich was raised by his uncle and grandmother. Abramovich got his first break from an expensive wedding gift from his in-laws. He dropped out of college to pursue his entrepreneurial interests, which at first included selling plastic ducks out of an apartment in Moscow.
He managed a take over of oil giant Sibneft at a bargain price in 1995. He continued to flip his investments into even larger acquisitions, including Russian Aluminum and steelmaker Evraz Group. Over the years Abramovich has been accused of shady dealings, from paying out bribes and protection money to having a role in the gang feuds over aluminum smelters. It seems that being ruthless has paid off for the billionaire: he now owns the largest private yacht in the world, as well as a ton of other cool stuff. He's also the owner of the Chelsea Football Club.
Source: Hubpages
Richard Desmond went from living above a garage to creating an empire that published magazines like Penthouse
Peter Macdiarmid/Getty ImagesDesmond grew up the son of a
single mother after his parents divorced. The two of them lived above a garage, during which time Desmond described himself as "very fat and very lonely." He quit school at 14 to focus on being a
drummer, working as a coat-checker to help pay bills. Though he never became rich from his own musical talents, he later opened his own record shops.
Eventually Desmond published his first magazine, International Musician and Recording World. The Desmond magazine empire would expand to publications like a British version of Penthouse and Ok!, a worldwide favorite. He now owns publications around the globe and is involved in philanthropic work.
Source: The Observer
J.K. Rowling lived on welfare before creating the Harry Potter franchise
In the early 1990s, Rowling had just gotten divorced and was living on welfare with a dependent child. She completed most of the first "Harry Potter" book in cafes, as walking around with her daughter, Jessica, was the best way to get her to sleep.
The "Harry Potter" franchise has become a worldwide success and J.K. Rowling is now worth an estimated $1 billion.
Source: Biography
Before Sam Walton founded Wal-Mart, he milked cows and sold magazines in Oklahoma
Walton's family lived on a farm in Oklahoma during the Great Depression. In order to make ends meet, he helped his family out by milking the cow and driving the milk out to customers. He also delivered newspapers and sold magazine subscriptions.
By 26, he was managing a variety store after graduating from the University of Missouri with a B.A. in economics. He used $5,000 from the army and a $20,000 loan from his father-in-law to buy a Ben Franklin variety store in Arkansas. He expanded the chain, and then went on to found Wal-Mart and Sam's Club. He died in 1992, leaving the company to his wife and children.
Source: Biography
Oprah Winfrey turned a life of hardship into inspiration for a multi-billion-dollar empire
AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Frank GunnOprah spent the first
six years of her life living with her grandmother wearing dresses made out of potato sacks. After being molested by two members of her family and a family friend, she ran away from home at age 13. At 14, her newborn child died shortly after he was born. She went back to live with her mother, but it wasn't until her mother sent her to live with her father that she turned her life around.
She got a full scholarship to college, won a beauty pageant where she was discovered by a radio station and the rest is history. The Oprah name became an empire, and according to Forbes she is worth $2.7 billion.
Source: Academy of Achievement

MORE FROM The Billion-Dollar Question About Tony Hsieh's Las Vegas Experiment The 10 Best Communicators of 2012 30 People With 'Soft' College Majors Who Became Extremely Successful
Possibly The Most Touching Story Ever The Sensitive Man0 Comments
By admin Posted on 30 Jan 2013 at 1:48pm
A woman meets a man in a bar. They talk; they connect; they end up leaving together. They get back to his place, and as he shows her around his apartment, she notices that one wall of his bedroom is completely filled with soft, sweet, cuddly teddy bears.
There are three shelves in the bedroom, with hundreds and hundreds of cute, cuddly teddy bears, carefully placed in rows covering the entire wall! It was obvious that he had taken quite some time to lovingly arrange them and she was immediately touched by the amount of thought he had put into organizing the display. There were small bears all along the bottom shelf, medium-sized bears covering the length of the middle shelf, and huge, enormous bears running all the way along the top shelf.
She found it strange for an obviously masculine guy to have such a large a collection of Teddy Bears, but doesnt mention this to him, and actually is quite impressed by his sensitive side. They share a bottle of wine and continue talking and, after a while, she finds herself thinking, Oh my God! Maybe, this guy could be the one! Maybe he could be the future father my children? She turns to him and kisses him lightly on the lips. He responds warmly. They continue to kiss, the passion builds, and he romantically lifts her in his arms and carries her into his bedroom where they rip off each others clothes and make hot, steamy love. She is so overwhelmed that she responds with more passion, more creativity, more heat than she has ever known.
After an intense, explosive night of raw passion with this sensitive guy, they are lying there together in the afterglow. The woman rolls over, gently strokes his chest and asks coyly, Well, how was it? The guy gently smiles at her, strokes her cheek, looks deeply into her eyes, and says: Help yourself to any prize from the middle shelf. Please Help us Share for Others.
Steve Jobs Was Always Kind To Me (Or, Regrets of An Asshole)

OCTOBER 5, 2011 BRIAN LAM
Email
I met Steve Jobs while I worked at Gizmodo. He was always a gentleman. Steve liked me and he liked Gizmodo. And I liked him back. Some of my friends who I used to work with at Gizmodo
refer to those days as the Good Old Days. That is because those were the days before it all went to shit. That was before we got the iPhone 4 prototype. *** The first time I met Steve was at the infamous D conference where Walt Mossberg interviewed Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Ryan Block was editor of Engadget and it was a pretty fierce competition. Ryan was a veteran, and I was just getting my legs under me. It was lunchtime, and Ryan saw Jobshe ran up and said hello. A minute later, I gathered up the courage and did the same. From a 2007 Gizmodo post: Meeting Steve Jobs I bumped into Steve Jobs in the hall a little while ago, on the way to lunch at All Things D. Hes taller than I thought he would be, and pretty tanned. Hawaii. I go to introduce myself and then think that hes probably busy and doesnt want to be mobbed. I go get some salad, think that its my job to be at least a little aggressive with these things, so I put down my plate, and I finally squeeze by the crowd to introduce myself. No banter, just wanted to say hi, Im Brian from Gizmodo. And you made the iPod, right? (I didnt say that second part.) Then Steve got really excited and happy. And he tells me that he reads the site. Actually, 3-4 times a day, since it doesnt sit still for very long. I told him that I appreciate the clicks, and that Ill keep buying iPods if he keeps clicking. Its his favorite gadget blog. It was a really, really nice moment. His face scrunched up with genuine excitement. I must have looked like one of those gals front row at a Beatles concert, as much as I tried to be professional. Because honestly, I thought the guy would be totally worked up about Jesuss awesome Photoshops of Steve Jobs. The man has a sense of humor. It was an honor to have a man who is extremely focused on quality and doing things in his own way approve of our work here. Especially with all the typos I make on a daily basis. ***
A few years later, I remember emailing him to show him early versions of the Gawker redesign. He didnt really like it. But he liked us. most of the time. From: Steve Jobs <sjobs@apple.com> Subject: Re: Gizmodo on iPad Date: March 31, 2010 6:00:56 PM PDT To: brian lam <blam@gizmodo.com> Brian, Parts of it I like, and other parts I dont understand. Im not sure the information density is high enough for you and your brand. Seems a bit too tame to me. Ill look for it this weekend and be able to give you some more useful feedback after that. I like what you guys do most of the time, and am a daily reader. Steve Sent from my iPad On Mar 31, 2010, at 1:06 PM, brian lam <blam@gizmodo.com> wrote: Here you go, a rough sketch. Should be launched, as the standard face of Gizmodo, by the 3gs launch. What its meant to do is be friendlier to scan for the 97% of our readers who dont come every day *** Around the same time, Jobs was shopping around the iPad to publishers, trying to get them to adopt the iPad as a platform, and Jobs would repeatedly, according to friends in the room at several publications, bring up Gizmodo as an example of a magazine-like experience online. I dont ever think I was comfortable with the idea that Jobs or anyone at Apple, like Jon Ive, was reading our work. It was scrappy, sloppy, inspired, mainstream-ish, and in general, experimental in nature. It was, frankly, embarrassing to have people who were obsessed with perfection
reading something that was designed to be imperfect but alive and flowing. It was also firmly anti-establishment, like Apple used to be. But Apple was winning and was starting to become the Establishment. I knew it was only a matter of time before we collided. Getting bigger is sometimes hard, I was about to find out. *** I was on sabbatical when Jason got his hands on the iPhone prototype. An hour after the story went live, the phone rang and the number was from Apple HQ. I figured it was someone from the PR team. It was not. Hi, this is Steve. I really want my phone back. He wasnt demanding. He was asking. And he was charming and he was funny. I was halfnaked, just getting back from surfing, but I managed to keep my shit together.
I appreciate you had your fun with our phone and Im not mad at you, Im mad at the sales guy who lost it. But we need the phone back because we cant let it fall into the wrong hands. I thought, maybe its already in the wrong hands? He continued, There are two ways we can do this. I can send someone to pick up the phone Me: I dont have it But you know someone who doesor we can send someone with legal papers, and I dont want to do that. He was giving us an easy way out. I told him I had to talk to my dudes. Before he hung up, he asked me, What do you think of it? I said, Its beautiful.
*** The next call, I told him wed give him his phone back. He said, Great, where do we send someone? And I replied that before we talked about that, we needed to talk about the conditions: we needed Apple to claim it as theirs, which is what we saw as the right legal process for claiming goods that had been lost. He said he didnt want to claim it on record because it would affect sales of the current model. He said, youre asking me to shoot my toes off! Maybe it was about the money, but maybe it wasnt. I got the feeling that he just didnt want to be told what to do, and I didnt want to be told what to do, either. Especially by someone who I was supposed to be covering. Plus, I was sort of in a position to tell Steve Jobs what to do, and I was going to take it. This time, he was not happy. He had to talk to some people, so we hung up again. When he called me back, the first thing he said was, Hey Brian, its YOUR NEW BEST FAVORITE PERSON IN THE WORLD. I laughed and so did he. Then, he sharply pivoted and said, So whats it gonna be? I gave it to him straight: If you dont want to give us the letter claiming it, I guess its going to be papers. It doesnt matter because one way or another well get our confirmation that it is yours. He did not like that. Steve said, This is some serious shit. If I have to serve you papers, and go through the trouble of it, Im coming for something and its going to mean someone in your organization will go to jail. I told him we didnt know anything about the phone being stolen, and we intended to give it back, but we needed Apple to claim it. Then I said Id go to jail for this story. And then he realized I wasnt going to budge. Then things got a little bit uglier, and dicier, and I dont want to get into that stuff on a day like today because my point is that he is a beautiful and fair man and probably not used to not getting his way and he was clearly not getting his way on this day. Everyone has things that make them angry. My point is coming up.
Steve called me back, with a cold tone in his voice, saying he would send a note claiming the device. The last thing I said to him was Steve, I just wanted to say that I like my job, and its exciting sometimes, but sometimes we have to do things that are difficult and what some might consider parasitic, with regards to reporting on health. And things like this. I told him I love Apple, but I have to do whats right for the public and readers. I was trying to hide the fact that I was sad. He replied, Youre just doing your job. And he said it in the kindest way possible. Which made me feel better and worse. This was the last time Steve would be kind to me. *** Id walked around justifying how things went down for weeks after that. One day, a veteran reporter friend of mine and I were talking about the situation. At some point he asked me if I realized, irrespective of right or wrong, that wed caused Apple a lot of trouble. I paused, and thought about Apple and Steve for a little bit, and all the designers and hard working people who built the phone. I said, Yes. I started to justify it as the right thing for the readers, and then I stopped. And I just kept thinking about Apple and Steve and how they felt. And thats when I knew my heart was not proud. I will not regret things professionally. The scoop was big. People loved it. If I could do it again, Id do the first story about the phone again. But I probably would have given the phone back without asking for the letter. And I would have done the story about the engineer who lost it with more compassion and without naming him. Steve said wed had our fun and we had the first story but we were being greedy. And he was right. We were. It was sore winning. And we were also being short sighted. And, sometimes, I wish we never found that phone at all. That is basically the only way this could have been painless. But thats life. Sometimes theres no easy way out. I thought about the dilemma every day for about a year and half. It caused me a lot of grief, and stopped writing almost entirely. It made my spirit weak. Three weeks ago, I felt like I had had enough. I wrote my apology letter to Steve.
From: brian lam <blam@thescuttlefish.com> Subject: Hey Steve Date: September 14, 2011 12:31:04 PM PDT To: Steve Jobs <sjobs@apple.com>
Steve, a few months have passed since all that iphone 4 stuff went down, and I just wanted to say that I wish things happened differently. I probably should have quit right after the first story was published for several different reasons. I didnt know how to say that without throwing my team under the bus, so I didnt. Now Ive learned its better to lose a job I dont believe in any more than to do it well and keep it just for that sake.
Im sorry for the problems I caused you.
B *** Young Steve Jobs was known for being unforgiving to those who betrayed him. But a few days ago Id heard from a person very close to him that it was all water under the bridge. I never expected to get a response and I never did. But after sending that I forgave myself. And my writers block lifted. I just feel lucky I had the chance to tell a kind man that I was sorry for being an asshole before it was too late. Email
http://twitter.com/Wanken Shelby White Thanks for sharing this Brian. Not only do we get to see the true way to handle dealing with such problems, but also it really gives us a perspective of what it would have been like to meet him. http://www.facebook.com/people/Kristian-Freeman/100002007776586 Kristian Freeman Thanks, for this. Im glad you had the chance to patch things. I think thats something we should all have the opportunity to do. Wonderful piece, though piece doesnt do it justice. http://twitter.com/Grg Greg Kumparak Thanks, blam. http://appletite.tumblr.com/ Alex Wow! I love the never before heard insight into this story! You had me laughing out loud a couple times when you shared the email and phone call conversations the two of you had. Great read! Thanks for sharing! RIP Steve
http://allthingsd.com/boomtown Kara Swisher Very, very Brian. Anonymous wow, great read. Anonymous Plenty of people in your situation would have done the same thing. I am glad you have made your peace with everything and can move on. Thanks for sharing. http://33avenuemiquelon.com Cameron Miquelon Most people dont get the chance you got with Steve. Im happy you were able to reach out before today. Vaya con Dios, Steve, and big hugs for you, Brian. Robin This is really lovely, Brian. So glad to see youre keeping your sense of history along with your sense of news. Captivating and touching. Rehman
Nice article. But the New gizmodo site is still shit
Anonymous Out of all the Steve Jobs personal insights today, this was by far the best one. Steve seemed like a cool guy. RIP Steve http://www.evilengine.com Hamburgers Thanks for this great story Brian. http://twitter.com/ohpleaseno Jason Smith This. Now Ive learned its better to lose a job I dont believe in any more than to do it well and keep it just for that sake. http://www.engadget.com/editor/darren-murph Darren Murph Amazing words. Thank you, Brian. Jonathan Kressaty Thank you. This is amazing. http://www.veronicabelmont.com Veronica Great post, Brian. I glad you were able to say what you felt you needed to Bim This was lovely Brian Hey, not trying to be a dick and please delete this at your discretion, but changing irregardless to irrespective in this sentence: At some point he asked me if I realized, irregardless of right or wrong, that wed caused Apple a lot of trouble. might avoid hassle from less friendly trolls. Peace, and great piece.
Anonymous Great story. I also miss the old days of Giz. It certainly changed after that story. http://bradmccarty.me Brad The Next Web
Thanks, Brian. Now I know why @cbm:twitter speaks so highly of you. This is a great read, and tough memories to relive.
http://twitter.com/big_marcelo Marcelo Goncalves good that you didnt leave things unsaid, for your own sake. lakelady thank you for sharing this. it brought me to tears. you too are a kind man for having the courage to apologize. AJ Thanks for sharing. Anonymous my best friends mom makes $78 an hour on the computer. She has been out of job for 9 months but last month her check was $7587 just working on the computer for a few hours. Read about it here HardRich.com http://twitter.com/darrenmason Darren Mason Thanks for sharing your story Brian! There is always so much fodder surrounding high profile people like Steve Jobs and what they are really like. Its great to read an article about your interactions with him and hear what you think about him. Cheers! Bhobbsbiz Thanks for sharing. Great read. http://twitter.com/du57in Dustin Earley This was the best read of the night by far. Thanks for sharing. http://simplyprepostero.us jasonoliver great read, & glad you were able to get that off your chest sir. M. Wonderful. http://twitter.com/lukepools lukepools glad you got it fixed up. I know there is a hole in your heart now that it never ended on a good note. Keep reporting and keep making this my favorite site to visit daily! Some Person
Great work! I am glad you are doing better!
JJN85 amazing, I was genuinely moved by your story. The situation of having to betray a friend to keep food on the table; when you break it down fundamentally. thanks P.S. Irregardless isnt a word
Chris K Im really glad you got a chance to make peace with him. Everyone makes mistakes, sometimes big mistakes. Its how you handle it that matters. Nicely written tribute. Jmengelkoch heavy words. thanks for posting. Macky I felt the sincerity while reading this. Better late than never good job blam peteywheats I appreciate the post after a few years, you can lay the dirt on us http://twitter.com/DustinLMeyer Dustin Meyer Thanks, I enjoyed this. http://twitter.com/Michael_DiTullo Michael DiTullo Thank you for writing this. http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/QW6B4EXCOC2TAKLRTUDYUVL6YY David IRREGARDLESS? An otherwise great story sullied by a word that is not a word. http://twitter.com/Michael_DiTullo Michael DiTullo Tt ThomasF My wife is a journalist. I am a designer. We often talk about why we do what we do. Im glad you found your way out of writers block. Anonymous
This is an amazing post, Brian. Gizmodo has been removed from my RSS feeds for a while now, and your absence is one of the reasons.
Anonymous Brian, thanks for this. Its heartfelt & honest, qualities Gizmodo would benefit from today. Im glad your writers block lifted And so very sad for the passing of Steve Jobs. http://twitter.com/Michael_DiTullo Michael DiTullo Thank you for writing this. It was great to read about the human side of the whole situation. http://twitter.com/wmkaszycki William Kaszycki Very Powerful piece. Thank you. http://blog.damnstraight.net James Pikover We live and learnIm glad you did learn Brian. Too many of us dont until its too late. http://www.facebook.com/people/Silence-Dogood/100000569503397 Silence Dogood Sometimes the most honorable thing a person can do is fall on their sword http://www.facebook.com/people/Silence-Dogood/100000569503397 Silence Dogood http://twitter.com/TimothyBJacobs Timothy Jacobs This is just such a great article talking about the side of Steve we dont always see. Brian A Thats a hell of a story, nice post. http://www.facebook.com/blam8 Brian Lam thank you http://www.facebook.com/blam8 Brian Lam not now, dude. Matthew Butch That is great. I have more respect for Steve than I ever did. And I respect you even more than I did when the original story broke. The truth is always somewhere in between. http://www.facebook.com/blam8 Brian Lam the mossberg one at allthingsd.com is better. because they were good to each other to the end.
Bdievendorf Thanks. Your story provides insight into the man that we would never have otherwise. badhatharry harry You dont know me, and you most likely dont care, but I was an avid reader of Gizmodo for years, until the redesign. I lost a lot of respect for your organization after the iPhone 4 thing. I thought almost all of it was handled poorly, and by a bunch of spoiled kids. Youve just gained all of my respect back. http://twitter.com/TheMacAdvocate Jeremiah Well done, sir. http://www.letstalktablets.com letstalktablets That was a great read Brian, thanks for sharing. Thats quite the story you have there. Im glad to hear you were able to at least get some closure, just in time too. We are all guilty, whether we admit it or not, of wishing we could have handled certain situations differently. Like you were told though its all water under the bridge so hopefully that will also help put your mind at ease. http://twitter.com/jaredkatzman Jared Katzman Thanks for sharing this. http://twitter.com/kangarara kangarara Love the ambiguity in that comment http://www.facebook.com/people/Ricardo-Dawkins/746307628 Ricardo Dawkins ROFLMAO. The man dragged you, your personnal life and your site because he wanted to keep his company secrecy. Start building your iAltar, Mr. Lam.
http://www.facebook.com/thepartycow Brian Walsh Fantastic post. Thank you for this. http://twitter.com/kangarara kangarara Websters disagrees http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irregardless http://twitter.com/kangarara kangarara Websters disagrees http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irregardless
Guest2 I know what it feels like to make a mistake in judgment. I know what it feels like to do it publicly. I know how, from then on, it replays itself in your head with every single word you write. I know the fear it puts in you and the creativity it takes away. Im glad you found the courage to set it right as best you could, and more importantly, to forgive yourself. You were fortunate enough to be around someone so good that he made you better.
http://twitter.com/IainKilpatrick Iain Kilpatrick Very nice piece Brian. I greatly enjoyed it. Noneya Wowwhat a dick you are! http://angrykeyboarder.com/ angrykeyboarder Great story. BTW. irregardless is not a word.
http://www.smedette.wordpress.com Smedette Incredible. Thank you for sharing this with us. http://twitter.com/pberry Patrick Berry Glad you got the chance. http://texrat.net Randall Arnold Great read. Glad you resolved the situation. http://www.facebook.com/ken.sweet Ken Sweet By far, one of the best personal insights into Jobs out there. Im glad to see you were able to resolve things before today. http://twitter.com/gnzpk Gonza Pereira Seconded Anonymous WOW, pretty incredible story You should start something big or just join the verge. There awesome Mlfarrow
Great article. I respect you for admitting where you had felt you were wrong.
http://www.nicefishfilms.com/ nicefishfilms Heartfelt, we all learn and become the men we want to be if we allow it. http://twitter.com/MsInformation Donna Mugavero That has to be the most unusual eulogy-type post Ive ever read. And yet possibly the most poignant, humble, sincere and genuine. I hope you have closure. Thank you for sharing this. It was very emotionally generous of you to do. Seamus Bellamy A nice article and a fine tribute. Thanks for giving us a bit more insight into a man so many of us respected and loved. Anonymous Stunningly well done, Brian. I was blogging about the news and collecting links and reading things and didnt have time to react really. Now I feel sad, but this is the best thing Ive read tonight. Anonymous Sorry, I dont believe you at all, Blam. You guys showed your ass in the wake of the original story, and this is a weak attempt to doIm not exactly sure what youre trying to do. Gain back some credibility that you permanently lost, perhaps? Steve Coutts Wow. Thanks for sharing. Jos Villar Great read man, thanks! http://twitter.com/raykm00 Raymond Wong Brilliant Brian. Just brilliant. Youre my hero too. The reason I got into tech journalism. Cjones Touching, but not in a pervy way. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=15102284 Shant Meguerdichian Thanks for the story Brian. Were all human. We all fuck up. I fuck up more than I like to admit, but you did what any of us technophiles would do. Its still hard for me to realize Steve is dead. This blows
Anonymous This is excellent, Brian. Thanks for sharing it. http://www.facebook.com/people/Rey-Ray/1819380801 Rey Ray apple fans and non, he will be missed. Arvind P I am really moved by this heartfelt post. I feel that while we are living in the moment, we dont realize the long term impact of our actions. On the brighter note, you got a privilege of interacting with him and saying sorry before it was too late. RIP Steve Jobs!
Dcbaros I wish I could have met him. Today the world is a bit less bright. Hillary Call That was an amazing post. Thank you. Stan are you really that big of a douche bag? http://nwerneck.sdf.org dividebyzero Assbutt. All this duty to my readers thing is a joke. The doors to hell open during your life. David Glad you apologized. Wish youd had the benefit of a reply from Steve, but life is short. Fuck Gizmodo though. It was clear from the get-go that the iPhone wasnt legitimately acquired and the whole, claim it in a way we can publish bullshit wasnt journalism it was extortion. Keep it classy, Giz.
Anonymous Its nice that you learned your lesson in the end, but youre still a douche and a parasite, and I have absolutely no respect for you or Gizmodo, and never will. You had your chance to do the right thing, you blew it, and you got what you deserved. By the way, irregardless isnt a word, you incompetent jackass.
Drawbob This was a great tribute to Steve on both personal and professional levels. Thanks for sharing your encounter, Brian. http://www.facebook.com/steve.sleight Steve Sleight WowI appreciate the article. Or rather, I appreciate your personal insight. Which is way better than an article. http://www.facebook.com/tyler.nevins1 Tyler Nevins Nice, Brian. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1032843431 Tom Malewicki Great article. I always wanted to find out if there was a relationship between Gizmodo and Apple, now I know there was. It makes me sad that Steve Jobs passed away. RIP. But, I dont after reading this story. I have less respect for Steve and more respect for you, Brian. You as a journalist had the right to report about the iPhone 4, but I guess Steve didnt see that, you never spoken to him after the iPhone 4 incident, maybe it was his health, but it seems that he had a grudge against you for not taking the easy road (just handing him the phone). It looks like he just wanted to get his way. Anonymous Gizmodo should have given the prototype back to Apple and never published a word about it. Instead you guys fd over Apple and for what? Page views? People writing about Gizmodo? Instead Gizmodo created a total mess and is now banned for life from Apple events. And rightfully so. Gizmodo in present day is a shitty tech website with some of the most obnoxious and pathetic writing in tech. Thats a fact. R.I.P Steve. Gizmodo will suck forever.
http://twitter.com/JDmattison Josh Mattison But after sending that I forgave myself. And my writers block lifted. yes it did man, well said and a pleasure to read. Congrats on the new site. Disclosure Im part of the team @Federatedmedia Todd Kleinert Brian: great story! Thanks for sharing. We all make many mistakes in our life, and often the chance never presents to recover/change the situation. This is a great lesson which we can all
learn from your mistake, again thanks. This is really a life-lesson. On another topic: Contact me sometime, Id like to talk to you about something not related to this.
Craig Awesome. Thanks for sharing, Brian. http://twitter.com/otko_ Tony K. thank you for this. Cablegod01 Sorry, you were a dick. . . http://twitter.com/anniemal Annie Heckenberger Well done. Its a coming of age lesson, for you and for an entire category of bloggers. Kismet for you to have sent that email 3 weeks ago. Glad you detailed the full story now. A nice slice of Jobs to crack open and share. Thanks. Beware Great piece. Thank you for sharing Anonymous Good Article. Thanks for sharing http://twitter.com/misshelenli Helen Li Great story on Steve Jobs. http://twitter.com/robemslie Rob Emslie Head bowed to you, Brian, a heart-felt and compassionate rumination. Miss you over at the Giz. Udumann Brian, your story has true depth to it. Dont sell yourself short just because you feel bad. You had the privlage to stand up for what you believed and he respected you! http://www.facebook.com/tsevis Charis Tsevis Respect. Hhbaig Forgiveness can be granted if youre lucky, or it can be earned the hard way, by living each day pushing the boulder back up the hill (from where you pushed it off.) You just did the latter, Mr. Lam. Take solace in the knowledge it wasnt given to you you earned it.
Kerialbers beautiful Brian. Tears Rollin down my cheeks. Thank you for sharing these wordsyour story. Big soul. Anonymous It is. There was a limit to how many bad articles can get written in one day, and Gizmodo broke it on October 4th. No offense Brian, Ive always loved your articles, but that doesnt mean I like Gizmodos articles as of late. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=28301787 Anonymous I understand your regret and I understand his frustration. Ill tell you though, as someone with experience as a lawyer and as a media person, that when the iPhone this went down, you did what was right. People may dismiss the site as just a gadget blog, but media is media and there are standards to be upheld. I wouldnt have done it any differently. Maysors I dont get it. Yes, you admired his work and products but you let him guilt you into feeling bad about not making shit easy for him? Your life is bigger than this, dude. http://www.facebook.com/mike.villamil Miguel Angel Villamil Very nice article, in the end both of you got a redemption, humans are usually very greedy, but in the end we must forgive this and just try to be a better mankind. http://twitter.com/runforfun54 Ilene K Wow. Thanks so much for sharing this. Takes a big man to do what you did reminds us all of how precious life is. Thanks again. Charliewhats Wonderful story and remarkably honest. Thanks. http://www.facebook.com/glpena Gabe Rock This story comforted me. Thanks Brian. http://twitter.com/YamanKaytaz Yaman Kaytaz Yeah not now dude Aahz Well said. Thank you for sharing such a personal moment. Facebook User
This is a beautiful piece Brian. Wow, just wow. And somehow would also love to read about the things which went nasty and how Steve reacted.
http://mikesenese.com/DOIT Mike Senese Brian, Thanks for sharing. I might be biased but this is my favorite post-Steve writeup. Anonymous No, youre right. Not now meant Please, keep talking about it. http://pulse.yahoo.com/_EYM4LUN62SWSH3SU377X4K6FL4 Soi_Surfer Well said. Ryan Brimhall Third http://twitter.com/b33g33 b33g33 Good stuff. Ive criticized Steve and Apple more than a few times in my day but this 3Gs iPhone is probably one of the best pieces of technology Ive ever owned. 2+ years and it still works like it did when it was new. Hopefully Apple will maintain his legacy and well all be better off as geeks for that. RIP Steve.
Anonymous Thank you for sharing Brian. Ryan Brimhall Third http://www.facebook.com/people/Michael-Howe/100000471241450 Michael Howe I agree, this was a nice article. I probably would have felt the same way regarding how you felt afterwards. I couldnt just brush something like that off. Mrgerza Brian well done. Its hard sometimes. The line is sometimes gray. But you did a good thing. http://twitter.com/otko_ Tony K. it makes me sad that your comment is next to mine.
Bruce Brian. Thank you for being you. Upside down and lost and always still you. You too, are a great man and add joy and frustration to my/our life. Im glad youre back on your horse/quill again and Im sad that our friend Steve wont be here to watch and inspire you and us all. Youve broken up my odd days in odd ways and almost always with a desire for it to continue. Glad you found your courage Mr. Lion. Keep on keepingon. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=517343063 Jacky Liang Bryan, do you update this site often? I think I just found my old Gizmodo back. guest3 Its a sad day thanks for a personal glimpse of Steves human side Trenhaile Very good article. Im happy you got a chance to tell him how you felt. This is a very sad day for me. We will miss you Steve. The word is not going to be the same without your passion for great things. unimpressed Yeah, you are one. Taking the time to write an article about how YOU feel Yup, its all about you, isnt it? Whats it feel like to be an xxxhxle who feels entitled to do as he pleases? Most people would say Not very good http://twitter.com/CalebGarling Caleb Garling Rehman, Imperial, you guys totally deserve refunds. And brains. Great piece, Brian. Perfect.
Lerbdude47 This story was truly amazing to read. And Im am very glad that you got to apologize to Steve before this evening. Steve seemed like a very reasonable man. We will all miss him immensely. Tha ks for this article Brian. Meant a lot. RIP Steve. -sent from my iPhone. http://twitter.com/KashifPasta Kashif Pasta Great story crazy to read this sort of behind-the-scenes stuff. I disagreed with how the iPhone 4 situation was handled, but good on you for sending that apology. Imagine if you waited just another month. lok1ju Best story Ive read since the news of his passing. Really makes him human.
http://www.sightsoundandfury.com Jeremy Burns Amazing read. Im glad you were able to get some closure. http://geek.com sal cangeloso Great read man. Thanks for writing this. No Grief is for oneself, not to publicly it in the day of his death. Generating empathy? Repulsive. But here we are, you posting this great story (according to 90% of commenters), lot of people congratulates you and.. I bet you even feel better! Your void will only grow this way.
Matt What a douche you are. But Irregardless is not a word, and Miriam Webster is a whore for made up shit. Gary Thanks for showing us both his and your human sides. Its nice to see Mr. Jobs as a person too. Anonymous Rad post. thank you for this. http://enbdavies.ca Erich Nolan Bertussi Davies Some times it takes time to listen to your heart. Some times we need to fall before we can rise above our own ego and be a whole human. Some times we dont a chance to learn how to lead our own selves live our own lives waking with gratitude like you have man. Kudos, glad the writers block was lifted. ENBD..//
Houston Simply lovely. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1851287928 Devon Quaternik I am an avid reader of gizmodo, engadget, technobuffalo, and many other tech sites. I have not read something as well written as this in a long time. Im glad you were able to patch things up
and am sorry for how things happened with the iPhone 4 prototype. My heart goes out to Steves family. And I hope to read much more from you like this.
Chris Idc about the site so much as the writers. I miss the old editors. Most of the new ones are terrible. And Diaz is still there. =/ Anonymous Im sad to say I doubt Steve ever forgave you, if he had he probably would have gotten back to you, even if just to say something short and sweet. Carson J Gallo Im going to make a movie of these events just like Steve Jobs said theyll probably be a movie of this some day, at AllThingsD. Johnpadilla Really well said and I agree. Chris I always thought it was silly for Apple to stop inviting Gizmodo to their events just because they leaked the iPhone 4 early. I mean, who wouldnt have done that if they got a chance? I didnt know the whole story until now and I dont blame them. Its not like Apple is struggling for the little bit of extra money they would have gotten from the 3GS but it was still wrong. At least you realized that so you have my respect.
hfool Common guys. The guy is sharing something personal, and all you can do is bitch about gizmodo? What happened happened; frankly, I think giz was in the right. They are, in some respects anyway, journalists, and journalists cannot let themselves be pushed around by the people they are supposed to cover. Brian, I feel your pain, and I know its sad to lose a fan, particularly one you so admire. But you did your job, and whatever else you should be proud of that. Steve, of course, was amazing. A visionary, an asshole, a perfectionist, a shameless self promoter, a design god. He changed tech, he changed our world, he ripped us off and we loved him for it. There will never be another. RIP. Anonymous thanks for sharing this, Brian. you did what a good journalist would do. most other people (including myself) would have just given into Jobs demands the first time. but you stood by
your beliefs. its great that you got to meet The Man. i wish i could have. now i have to go to bed and im going to wake up tomorrow knowing that Steve is gone ive been crying all night
Ryan Kim Really appreciated you sharing this Brian. Great reminder that its all about relationships. Im sure he forgave you. And Im glad you were able to reach out to him. Keep up the great work. Anonymous Third ROFL Cat Down I havent always agreed with what youve written, and frankly I dont always see eye-to-eye with you or your opinions. That having been said, I respect that you have the cajones to admit when you feel that you were wrong, and even more that you do it without justifying your behavior. Everyone shoots some sort of relationship dead in their life at some point, and they regret it. Youve spoken your peace, youve taken your lumps, and I hope you move on and find something that makes you happier man. Cheers mate, and really I hope you find your professional happy place again. Really, I mean it. Lite @ Giz
David Unfortunately, what you did Brian was unethical. You spent no time in the beginning thinking about other peoples lives, and how your actions would negatively impact them you thought about how you and your magazine would benefit from this story. Its not like you uncovered a horrible crime, or some injustice in the world. You simply took the hard work of countless people, and the countless hours developing a new or enhanced technology, and thought about how you can make a buck off of it. Im glad you had these thoughts as time went on, but dont fool yourself into thinking that you did anything above a terrible wrong. The next time you find a lost wallet, or someone needing help take a higher road, and do the right thing youll sleep a little easier at night knowing that your character is in check.
http://andrewmcmillen.com/ Andrew McMillen Thank you very much for sharing this, Brian.
http://twitter.com/HarryMonmouth Harry Monmouth It is sad that bad feeling was caused between you and Steve just for the demand of a stupid letter. You had an awesome scoop anyway and it wouldnt have been any less without the letter as we would still have believed your word that Apple wanted the device back again. David BTW.. writing this article was a good start on your journey back. I hope the future is much brighter for you than the past 18 months have been. Good luck.
Smartin360 Did you really appologize? photophile Its reputation has not risen over the years, and it is still a long way from general acceptance. Use regardless instead. Anonymous Nice Article. Its a good read. Robert I think we all have some demons we have to let go. The hardest thing is always letting go and admitting those wrongs. You did a good thing Brian. God and Steve both have forgiven you. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=502836795 James Marcella Forget about how terrible Gizmodo is. Chill out, show some respect. Greg Lobo Brian, To be honest I have no idea what Gizmodo is, nor do I have an IPhone or an IPad, but I loved your account of your relationship with such a pioneer and I applaud you for doing what was right and apologizing. Sometimes that is the hardest thing to do, yet I can tell yours was heartfelt and coming from the right place and you needed to do it and I hope you feel better having done so, as you should. Best of luck and ignore the negativity. Its too easy for people to be mean in this anonymous world and I applaud your courage. Peace. Old man Bo
Anonymous Great read. http://www.facebook.com/people/Abe-Emile/167700374 Abe Emile Good readand I get the attempt on reflecting on the character and personality of a Great Innovator but even though the timing might have been a bit off, often things needed to be said from the heart, makes it tolerable and appropriate. Thank for a fine read. http://www.facebook.com/danofthedead13 Daniel Farrington Very well put. http://www.facebook.com/people/AD-Jones/1116270369 A.D. Jones Touching account of a great man. Edgar One of the best articles I have read so far. Anonymous What a great and honest article. Hexgpfuatz Self-consolatory bollocks, the guys just passed away and all you concern yourself with is clearing your own conscience, or is it bolstering your public image. Selfish and disgusting. Willy Thank you for this Brian. Theres not very many memorials out there that show both sides of him, and this just reminds us that somehow, he was just human, and yet, so much bigger than us. Noneya Im sitting here torn. Torn between telling you off and congratulating you on recognizing the errors of your ways and trying to make things right. However, Im also left wondering how much goodwill and scoops you squandered by treating him like you did. He sounded like an awesome guy, was already a fan of your site and it seems like it would be a better path to some how work in an exclusive down the road. At worst he would say no and you could then choose to play hardball or not.
I dunno, it just seems to me that instead of being a true fan of his work, you simply saw his as a piece of meat to be exploited.even after all those good feelings you describe. I just dont buy it.how can you turn on someone like that? I cant relate to a person like you. Are you so cynical and jaded that you have lost touch with your soul? And dont tell me it was just business. Ive seen more bad behavior and crap done under the moniker of just business to choke a pig. Business is about people. People make decisions and people have to live with them. You will have to live with how you treated Mr. Jobs. There have been few people on this plant like him and you dicked him over.go you. NOT
http://twitter.com/coopeydoop charles cooper Nice piece, Brian. Well done. Howard Brian, Greetings. Perhaps people like me have been responsible for the demand. After all, who would not be curious of the next big thing from Steve. However, I also do not like how you guys would justify the whole mess e.g. by ID Powell would actually protect him more than vapourized by the Apple firing squad, etc. Anyway, thank you for sharing your regrets and being humble again. May peace be with you again at least you have tried to make peace with Steve.
BWJ Robb Ill address you respectfully as Mr. Lam, because we have yet to meet. Im sure youve learned that regret is a painful pill to swallow. It never quite goes down all the way, nor does it dissolve fully. When you reach my age and you realize it will never fully be forgotten (especially when the error is public record), Im sorry to say that it will continue to haunt you until you pass, too. This is evidenced by the fact that you, Brian, must forgive yourself rather than have the luxury of receiving forgiveness from Steve himself. Now that hes gone, youll never have it. Sucks for you. I feel for you because I too carry heavy regrets in my life. However, Im happy to see that youve learned your lesson and have been humbled by it. Rumor/Tech sites and other press sites that post articles, photos and or design diagrams of prototypes/beta-stage/market-ready goods, either assembled or disassembled prior to the release date of said products put the
manufacturing businesses (base and accessories alike) in grave danger of losing vast quantities of potential revenueand therefore risking the future security of its employees, as you know now with greater clarity than ever before. You did the right thing by sending that apologetic letter to the man himself, but, classically, you showed your shame by abbreviating your name. Perhaps you havent quite forgiven yourself? With no hope of receiving a future response from Steve while occupying this life of yours, I want to encourage you to remember that you did the right thing. You sent the apology. You learned from your mistake. You owned it. You made steps to make amends. Good for you. I wish you better days ahead. Your brother in regret. Barry
http://www.facebook.com/therickyrescue Ricky Alexander Olivarez This was a very nice article. R.I.P Steve. http://twitter.com/tangorum tangorum you did what your heart told you to do and thats one of SJs mottos, I think that deep in my heart I would have returned it. Im shocked that he asked for your opinion! If he would to me, I would give the phone right away, not without making an article, but I would have returned it without the papers drama and publish this story which I find amazing, later. Isis That is one of the most honest, real articles I have ever read. You were right though, you should have given it back. Isis Spoken like a true douchebag lawyer. It wasnt right but its good hw admits to it. JR Hardly. I have been to a lot of funerals. When someone we know dies most people have regrets, and they hurt, And their pain is their own. Some feel better by crying, I personally feel better remembering good times with the departed, and some people just bare their souls. It is understandable that you disagree with him, but his grief and way of dealing with it is just as valid. Hes writing to put his pain on the outside. He just hasthe nuts to do it publicly. He lost someone with whom he had rapport, and he regrets his behavior and how it turned out. It is always far easier to condemn than it is to forgive. Yet forgiveness is the greater of the two. So, use your anger elsewhere. Kicking those already on the ground should be beneath you.
http://twitter.com/jashan Jashan Chittesh
Thank you for sharing that. I found this to be a really touching story and I like that it also showed a little bit of Steve Jobs personality which I think is a really nice one something we might sometimes forget when Apple looks like this greedy capitalistic corporation. I just hope that this style of talking friendly first and sending the lawyers only when absolutely necessary remains even when Steve Jobs lets go of his great baby more and more. With most articles, you only get prejudice this article felt truly authentic. So again: Thank you!
Shawnee Penkacik Brian, I admire your courage to share your encounter with Steve. You shared your heart and principles. As a reporter, a lot of times you have to stick to your guns and protect the source of your story. Thats what you did. I will miss Steve Jobs as his products changed my familys life for the better. My son was able to do his G Tube feedings because of the Ipad, the apple TV helped us have fun family nights, The Iphone kept my son busy at many doctor appointments. Apple truly changed our life. Great story! R.I.P. Steve Jobs.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_IKS6AG5N6M5BY37CWZCV6UIQOA Dorothy Holland Gizmodo did the right thing. Steve wouldnt have hesitated a moment were the tables turned. He certainly didnt hesitate when he stole the GUI from Xerox or when he stole a human liver from dying children in Louisiana. Klaus What a wonderful story about a wonderful man. You did nothing wrong in the iPhone situation and have nothing to regret. Steve was a fierce competitor, and you were simply dealt the winning hand that round. I miss him already. David Unfortunately, what you did Brian was unethical. You spent no time in the beginning thinking about other peoples lives, and how your actions would negatively impact them you thought about how you and your magazine would benefit from this story. Its not like you uncovered a horrible crime, or some injustice in the world. You simply took the hard work of countless people, and the countless hours developing a new or enhanced technology, and thought about how you can make a buck off of it. Im glad you had these thoughts as time went on, but dont fool yourself into thinking that you did anything above a terrible wrong.
The next time you find a lost wallet, or someone needing help take a higher road, and do the right thing youll sleep a little easier at night knowing that your character is in check. Good luck to you in the future. I think writing this is a good start forward.
dwins oh just fuck off dwins And Brian, these were beautiful words. Jake Spee I never, ever reply to news articles like this because frankly I dont feel that doing so serves any purpose. But this comment was surprisingly human, because they were good to each other to the end so much in that tells a story about how you feel in a way Ive never seen in this medium. I have to come to terms with the fact Ive never interacted with Steve at all and Im very saddened by that as he was my personal inspiration and has been, in a way, my whole life. But Im also glad in the respect that I was never hurt by him or ever hurt him. I was also touched in a sense when you mentioned that he actually asked you what you thought of it. Its unbelievable he cared so much about it, about a device which came about through his lifes work I currently have sitting on a desk next to me at work. The work where I havent done anything all day except have lunch and read and think about Steve and the way he affected my life -Jake S. Sparhawk0 Great piece. Thank you for writing it. For what its worth, you did what any good journalist would do. A good journalist is a professional a*hole. If in the end, that made you realise that thats not the guy you want to be, then OK, but that doesnt make your decision wrong (or right). It just is. Those last words he said to you sound like he might not have liked you much right then, but he still respected you and understood why you did it. And being respected by that level of genius aint no small thing. Take it easy on yourself.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_IKS6AG5N6M5BY37CWZCV6UIQOA Dorothy Holland The moral of this story is that when really rich evil people make nice, you should play along. Nathan
Steve himself made mistakes in life. Heck, he lost Apple for a time. Im sure he was unhappy with the situation, but no doubt he understood. We cant know what we are made of without being tested. Right and wrong are not always so obvious. Thank you for sharing your memories. And good luck to you.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Trang-Nguyen/1244835 Trang Nguyen I believe Steve had forgiven you since the moment he said youre just doing your job. More than anyone, he would understand. People made mistake and went through ups and downs. Point is dont loose your love and have faith in your heart. Gook luck in following your path. Hexgpfuatz I am not angry. Disgust, as I have indicated, is what I am feeling. The timing was wrong for this article, a simple acknowledgement of the Mr jobs achievements would have sufficed for now. You said it yourself, his pain is his own. He should suffer it alone for now, maybe later with friends or family. To do it today in such a public fashion smacks of selfishness. I too have attended several funerals. I didnt use those occasions to to dwell on and share my demons. I was too busy fondly remembering the lives of the ones who we lost. Anonymous Its always interesting to hear the human story behind the scenes. Some people dont always admit their mistakes and even fewer learn from them. While your story has a slight bittersweet quality to it, it is quite touching. Anonymous Its funny. This story reminds me of what I caught that it seems no one else did during the iPhone debacle. Engadget was approached with the phone first. And they posted a story about it. With the desired number 5k. It quickly disappeared. Next in line, gizmodo. And the rest, as they say is history. Its very fashionable to hate gizmodo these days. Haters gonna hate. For no reason other than its Internet cool.
Awesome piece. Hats off for writing it and getting your peace. We all hope Steve has the same.
http://www.facebook.com/danieljschuster Daniel Schuster I bet every single person on here that is calling you a douche for what you did searched out many articles about the leaks. And I bet you they continually look up articles on new phones coming out and what information might be out about them.. People are hypocrites, and they like to point out the wrong in others. You did what you did because people wanted to know more (every single person that has commented on here) about an amazing device. We are curious people, you fed that curiosity, and I appreciate it By the way, I love the thewirecutter.com site. Will begin reading here. Prash Wali Good or bad it great to get a piece of Steve. Lucky you ! Mikebdunn great article. you can always tell when there is honesty in words. as far as some of these negative comments, they make me sick. All these fools read the giz stuffthe whole story of the lost phone and the scoop is like a hollywood script. you did what your job excected, apple survived, the phone was a huge success; in part BECAUSE of your article. im glad you have found forgiveness, and i think you should rest assured that jobs held no ill will. things worked out. they sold a lot of phones, giz got a lot of coverage. you both did your job. were not curing cancer here, people. that being said, jobs was a true visionary, and he will be missed.
Anonymous Amazing. Jsebastian2120 Good for you Brian. Its not so much about our past actions, but more about what you learn and what you do after. I think Steve helped you grow in many ways from this experience. Perfect timing to apologize! http://www.facebook.com/macstar Sean McCarthy great story, tribute.
Hiner I never read your work and doubt I ever will. The fact that you apologized for things means nothing. At the end of the day a man has to look himself in the mirror. You did it for nothing better than an attempt at fame and nothing worse than money. Stop going for the easy buck and produce something with your life. Create instead of living on the buying and selling of others. Wallstreet I hope you can sleep well tonight. The world lost a visionary, creative genius and risk taker today. The world needs more men like Steve and less like you. This country and the world would be better off if we all attempted to raise others up rather than dragging them down.
Hexgpfuatz really??? http://twitter.com/reuthermonkey Jon 100% Steve Jobs should be congratulated and respected for many, many things. But how Apple handled their lost iPhone was pathetic at best. And how Gizmodo handled something as newsworthy as that new iPhone well before release should be something to be proud of. Thats the bed you make when youre in the media. Its not always fun and lollipops. Sometimes you have to make the right decision for your readers. For the public at large. The iPhone isnt life or death, but it was certainly news. And im glad that someone at gizmodo actually had the balls to do the right thing. You dont bury a news story because you think youre friends with someone. He played the media like a fiddle, and 99% of the time you guys ate it up like hotcakes. Last I checked, the medias job is to report what is newsworthy. Not shill for the company thats nice to you. Im sad to see that you regret what should be a proud moment.
Nobody God dude. Get over yourself. Youre still a cocksucker. http://twitter.com/rrtxjmy Josh Yates
I miss you Brian. For daily readers of Gizmodo, I think that was iPhone 4 really a watershed moment. I dont think any of us realized that at the time, caught up in the excitement of the story as we were, but that was the point at which, at least to me, Gizs innocence was truly lost. The site never really felt the same to me ever again. I remember when you pulled away from Giz thinking to myself this guy has the coolest job in the world, why would he want to pull away from that. But this personal story and the impact it had on you really explains a lot to me, not just about you but about Giz too and where it was headed / is now. Im sure you still have many fond memories and good friends still there, but I applaud your ethics even if you realized them after the fact that its better to lose a job you dont believe in than to do it well and keep it for its own sake. I appreciate you sharing this story with us on this most somber of days.
Anonymous We all were excited by the scoop. I was. But, it was distasteful what happened next. I think it is also time for me to forgive Gizmodo after reading this. I would spend the least time on Gizmodo, and even clicking to close it so that it wont benefit from clocking in how much time I spend on its website. Silly. I know. All water under the bridge now
Hexgpfuatz Thank you. Some sanity at last. These sentimental readers need to realise that these blogs are not run by innocent, well intentioned geeks any more. Its big business and the content is selected for one reason, money. I even question the motive for this article, every reader should. I admire Steve Jobs and Im sad at todays news, but I feel no heart ache, he was not my friend or family. Can we imagine that BL is truly, deeply hurt and that this hurt is his sole reason for writing this. Come on people.
http://twitter.com/rrtxjmy Josh Yates i think thats a little harsh. at its core, journalisms purpose is to uncover the truth. some organizations treat that purpose with velvet gloves, others take a more aggressive approach. If you read between the lines, it would appear there was organizational pressure. You dont know that he didnt fight the good fight behind the scenes and get overruled. Hes a person to, he has
obligations and people that rely on him as well. Where do his loyalties to the people of apple stop and his loyalties to his former team at gizmodo begin?
Curra It seems like you have taken the oportunity of Jobs death to talk for lines and lines about you, and about how good and bad and good you are. And about how much Jobs liked your product. http://twitter.com/campuslifezack Zack Wall Dont listen to the haters. Your site is ridiculous awesome, and Im an avid reader. This letter is very inspirational and touching, considering the recent circumstances. Great job for realizing your mistake and owning up to it! JR Some people grieve publicly. He had things to say, and he said them. Do you see banner ads here? Is he trying to make a NFL, or is he greiving over his errors publicly finally, and trying to find a way to forgive himself? By several I assume you mean a handful. When I say many, I mean 72. Ive lost a lot of people. Family, friends, their family. If someone important to a friend dies, I go in support of my friends. Ive stepped in to buy a flag for a coffin when funds were low, Ive opened my doors literally to let a family use my home for the post funeral reception and paid to help bury a father of 5 children. Believe me when I say grief shows up in all forms and formats. To deny him his grief isnt helpful to your him. Timing isnt right my ass. When my grandfather died we were at his bar that night toasting him and laughing about the crazy shit he said. And we accepted criticism, and regrets too. Hell,I even lost my cousin to pancreatic cancer. His last words to his sons were, Be good, but not saintly. Youre just kicking a man while hes down because of what you are and are not ready for. It isnt about respect. Steve is dead, and Im pretty sure his family doesnt carewhat Blam thinks or says right now as nothing he said was disrespectful.
SasoriSoren Beautiful Brian. I wish I had a chance to meet him, but as a regular everyday schmoe, that was nigh impossible. I am glad you got to apologize. I cant regret reading the articles on the iPhone 4 and even commenting in defense of Gizmodo. I saw you guys as reporters, and even though I
liked Steve Jobs for all he has given our world, I still saw Apple as this demanding company that had no right. After reading your article, and seeing how the behind the scenes went down, I truly understand much more of the situation, and am sympathetic, like you, to Steve. As he is a Buddhist, I hope his faith is true, and he is reborn to bring us anther age of brilliance that surpasses even this legacy, or perhaps, his next incarnation will reach Nirvana, which after this life, he surely must deserve.
JohnH Brian, thanks for your insights. And your epiphany. We all grieve. Your story brought a tear to my eye and, like the Jobs commencement speech, I thank you. The rest of the BS is irrelevant. Peace SasoriSoren Hindsight is always 20/20. Lets not harass Brian for something he regrets and might even be crying over today due to the loss of a mentor that he knows already that he wronged. SasoriSoren Speaking from experience? SasoriSoren Have you never heard an obituary where one mentions their regrets instead of outlying a bunch of achievements someone already knows? http://www.goradde.com Goradde this made me miss steve even more. Hexgpfuatz I dont think I can argue with somebody who makes a competition out of who has been to the most funerals! Brian made the article all about him, and now you have made this discussion all about you. Well done.
Little Tim I concur with that sentiment. If you dont believe in what your organization is doing or that your superior(s) are not acting in a manner you believe is fitting then dont feel obligated to stay at such a place. Good article. Thanks. http://www.thePaepae.com Peter A
Thanks for sharing, Brian. I felt you guys lost something important when the weasel words came tumbling out about not buying the stolen iPhone, just paying for exclusive access and your completely unnecessary naming and shaming of the Apple employee who who lost the iPhone in a bar. But you know, Im glad to have read this post. I felt you *must* have been conflicted by your actions, surely. Your account today of your grief, writers block and weakened spirit fit. Good on you for apologising. That was lucky for you. - Peter http://www.ThePaepae.com Anonymous Agreed. Brian, the man just died, and youre using it as an excuse to clear your conscience in public to talk about yourself. You kept it very interesting for a while, giving us a private perspective into the man and his thinking. I enjoyed this. It fizzled out when you took the iPhone 4 incident and used it to detour into your own personal land of Poor-Me Grief and Misery. By the end you were handing out tissues with that apology. What do you want from us? For our hearts to ache in pain for what youve done? For you? I dont mean to be harsh, but *this* is the digital-medium equivalent of that person at the party who cuts someones story off at a sly point to talk about themselves. Sometimes you dont even realize what theyve done until theyre half-way through. Please. RIP, Mr. Jobs. Thanks for actually making the world a better place.
http://www.michael-rubin.com Michael E. Rubin Hi Brian, My name is Michael and I wanted to let you know that I read your regrets of an asshole post tonight. Out of all the commentary thats come out already about Steve Jobs, your story was the most personal, heartfelt, and genuine that Ive read. Sharing that with the world took guts, and I admire you for having done so in such a compassionate way.
You dont know me. Im just a reader. But Ive worked in social media for the better part of the last 10 years and Ive seen plenty of true-blue assholes walk around without an inch of selfawareness. If I could have convinced half of them to be as transparent and compassionate as you were this evening, the world would truly be a better place. Thank you for showing us all how its done. At your service, Michael mrubin@redbox.com http://www.carlpei.com Carl Thanks for writing this. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=680224284 Denis Guanzon Lucindo It takes guts and a profound appreciation of your role as a journalist and the overarching principles of being a good guy to write what you did. Good on you. Yevie09 Hindsight explains the injury that foresight would have prevented. Thank you for sharing. You showed Steve Jobs as a good man. You learned from your mistake. You made a wrong choice but you did not cause his death. Forgive yourself. Go forward in your life with integrety, ethics, values. Help all you can. http://www.facebook.com/sweetjohn Sweet John Muehlbauer Great story. Thank you for sharing. Anonymous Shame you didnt mention it had a crap antenna and you had to use that godawful piece of shit iTunes to manage it. http://twitter.com/JessiDarko Jessica Darko I see an asshole, but I dont see any regrets. Go fuck yourself. Chefe Bipolar Awful timing. Sorry. Caleb Brian, I had tears from this. Ive had experiences that haunt me like this until I do what is right. I admit Im human and try to make what went wrong right. Learn from your mistakes and move on
quickly. Steve was a god in our world but a man in his mind. Now work on pushing Giz in the right direction above all else. Im really glad for you to get through to Steve before he passed. Best regards from a 3-4 times a day reader,
Juston Brain Lam is bullshit and just trying to get attention for himself. http://twitter.com/happycamperjack happycamperjack Rehmans right dude. Ive stopped going to gizmodo almost completely after the redesign. At least fix one thing you can still fix, if not for the readers, for Mr. Jobs. Wouldnt that be the best way to repent? http://twitter.com/hellx hellx zvniga thanks for sharing these experiences to us. RIP Steve Jobs
Kirby I agree with where it would have been best to leave the scoop. I wasnt comfortable with Gizmodo taking possession in the first place. Keep the guy who found it around, check it out, have him leave with it. Problem solved. I wouldnt feel too bad about the harm of the second story, because the damage was already done, but I can identify with wishing youd found an amicable arrangement. In the end Gizmodo might have come off a whole lot better in the eyes of the public and with Apple.
http://www.youtube.com/user/AdmiralGilgamesh Admiral Gilgamesh All thanks to Steve Jobs. http://www.sonyrumors.net Sohrab Osati Yea, sorry but Gizmodo is trash. Its like the TMZ of the gadget world. Bullshit headlines and snarky remarks. Anonymous what a way to end the nightwell Miss mr.jobs 4ever. AssH You sold out to Gawker dude, the publication that displayed those vile pictures of Jobs. Spare us the
_EMphatic_ Well webster disagrees. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irregardless its not a widespread word, but a word none the less. While you are there, go look up incompetent. Hey Brian, nice write up. http://www.youtube.com/user/AdmiralGilgamesh Admiral Gilgamesh Your article shows that no one is perfect, even Steve Jobs. Were all human and we will make mistakes until we die, but it is the risks we take that define us.
JesusWalks Wonderful read, thank you! http://www.facebook.com/hauswirth Marc Hauswirth Great story michael ellsworth Thanks for this Brian. Laidback503 Dont talk him out of listening to his conscience, nothing about what Gizmodo did was right. Gizmodo wasnt uncovering Watergate. It paid for stolen property so it could pander to peoples impatience to see a new product and make a lot of money in ad impressions. How can that be equated to upholding standards in any way? By those standards, hacking voicemail for a gossip column is Pulitzer material.
Anonymous Thanks for sharing. This is very revealing of Jobs personality and how much he cares, even more than all the other articles floating around. Its sad that your relationship soured. I think you guys should have just gave the phone back, but its understandable at the time that it was so hard to not let go of the scoop. But I dont think it was worth being banned from Apple events and all the legal trouble. rizzuh I dont buy the BS about extorting Jobs being for the readers. You guys did it for the page hits ($$$), plain and simple. Oh, and cool story bro.
Djsmyth88 The personality of the article, and the documenting of his personal encounters and experiences with Steve are what were important here. It showed the good nature and personality of the man, instead of just worshipping his commercial achievements which are meaningless in comparison to the former. Its this sharing of experiences thats the tribute here; we need the context of Brians own feelings and actions. Its about him AND Jobs. Thats the point. And if you dont like the article, dont read it. Djsmyth88 The personality of the article, and the documenting of his personal encounters and experiences with Steve are what were important here. It showed the good nature and personality of the man, instead of just worshipping his commercial achievements which are meaningless in comparison to the former. Its this sharing of experiences thats the tribute here; we need the context of Brians own feelings and actions. Its about him AND Jobs. Thats the point. And if you dont like the article, dont read it. http://www.robertschultz.org robertschultz Great article dude, nice read. Djsmyth88 By your comment, it appears that moniker is yours. Djsmyth88 Ah of course, youd know, wouldnt you! Smed Me too. I love the site but that whole thing was weak. You knew it was stolen. Plain and simple. But that being said dont beat yourself up. That article you just wrote and the apology were great and you need to keep writing because youre good at it. KRCraft Thanks for sharing your experience and insights. Not sure how I feel about it, but it seems appropriate that you were inspired to rethink your own behavior and responses. Your candor made for a very good read. Jon
Brian, This was a great post! Never stop loving and doing the things you do! Thats the Steve Jobs way! Never stop writing!
Simple Brian, Im a journalist myself, ,adn trust me youve made the right call. In tech at least you dont have to go round and do death knocks, getting newly bereaved parents to give you a quote or a photo just to make you go away, or any of the grubby stuff like that. Compared to things like that theres definitely nothing to lose sleep over. You did your job, Steve just did his by freezing out a journo that didnt play by his PR rules. Im certain thered be a fair bit of respect there for not just jumping out of the way.
David Josh, I believe that Brians chronology of the events as they unfolded speak clearly to us, that he didnt fight the good fight. In his own words, Brian tells us that I was sort of in a position to tell Steve Jobs what to do. He sort of romanticizes that notion. These are not the words of someone whos fighting the good fight as you state. I hope that there are some lessons learned here, not just for Brian, but for everyone reading. Indeed, fight the good fight, and along the way, make sure your moral compass is always pointing North.
http://twitter.com/doittyo_magi Doittyo Magi Nice article but I do hope a bus mows you down someday Lam. pjb This comment sounds much better when you read it in Comic Book Guys voice. Guest Shut up idiot. http://twitter.com/jinmaning Eugene F. Maning Steve Jobs is not dead! Hes just hiding and will be working under the shadows of Apple Inc. I dont believe that hes dead. Maybe he turned himself into an Apple made robot iSteveRobot. :-/ This goes to those who cant accept Steve is dead.
Lee Keels This is the one comment in this thread that I agree with. The phone should have been returned with not a single word written about it. Anything beyond that was a mistake. To justify it by saying that the public had a right to know is absolute idiocy. http://twitter.com/kbaxter Kyle Baxter Brian, Thank you so much for posting this. How Gizmodo handled that story was terrible, but I am really glad that you were able to apologize to him for it. Youre a good man, and I wish you all the best. Kyle
Anonymous very short sited dude, you never burn your bridges Emerson Nice article, very touching. Glad you got to clear the air before it was too late. Ian Dean Really nice story. Id forgive you Anonymous Honestly, Gizmodos iPhone 4 reveal fucked with Steves emotions about revealing the beautiful redesign to a break through phone. The only good thing you can own up to is that you probably impacted Apple at taking better care of their secrecy. Anonymous I think you forget the part where it was shopped to Engadget for $5k first, they rejected it and posted a story about the offer, and then Gizmodo took the bait and thought theyd really have a two-for-two with the disgusting story and disgusting layout combo breaker. http://www.chocolatejetpack.com Chocolate Jetpack Thank you for this insight. http://thehungryexcavator.blogspot.com/ Winston Beautiful. Thanks for showing us this side of Steve. He is truly a remarkable human being. I havent seen so much compassion in a person for a long time. Thanks very, very much.
Anonymous Mistakes in life are unavoidable, owning up to them and moving on is what counts and helps us to improve as human beings. Koolkatsevenfold So when someone passes you shouldnnt talk about experiencces with them? Jeez people good article dude Sebastian Hey man, never read Gizmodo but Im so glad that Steve influenced you to come out a better man and that you got your apology sent while there was still time. Its a sad day for all of us. There will be better ones and we will always have the really good ones to look back to and remember Steve.
Jason aka Vladimirbond AMAZING PIECE OF LITERATURE BRIAN! Im sure based on your first notes from Steve that deep down he had an affiliation with you guys and no doubt before he passed he forgave you for whatever happened. Im sure Steve would have seen it as just another part of the story, a story in which you were lucky enough to be a part of. xOx That decision you made was totally sh*t and at the time I thought that the people behind gizmodo were selfish and immoral. Its good that you apologised when you did and can get this off your chest after so long. Your story is a fitting tribute to Jobs strength of character. JXSynclair Youre missing the point completely. This guy is sharing with us his moments with Steve Jobs, something which most of us on the outside of the tech world have never had the priviledge of experiencing. I think many people have regrets about things in their lives and hes bared his soul by sharing a painful moment where he felt he lost a friend. And Ive also read more stories about how hard assed Jobs could be when it came to handling adversity in his younger years and in this particular case I think Steve did everything he could to try to resolve this issue with tact and kindness. With age and experience comes wisdom. I read this story and I walk away feeling Lams regrets and perhaps a cautionary tale on when its time to quit when youre ahead. Thanks for sharing this with us Brian. chrissnv
Well written. I must say it is a very sad day here in the Silicon Valley today. It seemed as if the Valley was crying with all the rain coming down. RIP Steve! And thank you for sharing your story.
MyPerspective A touching article that was touching if not overly professional. The only thing I dont like is the timing you comment that you wrote too many iPhone 4 articles to milk the muck up for all its worth, and on the day of his death you write another iPhone 4 prototype story. Andreas Its cool you feel good about yourself for writing jobs, but you obviously havent come to terms with being a parasitic asshole http://profiles.google.com/marcusleejh Marcus Lee Everybody stop condemning. What Brian did was professionally right, but morally wrong. That is all.
Andreas Btw. There is a difference between jobs liking you, and being kind -dont confuse the two and cheat yourself, from what I can read he knew the difference Capuzcapuz Dear Brian, I know you you must feel horrible for what happened between you and Steve, but you have to move on. Ive been an avid reader of Gizmodo for 5 years now and enjoy its articles fully. Gizmodo needs you, and you need to forgive yourself. Dedicate yourself to quality journalism and dont make the same mistake again. That is the only true way to redeem yourself. Make Gizmodo great again, the way only you can. Rooting for you man, Cheers
http://twitter.com/katsumaro Cake Master
Great stuff, Brian. Great stuff. Ive never known too much about Steve Jobs.. but reading through this, he does seem like a genuinely good guy who just loved his work, and it was cool to see he frequented Gizmodo. Its just a shame things didnt end better between you guys. =[ RIP Mr. Steve Jobs
ag_the_king One could easily question if you are the one that have lost touch. On one side we have a huge international company and Steve Jobs a nice man that you know but isnt you closest friends. On the other side you have people you work with every day and the commitment to your job. A job that had a huge responsibility not only to its readers but also to every one who worked there. How can you say that is an easy decision? How can you tell me that Steve Jobs probably would do a similar thing if he were in a similar situation? Dont you see how he could be torn? As you mention it could probably be handled better but I highly doubt its because Brian is more heartless or evil than you or me.
William Lee Sanity? All youve done in the comments section is flame Brian and everyone else who accepts his apology. Im no Apple fan, believe me, but when someone says sorry, I will respect that he at least expresses his guilt and admits his mistake. That you doubt his apology only shows your own disgusting cynical nature that we do not need more of.
http://twitter.com/JasonR JasonR Brian, TY for sharing this. Anonymous In retrospect, you could have had your cake and eat it too by simply doing artist representations of the actual phone without photos and such. The scoop would have still been yours, and still there would have been room for Apple to unveil their latest darling. Missed opportunity and for what in the end?
JonnydjWeston You are a disrespectful cock! http://twitter.com/henrikiam Henrik Jnsson Actually it is.. Irregardless originated in dialectal American speech in the early 20th century. Its fairly widespread use in speech called it to the attention of usage commentators as early as 1927 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irregardless DSB Its strange that so many people here are willing to jump on your remorse and criticise what you did back then. I was a journalist and Im very familiar with the innevitable moral issues that arise in this profession. Sometimes, you just have to make impossible choices. Unfortunately, most of the times no matter what you choose, youll end up feeling shitty, or stepping on someones toes, or end up beeing driven around in the car trunk this is what happened to me on one occasion Honestly, to this day some of the choices I had to make while working as an editor still trouble me. And in the end, it was making these hard decisions that drove me away from writing. Could that whole thing with the lost iPhone be handled in a more elegant way? Yes. Do I understand why you did what you did? Yes. And Im sure Steve Jobs of all the people shouldve understood that. Should you have returned the phone without asking for claim from Apple? I think so. At that point it didnt matter, it was obvious that it was a real deal and you made one step too far with that. From a business standpoint, that was probably the most successfull thing Gizmodo dit. It blew you open world-wide, attracted millions of readers and advertisers to your blog. It also cut you off from the one company you endorsed more then anything. Quite the stuff for Shakespeare-ian drama. Anyways, Briam hope youll get over it someday.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000763844470 Chris Isono he seemed like such a laid back type of person keriderf Thats a beautiful story, The world had lost its champion for perfection and magic. Steve Jobs will be missed. Gumsho3
Lmaosteve telling someone THEY r being greedy
Fl Read the article. Ur an asshole. http://www.facebook.com/raywert Ray Wert Brilliant piece, Brian. Touching, heartfelt, and humorous. You werent an asshole you were just living in the moment. Anonymous After reading this article carefully, Id realize the scumbag you are http://twitter.com/lok1ju lok1ju Your article and Mossbergs are the top 2 Ive read since the news. Both really stand out to me with how they show the man behind the image and a real person. Great story, thanks for sharing it with all us strangers. Ill be following this site now simply based of this one article. Andrew Doane Thanks for sharing this story, Brian. It provided a perspective on Steve that most of us never had the opportunity to see. http://twitter.com/rabinkos rabinkos oh man this is really beautiful. i m really crying. thank you. Aparna Interesting that you believe that you would have done the same again if you had to! It does not haunt you anymore? DrJ It takes a lot of balls to admit an error- bravo. As someone who never posts, and was a fan until this tomfoolery- thanks for the insight, and well put. Kolson Its the best day to write that kind of stuff, yeah, but in my opinion, the phone couldve been directly handed back to steve with some condition like having the first scoops one month before the release or something. What happened was a big clusterfuck of articles ruining all the work and surprises of Apple, the phone was literally teared appart and every new feature was spoiled.
As i remember, you used the leak to gather more readers, there was even a video tutorial for newcomers on top of every post about the phone. So your heart may have felt bad for just a while but Gizmodo dug its own grave from that point About your professional side of the story, im sorry but when youre a gadget lover and have the chance to be a part of whats behind the curtain, you try to keep healty the industry that runs your business
http://profiles.google.com/aakbari1024 Adnan Akbari Very nice and touching article. I sincerely hope Tim Cook or any of the top executives reads this and considers letting Giz back at Apple events again. http://www.facebook.com/jhuntermyers Jon Myers Steve is the reason I helped start up an Apple VAR business in 1990. We werent authorized, so for the first several years we had to gray-market until we could get the cash together for a fullfledged Apple Authorized shop. He was my inspiration in a very personal way. Thanks for a really great article, Brian. http://profiles.google.com/snezanc Snezan Cebic i really appreciate you posting this story brian. http://twitter.com/vanderbob van der bob I used to read Gizmo regularly but not after the iPhone4 affair. I came across this via Techmeme.Your piece is self serving; you might have thought that it would help you to overcome the shameful realization of you being absolutely wrong from the very start despite you doing your job. But it is not what we see you are using Steve Jobs death for your own purpose here. Kids above are saying that youve gained their respect back not mine.But the main lesson that you and every schmuck like you should learn from this story is that time goes by and inevitably we become to regret all shameful deeds youve done in the past. Death of others open eyes of the living to the prospects of being remembered as selfish human beings. Seems like you just had your moment. http://about.me/adriansanders Adrian Sanders I love a good peanut gallery. what was that parable about moccasins and miles? life isnt black and white. Theres lots of magnetic interference along the way. Compassion for and from others is humanity at its best.
Conscio A simple and heartfelt tribute would have been sincere. This reeks of a grab at self promotion through false modesty over a tragic event. The iPhone leak was a bad but understandable gamble, but this is just despicable. Shame on you, unless you sincerely believe this to be selfless, in which case I genuinely pity you. Anonymous Brian, you might well feel like an asshole. I can respect that you made a decision because, at the time, you thought it the right thing to do. I think a bit of contrition is worthwhile, and I can respect that too. What I cant respect is that Giz, Gawker and Nick Denton, specifically, engendered a culture of the scoop at any costs. You guys were willing to extort Apple for pageviews, in the end. At any point during this period did you stop to wonder why Topolsky or the others passed on it? I can bet they knew, and you did too, that the phone was stolen and that the only right and proper thing to do was hand it back after getting your scoop. But you didnt do that. You filled the front page with linkbait, shamed the poor bastard that lost the phone, dragged the sorry tale out and sold whatever integrity Gizmodo had as a blog down the river that day. For whatever paltry ad revenue my readership was worth, I was happy never to offer it to you again after that. So I respect your bit of catharsis. But I cant respect the choices you and your editorial team made. You could have taken the high ground, and this belated apology might never have needed to be. Instead you got blackballed, and are now known as the guys who bought a stolen phone and tried to extort Steve fucking Jobs for ad revenue. Thats not journalism, Brian, thats being a hack.
http://www.precursor.org/ CleverBoy Good article. Gizmodo broke my love of the site with a few things. 1.) the bounty on the phone (I know, gawker But its all connected). 2.) the whole stolen phone saga, felt wrong in exactly the ways Brian said. A few degrees and it would have been fine. 3.) Using the clicker at that trade show to turn off sets on presenters (that one REALLY pissed me off because it advocated being dicks) 4.) The new redesign that ruined URLs and seemed to be perfect for tablets except in a tablet.
Engadget is now a different site too twice over. And I feel like Im chasing talented writers around the web. There was a golden age somewhere in there. Now my iGoogle homepage feels like a shadow of its old self.
http://twitter.com/tofua Teksetta Thanks for sharing such a wonderful story. Sean Schaefer Good read. http://twitter.com/e_d_sanders ed sanders good to make your peace . Mark Ricci What does Gizmodos current articles have to do with Blam? He doesnt work there any more? Valentino Hey Brian, everybody commit mistakes.. I regret many things in my life.. If we could get back in time we would make it different.. Like you wrote, thats life.. Anonymous Totally agree. Giz needs to rethink its mission, fire a few writers who cant stay on topic or just plain cant write, and refocus on technology and stop trying to cover everything under the sun. I lost interest long before the horrible redesign. Ill be interested to see what happens with Giz and Apple events now, though. I still think they should be banned, but maybe cooler heads will decide otherwise.
Anonymous At least you regret your actions. The job is secondary to your reputation among peers. Even in this crummy economy. Thanks for the story thou. http://littlebigideas.tumblr.com/ JakeMG This is quite possibly the best, most honest, most insightful tribute to Jobs that Ive read so far. Im glad you got a chance to make your peace with him. On a more selfish level, its kind of cool to finally hear what happened behind the scenes during the iPhone 4 incident and how you guys were feeling. Im sure Steve, having been a huge Gizmodo fan beforehand, felt somewhat betrayed, which is why Giz stopped getting invited to Apple events.
Anyway, touching, man. I also learned you have this site, so Im going to add it to my reader acct.
Guest Thank you for writing this. All this while I always thought that the whole saga was a marketing ploy between apple and gizmodo. Now I know it really took place. Anonymous In any job we find ourselves, we will find we would face a wall of what ifs a wall of regrets, and also a giant wall of choices. The fact that you understood what trouble you put everyone on the team through and you apologise didnt change things but it would mean a lot that you felt sorry about the greed involved. And that, I believe, many people would forgive you. You have lost a supporter someone with the greatest vision and ideas, so I am glad for you too that you guys made up before things got too late.
Mr BeachBum I have to say it was nice to know the behind the scenes stuff on this. I remember some of it but I dont recall realizing that Steve had actually tried to be cool about it at first. You really left him no choice and that changes my opinion of his actions at that time now. However since then the 4S prototype was also lost and apparently they just get the SFPD right off the bat now so no mercy will be shown from now on. At any rate, you should not feel guilty. You did the right thing at the time and I think Steve probably respected you more for it than you might even realize, even if he didnt like it. I only hope that Gizmodo gets a seat at future conferences at some point because the meta live blog just plain frustrates me. I hate having to go to engadget and other sites to get the updates. Blah.
robot-shmobot I am both honoured and ashamed to have been a part of the Gizmodo commentariat during its height of greatness. I never understood the implications of the prototype iPhone 4, but its good to know that water under the bridge was achieved in the end. Very good article Brian. Its good to hear from you again. Rest in peace Mr. Visionary. We didnt always agree but you always kept me excited for the next greatest gadget introduction.
http://twitter.com/BrackishLake Chris@BrackishLake
I know you were wrapped up in a bad situation, and so this comment is not directed toward you personally. But for me, I stopped reading Gizmodo the day I learned about how they handled this, and the insight from this post only makes me feel even more disgusted with them. Its very clear to me that journalists can blog, but bloggers are not necessarily journalists. And Gizmodo was absolute trash in that instance.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_F5LUCS3JB3VC7UEGL5CMJIZ2SQ Anne Louise you are a better man for putting this out here. Look at the bigger picture. You were part of history and not the bad part! The inventions and inventors how cool is that?! Peace and condolences. Mike Lee Remarkable. Even now, when Jobs has died, you still manage to make this all about you. This is a shameless and pathetic attempt to turn a tragic event into something that you can profit from by trying to repair your reputation. Thank you for telling us that Steve liked you no one would have known this otherwise. You actually manage to become more of an egotistical asshole than before, which is quite an accomplishment. StormbladeX69 Well said Brian. RIP Steve. mtbhk44 Thank you Brian. That will undoubtedly be the best thing I read today. Anthony Elias Damn. Very personal exchange. Thanks for sharing. Anonymous Well articulated. I had a routine with gadget blogs, a familiar feeling when I clicked on the net. It was the first thing I checked. Engadget and Gizmodo are like shadows of what they were. I find I am lot less enthusiastic about the whole thing now. Especially because Steve Jobs, the Michael Jordan of tech, has left the game. Patrick King Great Article We all wish we would have done things differently from time to time. What we take from these experiences, make us better people. http://twitter.com/emabolo Emanuele Bolognesi Best thing I have read today about Steve Jobs
Wendy Im sitting here, sort of numb over the whole thing. And I have to tell you, Lam, I am proud of you as a writer, as a reporter, and as a human. At the time, you did what you thought you had to do. And then you actually took the opportunity to think about what youd done, whom it affected, and what could have been done differently. You copped to a mistake. Thats hard as a writer because, suddenly, every word youve put out there suddenly comes into question, even the ones you know were right. I think it makes you a stronger voice out here, and a more human one. Ill miss the son of a bitch, too.
GUN5L1N6ER One of the best articles Ive read! Hjdttt I forgive you. I know that doesnt mean squat. But I have not gone back to Gizmodo since reading the iPhone 4 stuff. And now I will. Thanks for having the courage. http://www.facebook.com/people/Windy-A-Carr-Stroud/1503048845 Windy A Carr Stroud Amazing story !! Thank you for sharing it with us. Anonymous LOL, what is this. Anonymous Nicely put Mr. Lam. Ive always wondered how you felt about the situation after the storm. He will be missed by many. george Brian, chapeau ! Anonymous I think its what we do when were not good to each other, and how we handle that afterward, that tells us more about ourselves. Not putting down the Mossberg piece. Just saying yours gives that kind of special insight. http://twitter.com/Absolute4Droid Absolute
sheeshthe more I read about Steve the more and more I respect the manI wish I had this much respect for him while he lived. I respected him as an innovator always, but now I respect him as a man. RIP
Matt Pearson Brian, great heart in your writing! When you are in the thick of it, whatever it might be, time moves slow and each move you make is an attempt at leveraging what you think is best for you and yours. For those who have never run their own show, and felt the stress of their moves, they may not understand. You made a call and stood by it. I agree the wrong call was made. Three weeks ago you made a good call and sent an apology. Today you made an even better call and shared that with your readers. Life is full of opportunity and sometimes we make the best of it, sometimes not. Sometimes we fail sometimes we succeed. When we realize that failure is not an event and is a process on the way to success we all win. Thanks for a great site that is fun, exciting, takes risks, and pushes the envelope of what is possible. When you stop that, I will stop reading. Steve did this to the end. Lets hope we all can practice his method and mindset.
Phaelin This has been a brilliant read. Thanks for sharing. My only hope is that you arent still kicking yourself over the iPhone 4 thing. People made (and still make) a bigger deal out of it than it was. Indeed, it could have been handled better with the follow-ups, but thats not to say you handled it any different than you should have in that situation. Again, it wasnt a big deal, and the internet needs to move on.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1006568658 Nick DeAngelo Brian, Great story. Im a longtime reader I was uncomfortable about the iPhone incident felt what you did was right, considering the business youre in. It takes a big person to admit feeling wrong about doing right hopefully this gives peace to your soul well written. I am envious of your relationship with Mr. Jobs and I wish you much success in the future. Phaelin Besides, its gotta be pretty hard to pass up the chance to tell someone like Jobs how things are going to go down. One of those you only live once or bucket list moments. Jason Brown
I am glad to see you made things right. Hopefully, we all can learn something from this. I am glad you posted this and that you were able to forgive yourself. ^_^
JustMe It doesnt erase that you did it. Nor make you any less scum when Steve asked you as politely as he could and you refused. You stood your ground as an arrogant ass, whod throw away a good relation with the most powerful tech guy in the Universe, for one headline. Stupid. Steve was (as usual) seeing the big picture of the relationship by giving you an out. You took the unwise 10 min of fame choice. Ive never logged onto your site since. How does that saying from Gone With the Wind go? Something like: Scarlett wasnt really sorry for what she did, she was just very sorry she got caught. Sound familiar? You wrote your own legacy, Steve wrote his. Live with it.
Juan Ozuna As an admirer of Steve myself, but also as a journalist, I can imagine the strain of the situation you must have found yourself in during the iPhone 4 debacle. This is a beautiful piece, Brian. Christy Zhou The story made me teary. It must have taken you so much courage to write to Steve, to write the story and leave urself naked. Keep up the the blog, as Steve likes it too. It doesnt have to be parasitic, words can be innovative, there would be an element of kindness I can see. http://twitter.com/blitzkriieg rj great post. thanks for sharing brian. Anonymous Amazing story. Thanks for telling it. http://etreheureux.fr heureux incredible story thanks for sharing im glad you apologized before it was too late http://www.facebook.com/bill.janis Bill Janis Thats intense. Very. I got cold chills. Life is not easy sometimes. Its so complex. Great article, and Im happy that writers block is gone. Lars May I ask if you ever got a reply to your last email?
Mike Woodworth Beautiful article, but agreed on the Giz/Gawker layout. I literally stopped going to the site after years of loving it because of how annoying and unusable I found it. I dont even subscribe to their rss anymore. Shane Tilley Brian, Youre piece was very moving. I never reply to anything that is posted, but today I had to. Steve was an inspiration to me he is one of the reasons I like computers so much. You guys broke the story first about the iPhone4 and that day is when I starting readin your Gizmodo and all of its brother sites. If it wasnt for you guys getting your hand on the phone I probably wouldnt have found your site and loved it so much. I see why he liked it, it has new innovative interesting pieces about technology and projects across the world. Steve jobs will be missed! He is the one who brought the technology industry to what we see it today. If it wasnt for his visions we might have not seen the iPod, iPhone, iPad, or anything good that apple has made. We probably wouldnt have seen the competitive companies phone as well. The made their phones to compete with the iPhone so he created that. He will be in everything we see technological for many years to come. RIP Steve Jobs. You will be missed! Sorry if any errors, I wrote this from my iPhone Shane T.
Pbaron BrianGreat article. Im glad you were able to clear things up with Steve before he passed. I dont regularly read gizmodo but when I do I know that the news you report is legit and not half-baked like some of those other news sites that post rumors all for the sake of clicks.Stay true to yourself and listen to your heart, do what you know is right regardless of the profit; then you will be a great man that people remember fondly in well-written articles when you pass on. http://twitter.com/applegigs Simeon Solarsky You did the right thing! http://twitter.com/applegigs Simeon Solarsky You did the right thing. You should continue writing! Dont consider your self an a*s. All of this is forgotten. P.s R.I.P Steve.
Dbeck irregardless is in the websters dictionary. It says it is nonstandard english but alas it is still in the dictionary. So you should make sure you know what you are talking about before you start ranting like the douche you are. Thirdchild At the fucktards, STOP BITCHING ABOUT GIZs NEW DESIGN, this isnt the time, nor the place. Here we have a great story, a very personal one, someone pouring his heart out, and all you do is bitch about the design? I would assume that most people that come here would have some common sense, but I guess Im wrong. B: Dude, you were green, you saw the holy grail and wanted to get it. Its understandable, now youve matured, grown and learned. It takes a big man to recognize the wrongdoing and apologize. It was a great and touching article, it showed a side of Steve that isnt out there and most people dont get to know, and for that I thank you.
Anonymous I dont know anyone who wouldve done anything differently in your circumstances. How can a blogger cause the highest grossing company on the planet pain or distress?! If anything it just added to the hype and probably contributed to inflated sales to the point where people were speculating that the phone was left in the bar deliberately! Anyhow, great article. http://www.partyplatypus.com Jon Well, you will have to ask, what would Steve have done if he was writing for a tech site and got his hands on the newest phone early. You can bet he would have done the same thing. It is business, and it was the right thing to do as a journalist. http://www.facebook.com/jusak Jusak Darmawan When you tell me about your regret, about how greedy you are, that you were short sighted and you should just give the phone back, I really feel your regret. But when I read your letter to Steve, none of those above are reflect on the letter. And I start to confused. It doesnt seem be match. Then I understand. You just an ass kisser. You want to be seen as a good merciless professional journalist, even put the blame on your team when you sent those apologize letter. And now that
Steve passed away, you hope to be seen as a compassionate journalist when you write this article. So I dont think both of those are meant to benefit either Steve or the reader. Sorry, I think even in your regrets you still just want to benefit yourself.
Iain Grant A moving anecdote. Thank you for sharing. ltotherh Steve will definitely be missed. I actually had a physical reaction when I found out he passed a way. What a cool guy. On the other hand, B you definitely are an ahole, no way around that. Belenbaas Integrity should not be compromised. A lot of things are done with the justification that I was just doing my job. when we compromise our values, we compromise ourself as a person. Bottom line. Saying Im sorry is better than not saying Im sorry however. Kudos to doing so.
Anonymous Thats not journalism, its profiteering from tragedy. Youre right it is grubby, you do it for profit. That makes you a parasite. Why doe the world need to see that shit? What is the first thing grieving families ask for? THEIR PRIVACY, what do you parasites do? Park a van on their lawn and run a 24/7 news feed. Friggin vultures. Casualty vampires. What Gizmodo/Gawker did was immoral, momentarily self serving, and ultimately self defeating. Ill never read either again.
http://www.facebook.com/adonisdnatigersblood Jason Brown Wow, Brian, you made me tear up. I wish I could give you a hug. ZK great story Brian and Im glad you were able to share it with us. http://www.dailytechdiva.com Jessica Fritsche Thank you for sharing this, Brian. I had lost some respect in your integrity as a journalist and a person during the iPhone 4 debacle, but knowing all this changes that completely. It takes a strong, humble man to admit his mistakes and atone for themif you were not strong or humble before, you certainly are now. Be proud. SVK
You are also wise in this very measured response. Very nice encapsulation of the situation.
Heather Frank Brian, I thought of you last night when I heard the news. Steve Jobs was sui generis. As are you. Tom That story is why I deleted Gizmodo from my Computer http://twitter.com/coreygans Corey Ganser Thank you for sharing this. I never met Steve but it is really cool to read experiences like this as it shows how truly amazing he was on all fronts. Anonymous Very nice read, just wish the designers over at Gawker listened to Steve. Thanks for sharing! Tango You are still an asshole. http://twitter.com/ChrisMKellySr Christopher Kelly Well done, sir. Nice you got to tell him in time. Life is too short. Agan, well done. Anonymous PS: whats with the typeface on this site!? Anonymous Thank you Brian for the interesting post. We all do things we are not proud off, we just have to live with ourselves afterwards. It read more like a confession and it sounds like you did it more for yourself, to get it off your chest. Im not going to get on my high horse and tear you and gizmodo up, because like everyone else, I would be a hypocryte, which I am. Like a trainwreck, I remember following the whole stolen iPhone prototype fiasco. A part of me knew it was wrong, but it was so exciting. It felt so dirty though. I think the issue is more of how our society has become. I never bought the reader has a right to know arguement. Thats the reason we have TMZ, paparazzi and so many bloody disgusting upskirt shots of celebrities on the internet. Really, do dont have a right to know. Apologizing for your wrongs dont make it right. It makes you feel better temporarily. To make it right, we must do right. In the words of Ghandi, We must be the change we wish to see in the world. Goodbye Mr. Jobs, at least one of us will rest in peace. http://www.facebook.com/thechrisferreira Chris Ferreira
DudeI would have done the same thing. Sure, maybe you should have been more gracious and given the prototype back with less fuss. But anyone who says you were wrong in publishing the article is full of it. You got your hands on a big story and you followed through.
http://profiles.google.com/kingpsyz Justin Rogers You just made me a daily reader of this site Hope to see you at CES and buy you a beer for being able to lay down your shield and welcome the arrows. http://twitter.com/cdbaker14 Chris Baker This is easily the most powerful piece I have ever read (linked) from Gizmodo. Incredible story dude, I dont know you but Im so glad you got your closure before its too late. Everyone involved was just doing their jobs, doing them well, and not everything always works out prettylike. Great job man. http://twitter.com/pswann Paula Swann Great read. Anonymous Ive never heard this story, bjt after reading this, made me feel like giving steve a really big hug. I love that guy. Anonymous Brian, sorry to burst your bubble but once again, youre being selfish. It was your selfishness that got you into this mess with you not returning the phone. Now, youre being selfish for forgiving yourself just so that YOU can feel better about it. The fact of the matter is that many people, including myself, warned you when all of this was going down at Gizmodo that you shouldnt be what you were doing. It was basically blackmail. Instead, commenters like myself were banned hammered from the site for speaking against what Gizmodo was doing. To this day, I have not made a single comment on any posts at Gizmodo. So yea, join the club of those pissed at Gizmdo.
adam Thank you for sharing, Brian. And for your honestly. As they say, hindsight is 20/20. Sounds like youve beat yourself up enough. We all do dumb shit, the key (IMO) is to learn from that dumb shit and try not to do more dumb shit in life. Sounds like youre on that path. Steve Dew I dont think you need to be so hard on yourself, Brian. Its not exactly Mother Teresa territory to threaten a reporter with a legitimately obtained scoop and the facts to back it up with jail.
I get that you admired Jobs and thought him kind. Your behavior bothered you and you apologized. The culture of secrecycorporate and governmentin this country is corrosive to freedom. In an important way, you did something to push back. And for that, I admire you.
MrHaroHaro @blam:twitter I will start off by saying that you and Steve are the people I have admired most in technology journalism and the technology industry respectively. This article is great not only because it is well written, but because you put your heart in to it. Reading it, I felt the sadness/griminess/guilt you must have felt after the iPhone incident. But after it all Im happy that two people I admire so much got to be friends. In a way you guys were similar in your love of technology and the possibilities that came along with it, and put your heart in to your work and constantly sought to improve on it. You guys truly combined technology and liberal arts in your work. Respect. Bitbucket1 brain, you are a total asshole, then & now. http://twitter.com/thoughton Tim Houghton Thanks for sharing this story Brian. katydutexas interesting read, nicely retrospective. http://www.octechnophile.com David Amodt good article brian. good content http://twitter.com/borgescris Cristina Borges If you were looking for forgiveness why not write a public apology for the enginneer and Apple? Or go to a church and pray! You make it all about you on day that is all about Steve Jobs, you should have saved this article for October 14th. Anonymousperson84848 I think its really nice you patched things up before Steve Jobs reposed. Jobs, without a doubt, was a great man. Sandysurf So you screwed the pooch on the iPhone 4. Thats just being human. The sad thing is that you lost something most guys in your position wish they had a chance at. A relationship with one of
the greatest visionaries of mankind. You may scoff at that last sentence but pause to think how a small company called Apple Computer changed your life How you select fonts, the way you listen to music, how you watch a movie trailer, how you buy music, how your expectations have been raised with new products, how you use a phone, how you view the web, how you approach a computer store, how you write a post, how you edit a film, the way you make & distribute a podcast, the way you enjoy watching a Pixar movie laughing at a joke intended for an adult, thinking different, seeing beauty in simplicity. Im on a rant. RIP Steve. Brian, you have walked for a brief time with one of the greatest men in the world. Sandy Hill Encinitas
Stevemcmahon40 Actually, the writing on Giz has gone to pot. Its all opinion laced posts telling people how to feel about things instead of unbiased reporting. The amount of misspellings and grammatical errors is atrocious, and if anyone leaves a sensible comment they get blocked or banned. Engadget has better writing but uses disqus(t) which wont let you comment unless you allow them to monitor your web activity with spyware. FounderCEO I didnt like the man, his ideas or what he stood for but it is sad that he died. http://bit.ly/dI3hcF http://www.facebook.com/dpolitis David Politis Didnt know you were on Sabbatical, Brian? Did you take the JOOS Orange with you? LOL Seriously, all the best with Wirecutter. I like it, especially the what is best is best approach. Nice piece about your interactions with Jobs. People put him up on a pedestal so much they forget he was still just a guy trying to do the best he could do. Be well. Dave Politis P.S. Ive joined Xi3 Corp. as CMO. http://www.Xi3.com Rashaad Jones Find it a very dick move that you betrayed a man who was all fine and dandy with the scoop and just wanted his property back but you guys wanted more to gain from the situation.And the excuse of true journalism ant be used because you guys didnt want to send info to the masses. You wanted the clicks, the revenue, the prestige, the money.
Your not evil Brian. But theres no way to feel pity for your acts either. If you have a religion, this act most likely strayed from what it tried to teach you. Mistakes are mistakes. That doesnt mean all mistakes are allowed to be put to the past.
Matt This is the best article Ive read in a long time and the best Steve Jobs Died article out of any I have read. Thank you for sharing. But I do have to agree (and Im not being a hater and I know you no longer work there) that I feel Gizmodo lost its way. After this article, Id read anything by you though.
SVK Read a story about his natural father who had reached out to him. Same reaction. No response. My guess is that he could forgive but he had moved on. It was not his way to respond to the apology. An apology should stand on its own. The damage was done. Cant really expect that the relationship would, should or could be revived that would be on his (Jobs) shoulders and why should he? Interesting dilema. This article and the discussion herein has helped me resolve some of my own confusion of similar circumstances. Very refreshing. Thank-you all for the comments from all perspectives. As a body of discussion it is wonderful learning experience.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=48602436 Anonymous Great article maybe the best Ive read since news broke. http://www.facebook.com/people/Joe-St-Hilaire-Bona/18601205 Joe St. Hilaire-Bona Great read and a nice perspective. Guest You sound like the boy who said I lied about abuse by Michael Jackson after his death. Youre just wringing more publicity out of this. Shame on you. http://www.facebook.com/dpolitis David Politis Unless you are a Journalist (or were trained as a journalist), it is almost impossible to understand how the concepts of protecting sources and the publics right to know is genetically ingrained into every fiber of their beings.
In the Missing iPhone 4 episode, three very powerful forces were at work here: The public clamoring to know any and everything about Apple (especially the then forthcoming iPhone), The media outlet looking to fulfill the publics insatiable desire for news and information about Apple and the iPhone 4, and Apples desire (under the direction of Steve Jobs) to control every single drop of news an information about the company, its people, products, plans and activities. Did Gizmodo do the right thing here in asking Apple/Jobs to admit it was their product before returning it? Remember, reports were that the finder of the lost iPhone 4 got paid $5,000 to give them the phone and Apple filed a stolen property report with the local authorities. Thats why the cops could bust into Editor Chens home with a search warrant and seize anything related to the story. Conversely, was Apple right to A) not admit it was their iPhone 4, and B) file a stolen property report? Probably. Could it have all been handled behind the scenes quietly? Im not sure it could have been, especially from a journalistic integrity standpoint. In fact, if Professors are smart, this should become a Case Study for future journalism classes.
Anonymous Good writeup, Brian. Im sure it sucked to go through all that but, dude, you had the chance to run elbows and be cordial with one of the best and brightest innovators of this last century. You need to take that and always remember it. http://www.facebook.com/raheelgauba Raheel Gauba Brian, this is one of the most gutsiest thing Ive seen someone do This article says alot about you, gizmodo and Steve Thank you for sharing http://twitter.com/efnetiphone #iphone EFNet great piece. http://twitter.com/turboladen Steve Loveless Great, great article. ROFL Cat Down
And, Im pretty sure he said he didnt fight the good fight Honestly, on some level I understand that he is a journalist, and the idea of speaking the truth is often swept aside by pressure to present facts in a way that get peoples attention. Had I been in Gizs shoes I would have offered to return the phone back in exchange for either future access to a scoop, or an exclusive that they could post say, a day before the big meeting, or a personal interview w/ Steve covering the phone that they could put up on Giz for viewing alongside it. I can think of any number of ways it could have been handled differently to Gizs benefit without smearing Apples face, along with Steve and the guy who lost the phones face in the mud. Unfortunately this is the time when Giz turned more tabloid than news or meaningful and insightful review to generate ad revenue. After that Blam left, Wilson left, Rosa left, Joel came to the forefront, and honestly quality suffered greatly. But, he felt he was wrong, he recognizes where he failed, and hes expressed remorse without excusing his behavior. Im honestly humbled by his words, and proud of him. Ive been in his shoes where I failed to take the high road, and while I came out ahead, I didnt come out feeling good about myself. Everybody fucks up, Apple still sold an assload of iPhones, and life moved on. But, I expressed my distaste at the handling then by Gizmodo, and I even took the de-starring and temp ban doing so. I poked holes in their version of the story day after day, and called them on the lack of human aspect.
Mark Deniken Very cool Brian not many have to balls to admit when they are wrong, much less do it for the world to see. Much respect. http://www.facebook.com/people/Orhan-Can-Salain/517765254 Orhan Can Salain Cok cok iyi bir yazi usenmeden okumanizi tavsiye ederim. Guest Landr Im no expert on the ethics of journalism, but that article was last time I ever visited Gizmodo. Reading this now reconfirms my decision. Kindrawade Wow. It is awesome to see accountability. At all anymore. You brought it back. Accountability and repentance. And look at the relief it gave your body from the mental/soulful
torment that comes with selfishness. Thank you for sharing. I would rather read stories like this than much other news. Coming back to humanity.
http://twitter.com/snookasnoo Idont Know You are right Brian you are an asshole. But we already knew that. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1148128528 Graeme Harrison Thats a really beautiful and honest article. I thought that your coverage was valid and fair, but I think even more of you after reading this. Thank you. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1487723020 Alej Najarro Great stuff Brian. Life lesson. Anonymous Very interesting to see how it went down behind the scenes. Thanks for sharing. Anonymous Brian this is beautiful, thanks so much for sharing. Sad Nicely said, BLam. I stopped reading Gizmodo after the whole iPhone thing went down thought it was tasteless and greedy. This addresses some of that. Water under the bridge. Tasosb Nice article But I think you exaggerate the hurt you caused to apple and jobs. You were just doing your job and you werent really hurting anyone.. Much as I love apple products, its still a massive, RICH manipulative corporation, and jobs was also pretty RICH. Who cares if they lost some money, or messed up their plans a little bit? They still had a massive success. on the other hand, the fact that some people might not have bought 3GS because they waited for 4 thanks to you, THATS A GOOD THING! Think of the people that saved their nice money! Thanks for the article though, pretty cool
Anonymous Read this last night and reading it again. Thanks, great story. Amazing how many people are overlooking how deeply this incident impacted your personal and professional life. Sounds like you got your mojo back and for that Im happy for you; and for me. Mark
Yep. Power corrupts, and you have one of those personalities which too eagerly grabs it when you get it. Dont feel bad you have company in about 80% of the the human race.
Waveracr Stupidest thing Ive ever seen in a comments section in quite a while. What Gizmodo did was indeed parasitic, and Brian is a bigger man and a good soul for coming clean on what he did. A beautiful piece that cant be sullied by the Dorothy Hollands of the world. http://www.facebook.com/mbaturin Mike Baturin Very interesting article getting calls from Steve must have been crazy. I realize journalism is your job and you were acting in the interest of the readers but a lot of us would have been fine not knowing and to me it turned me off from Gizmodo. In the nicest way possible that I can say this, after seeing how you really felt I think it was wrong of you to not give the phone back immediately and I havent read Gizmodo since. http://twitter.com/jeffventura Jeff Ventura I give you credit, Brian. Not only for penning the apology before it was too late, but also allowing us to (a) see a side of Steve wed otherwise never see, and (b) admitting your own mistakes publicly. Lots of opinions were formed about you when all that shit went down, and not too many were positive. A lot were wrong, I see. Its about living, learning, and letting go. Steve knew that. Nice obit.
GBT Reply to hfool.Being ripped off probably started when you paid to continue your education and apparently continues with daily life today for you. Where does it say journalists have the right to do, say, write, withhold etc. anything in the name of the public has a right to know as I Mr./Ms. Journalist determine that right? Your paragraph and the foul language used within about a now deceased individual is about as cheap a shot, an individual without a mental cortex can take. Shame on you. http://www.matmullen.com Mat Mullen Great post.
http://kissride.wordpress.com Candide Yams Actually, isnt it pretty widespread and accepted that Steve Jobs wasnt that nice? Stacey A. Morris disrespect. pure ignorance and lack of class. you need to take a lesson on class from bill gates. > http://www.thegatesnotes.com/Personal/Steve-Jobs Stacey A. Morris much agreed. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=788655401 Judy Rose This is a very moving tribute to a clearly very special man. Ben Atkins Thank you for sharing your story. I enjoyed reading. Good luck with your writing. RIP Steve. ROFL Cat Down Thats because you seem to misunderstand that grief is for yourself, not others. You can feel empathy, or sympathy, by grief is your own. So, an expression of grief, much like an apology, is actually selfish. The catch is, its not a bad thing to be selfish when it comes to grief, and pain, and apologies. These are steps that you as a person need to express to resolve something within yourself. A person accepting your apology is giving you permission to forgive yourself. Nothing more. It doesnt mean they have to like you any better, or forget that something happened. It just means that they agree with you that it is time for you to put down the burden you carry and move on. I wasnt pointing out what Ive been through to make this about me, I was simply trying to point out that I probably have a little more experience than the average person when it comes do death, grief, grieving, and recovery. We all have regrets, and the worst kind of regret you can have is regret for something you didnt do while you still had time. We dont know if Steve read his e-mail, or responded, or what. Im guessing that Blam was told through the grapevine that Steves time was about up, hell maybe Mossberg , and Blam did what he felt he needed to do while he could. That he could write about it here and cover not only his pain, but admit his mistakes and even tell you his thinking process without trying to excuse his behavior is admirable.
Im guessing youre the kind of person that easily holds grudges. My advice to you would be this. Learn to let it go. The damage was between Blam and Steve. Brian owes you nothing. If you like what he writes, then read it. If you disagree with him, fine, but being disrespectful about it is not OK. You can actually argue a point without resorting to name calling, escalation, or pettiness. Youre angry at him, and thats your feelings, and your right. But being a dick about it, doesnt make you more right or better. Theres a reason why the high road is mentioned in the commentary on this thread so often.
ROFL Cat Down Its not disrespect if youre telling the truth. Whether or not others are ready to hear/read such a thing is really up to them. Segador Man, have I been away awhile. Good to see you here, good to see you writing again, Brian. Im glad you left Giz when you did- I truly miss what that site used to be. Best of luck. Excellent reflections on Steve. -Segador from Gizmodo (No, I dont expect you to remember me- but you were my original star-er on Gizmodo, back when that site was amazing. Havent really read that site in a while, though.)
ROFL Cat Down Agreed. Understanding that everyone fucks up, everyone screws up, and everyone has asshole moments in their life goes a long way towards you being a happier person. ROFL Cat Down Everyone can be, and will be a dick at some point in their life. Blam has been one, Steve Jobs definitely had been one, and we all have some sort of personal watershed moment where we fail our own expectations of ourselves. If you cant learn compassion, forgiveness, and understanding. He screwed up, he tried to make amends and apologize to ease his own conscience. Which, is what apologies really are. Forgiving people so that they can forgive themselves is an exercise in compassion.
ROFL Cat Down
Apologies, forgiveness, shame, and pain are all personal issues to be dealt with. The funny thing about regret son, is that its better to regret something you have done, than something you havent done. Oh, and if you see your mother tonight Tell her SATAN! Self-serving? Yes. Asking for forgiveness? Yes. When you ask someone to forgive you, youre being selfish. Youre asking them to permit you to forgive yourself for your own transgression. Everyone fucks up, everyone has a massive personal failure where they not only fail to live up to their own personal standards, but they destroy them in the process. Once youve done that you spend a lot of time rebuilding that, and you always ask yourself if youre capable of being the quality of human that you want to be. I dont think he was asking for our respect, I dont like what he did, I dont feel he owes me an apology, but I do respect that he at least had the testicular fortitude to post the information, how it went down, and his own regrets without attempting to justify or excuse his poor behavior. He had people to protect, and he chose a side that he didnt believe in. Yeah, he screwed up. Many of us called him on it even back then. Now even he admits that he wishes things had been handled differently. He not only hurt Gizmodos image, he drug an Apple employee through the mud as a birthday present, then kicked Steve Jobs in the teeth via bullying. Apple recovered, Gizmodo suffered, Steve lived several years longer than any of us expected (Pancreatic cancer is effectively terminal, all you can do is fight it for as long as possible, Ive personally lost a very close cousin to it.) And in the end Blam found out that hed sacrificed a little bit of his soul for a scoop. In reflection, it wasnt worth it. So, what, youre going to kick a man when hes down? Why not offer him some kind advice and move on? Or, put aside your own anger at him. He handles his grief in a different manner than you, or I. That happens. I know angry grievers, inconsolable ones, hell I tell jokes at the funeral to keep from crying. The important part is that we heal, and that others allow us to heal.
ROFL Cat Down I dont know about Steve Jobs, but if I were dying Id be worrying about other things. Breisinger
Some things you cant take back. You have to live with what you did and move on. This was not moving on. Move on quietly without words. Respect may come but you cannot influence when and if it will happen.
Anonymous Great story Brian. Its both sad and inspiring to see some stories about the more human side of Steve Jobs come out. I had my own brief moment of this right before the original iMac came out. I was there with my new company that sold educational software actually testing our product under NDA on the basic hardware that would become the iMac. He came in just to see how we were doing and made the rounds but specifically came up to me and among other things asked why I left Apple. I explained that at the time (before Jobs came back) Apples fortunes didnt look so great, plus I had an opportunity to be part of a company who made something that genuinely helped kids. He replied with a big grin well we forgive you leaving to do what you are doing now which is a good thing and then went on to chat a bit with the rest of the group. I admired him before that, but that solidified to me what a class act he was
ROFL Cat Down You cannot dictate to others how they need to grieve, and sometimes part of the healing process is simply putting it all out there for the world to see. Baring your sole to those who can help you or kick you. If this event influences his behavior so that others respect him again, great, but there are always going to be people who are petty or angry or whatever about some transgression that didnt even involve them.
http://flickr.com/yonas1 yonas Thank you so much for sharing. az Thanks for making me tear up at work. Well said, and from one writer to another, you are phenomenal at your craft. doug graves Lovely stuff.
ROFL Cat Down No, and thats because obituaries are written by family and friend. This is a tale about his interactions with Steve Jobs, and how he fucked it up. Its an anecdote, like a Eulogy. I did not come here to praise Ceasar, but to bury him. When you bury someone, the good and the bad comes out. The only time Ive ever seen a regret in an obituary is when the person knew they were dying, and wrote it themselves. They wanted to be remembered as much for their flaws as their attributes. They wanted honesty as they faced death, and in turn they spoke only honesty about themselves.
http://twitter.com/sohrob Sohrob Tahmasebi Nicely put. ROFL Cat Down Accepting and acknowledging people for who they are as a whole is the best anyone can ever hope for. http://www.facebook.com/stephen.jesser Stephen Jesser Thank you for sharing this with us. Aldrin Albano Awesome confession, Brian. Like you said life does throw you shit as gold and it is up to you to eat it or give it back. Choices, my friend, is what makes our time on this Earth much, much more interesting. Im sure Steve agrees with you on this one Jessica Thank you for sharing. so junk Brian, I completely understand the need to publicly speak of your feelings surrounding your relationship with Steve and even though it seems to bring about both supporters and condemnation, the only thing important is to be able to express your grief over the passing of someone you admired. This is completely natural and fitting for Steve Jobs was someone who touched all of our lives as consumers and particularly those who used Apple products could see the expression of his genius in every product they used and to their surprise found that their products owned them as much as they owned the product.
I too wrote a letter to rememberingsteve@facebook-788655401:disqus apple.com which I want to share below. I will warn that it is LONG but like you, I too felt the need to express my feelings over this loss: Subject: Overcome with grief but joyful for Steve Jobs legacy Hello, A short intro:An Extreme Nerd who always shunned Apple as a stunt that fooled some of the people most of the time due to other devices that seemingly offered more for less. I buy my first iPhone 3G & realize I couldnt have been more wrong and that this is the first groundbreaking technological product with a singular identity, an expression of its creator and the unified vision of a company, not a bunch of parts, a bunch of ideas and a bunch of methods all thrown into a pot hoping it is an edible experience. No, this is Apple, and it was truly delicious from first bite. Now, having had 3 iPhones since then (if you count my wife as well) I am forever an Apple fan but had not yet fully opened my eyes. Yes, mistakes were made again. Both the wife and I decide to get laptops earlier this year and she springs for a MacBook Pro 13, myself for an equally expensive Thinkpad (dreamt of having one since youth).And while mine is on the slow boat from China, we are instantly able to enjoy hers as a result of the Apple store experience. At first Im dismissive, oh this is chicanery! Just clever snappy visuals, etc but wait, it does EVERYTHING a PC does, only,(to quote a wonderful man,)one more thing, it does it better, faster, and with more flair. And as a result, I have lost a long standing belief that Windows PCs are unquestionably better, the Apple Experience is truly that powerful and I am now in orbit of Steves exclusive domain:the reality distortion field.But it is all too real that Ive wasted my money on a Lenovo Thinkpad when I could enjoy a perfect specimen of a personal computer for the 21st century:One that looks as beautiful as it is fast and looks like it would be fitting for a representation of our innovative times hundreds of years from now in a museum. Certainly, no other laptop would be fitting in that spot. So I know now after many years, what Steve Jobs knew from day 1:The user experience of a successful product drives growth for a company and satisfaction for its customers and I can wholeheartedly say Apple has a committed customer for life. So ultimately, it is with overwhelming grief and itears in my eyes, that I present this letter to Apple, as I wish Steve would have been able to read this from me in his lifetime, as he often did, believing in his customer fan base as they believed in him. I would like to share a translation of a famous Urdu poem by Pakistans esteemed poet Allama Iqbal to dedicate to Steve Jobs: Hazaaron saal nargis apni benoori pe roti hai,Ke badi mushkil se hota hai chaman mein deeda-e-war paidaTranslation:A thousand years has the Nargis flower wept over her blindness,For it is very difficult that a true visionary be born in her garden(the world). Nargis is the name of a white flower in SE Asia which has the shape of an eye. So, although it has the shape of an eye, it does not have vision, therefore it is benoor or blind. But the sheyr,or poem, means that it truly takes a very long time only after which one true deeda-war (intellectual or visionary) is bornSteve was truly a deeda-war in our world. My thoughts and
prayers to his family, Apple, and his successors who must now fill very large shoes and be able to walk in them with the flair and grace that Steve managed so effortlessly. RIP STEVE JOBS in the iClouds of the Sky. Sent from Steve Jobs iPhone 4
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_WIZ6YCOZMDTJRHVMHNWA2EZPSI hustletron Great story. Thanks for sharing. http://twitter.com/awongsby A. Wongsby Brian, I think youve felt bad enough for long enough about this. Only Steve could truly absolve you but as a humble reader, I personally consider you absolved. Thanks for all you do. http://www.facebook.com/ryan.sonnenberg Ryan Sonnenberg Dont get too torn up over slightly hurting the stock price of a monolithic multinational, I dont care how heartwarming the CEO is, may he RIP. Nathaniel Haley What a well written article. You can tell when something comes from the heart. Commenters will always remind me how rude and disturbing these internets are. This is a place to honor a trmendous, humble mans passing. This is not Giz, this is not Facebook. Create your own Site if you can do better. Go elsewhere if you cant show some class and respect. Jobs wasnt a God, but he was such an inspiration and a person to admire. Brian, is sharing a great story here and the least that you can do is respect that, and if not, move on. http://appadvice.com Ammaar Reshi Great article, your writers block most certainly has been lifted. Guest Thats because hes a decent man. Im not sure youve come away with the correct lesson. Im glad youre sorry (and publicly, too) Not about to pass you an award though. You should be sorry. http://www.facebook.com/Walrus1911 Denis Walrus Korn kick Jesus Diaz off the team. problem solved. Anonymous I agree. Once again, youre over-reaching Brian. It seems to me you should have published this a little later. Publishing it now makes it seem like you are injecting yourself into the story of Steves passing. Anonymous
Getting the iPhone 4 prototype and writing about it was fine. Paying for it was not. Taking it apart was not. It did not belong to you so you had no right to disassemble it. Putting terms on its return after Jobs called you and asked for it back was also wrong. You could have gotten confirmation by driving it to Apple HQ yourself and handing it to them. You were being a douche. Go reread your article. Go read how you wrote about the engineer who lost the phone. Go read how you defended yourself afterward. Total douche moves. You owed an apology to your readers for your lack of ethics and for trying to hide behind the credibility of being a journalist. Also, read Strunk and White. Your grammar is terrible.
Petergnz You did the right thing and Jobs will have quietly respected you for it. You are in the business of news, not protecting the intellectual property of Apple Computer. I cant believe you got so hung up about it for so long. Im a journalist too and I wouldnt have thought twice. Plus, Id have published the details of that phone call with Jobs too thats the news business, thats how we roll http://www.precursor.org/ CleverBoy Agreed. I posted my list of why I stopped liking Gizmodo, an I forgot the way my mouth dropped open when they NAMED the person who lost the phone, and even wrote an imagined narrative of how it happened. Then the video interview showing it to other news outlets just looked so dirty I could tell what it was though. Implicated other news agencies helped take off some heat. Still though. WOW. So remarkably in need of a compass these events were. Made me so sad for the industry. http://twitter.com/didoment Tim D. A beautiful story on a tough day for many. Thank you for sharing it. People who want to criticize Gizmodo should do in response to something else, not this. http://www.facebook.com/chip.johnson Chip Johnson Its great you apologized to some people that you hurt, but you owe a public apology to the engineer you dropped dox on. Your conscience and public image cant be clear until thats done, because you really fucked someone who didnt deserve it, and you made bank on it. http://www.facebook.com/dandelrio Dan Del Rio Great read, I found out about Gizmodo because of the iPhone 4 story, and so did millions of other people any news organization would have done the same, given the circumstances. It is
probably hard to be scorned by someone you idolize, but as a journalist you did your job to the best of your ability.
http://www.facebook.com/chip.johnson Chip Johnson Brian dragged the engineer who lost the iphone, his personal life, and his career because he wanted to make some money with site impressions. He posted the mans face and address on the public internet and shamed him in front of the world. What happened to Brian is called justice.(Im not naming said engineer on purpose. Dude went through enough.)
Mcgrathpr58 That you carry the hurt for doing something YOU feel was wrong is all that is needed. Steve did many things he would have not been proud of as well. All those who cast stones your way also carry the weight of bad decisions and are using you as THEIR target. Doesnt it all seem so trivial now that Steve is gone. Just try to do better every day and things will work out fine! Tom great article, touching story, steve was a good man. http://pulse.yahoo.com/_SNGS7AKSQBKS7M2BQLJHOIEAXE Fabian great article. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=639517358 Stephen Tan Poh Chuen You did the right thing by writing that apology Brian. Thanks for sharing this insight. Guest Humble brag. http://www.facebook.com/LaCroix.Mark Mark LaCroix You do know that problems I caused you is equal to preventing Apple fans from buying a 3GS weeks before the 4 was available. Did you honestly care more about Steves bottom line than your readers pocketbooks? Theres nothing wrong with a journalist being a big fan of a company they cover, but its insulting, disgusting even, that you felt so much guilt over what was basic uncontroversial journalism. Talk about a total lack of perspective.
Askchibi maybe i am missing one of the many points here, but i dont see how apple was hurt. apple fans will always be fans; critics will always be critics. i didnt see their stock hurt for any of the reveal. if anything, it showed that apple holds a shit ton back so that they can come out with a new, slightly improved version later that people will buy before the screen cover of their last phone is scratched. it is painfully clear that apple holds back on technology/a gadgets ability for this very purpose. so, while i see why he should have given back the phone once jobs verbally acknowledged that it was theirs out for a LOT of reasons (right thing to do, already got their scoop, future relations, etc), i dont see how brian hurt anyone except gizmodo. Eric Thanks for sharing such a touching story, Brian. Im sorry for the way things turned out, but Im glad that you were able to send one last email to Steve with your appologies. I think you did the right thing by sharing your story. Many of us know how smart and creative Steve was in the business world and now we are able to see how great of a person Steve was on more of a personal level. I wish you the best! Anonymous Great article. Im sure it was therapeutic. ag_the_king Well at least that he could be a harsh boss. And there are examples of him being quite uncompromising in business so I do think it would be quite likely that he would have done the same even though I wouldnt go so far as to say that he wasnt a nice person. shambolic_paul Dude if you are a journalist then you report the story. Apple is a multi billion dollar faceless corporation with enough spare money in the bank to buy 1/10th of Americas national debt.Apple is not steve jobs, apple is not the engineers who built the prototype. You had every right to report the story. Giving yourself so much grief over this is silly. feed your family for fucks sake because apple wont feed them for you. Boonya Im going to say this the nicest way possible. You are an idiot. Asking for a letter to claim that the phone was Apples? You and everyone else knew 100% that it was Apples. You were just making things difficult because you wanted to feel big, like you were somebody. You were being greedy and wanted it your way because you are egotistical, insecure and a nobody.
Brian Lam you are seriously pathetic. But I hope you have changed.
Tnelson59 It really does go back tyo Jobs Stanford speech is this the way you live your last day? http://pulse.yahoo.com/_MO57RYHAQPMJSRGKBJXVTMMWH4 John Get over it. What were you supposed to do as a journalist? And just remember that Steve Jobs as wonderful as the guy could be was the guy who crucified ATI for a relatively innocent leak years before. Jobs apparently didnt care much about the ethical, real world repercussions of his actions as long as he believed they made business sense. More than anything, you were acting Jobsian when you stood your ground against overwhelming pressure. http://www.facebook.com/elisabethcristina.oliveira Elisabeth Cristina Oliveira I LIKED THIS ARTICLE AND GREAT JOB. TALK ABOUT IT MORE. THANKS ROFL Cat Down OK, so lets say I sell widgets at $200 each, and Im selling 1000 per day. In the background Im working and testing Widget 2.0 that I plan to start selling in 3 months. Now, I sell these through a retailer, and they get a $100 kickback from the carrier for each one they sell. Ive already got tens of thousands of widgets in stores, ready to sell, and someone finds out that in 3 months my as yet unannounced Widget 2.0 will be released. Suddenly the people who can wait, will wait, and my vendors will be angry because they now have 10,000 widget 1.0s to sell, but now theyve lost 75% of the sales volume, and will be stuck w/ those widgets that I will now have to discount to sell. That discount will require that I take a loss of $50 per unit to sell them at a clearance price of $100. It also tips my technology hand to my competitors 3 months early, so that gives them a 3 month head-start to catch up or surpass me. Stock price isnt everything. In fact, Stock Price is an imaginary number that is driven more by fear and speculation than actual fact or rate of return these days. During the days of lower P/E ratios it wasnt a big deal. Now it just takes an emotional nudge to send stock prices spiraling even though nothing has changed sales-wise for them. And it robbed Steve Jobs love of magic. Boom! Here it is! Widget 2.0 now with cigar cutter that makes julienne fries!
It has tangible and intangible results.
Howie What a refreshingly honest piece of writing. I never read Gizmodo, but I will now. Athynz @stormchild:disqus - Pot meet kettle. For the record the word irregardless is in fact in the dictionary. It is a non standard usage but is there as well as on dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/irregardless While Brian did not do the right thing initially he did in the end and prior to the loss of Steve jobs man up, owned up, and apologized for his mistakes. I have to admit after reading your post as well as Brians article I gained quite a bit of respect back for him not Gizmodo. As for you I have no respect for you at all and in fact find you to be a complete tool and a total douchebag as well as a lazy jackass who cant even be bothered to do basic research.
Athynz Im sorry that you were a dick as well. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=741959256 Mat Grant Of all the articles I have read about the passing of Steve Jobs, this one actually moved me to tears Athynz Gizmodo was in the wrong as was Brian and they all knew it. Steve gave them the easy way out in Brians own words and they refused. However Im glad to see that he did apologize and he did admit the mistakes he made. He manned up and I have to give him props and respect for that. And all of those on here who are casting stones at Brian for his role in the whole iPhone 4 prototype issue are complete tools and hypocrites. I can guarantee ALL of you have made mistakes in your lives that you regret, did something that you should not have done in a moment of weakness. And more than likely you all have not had the balls to admit it to anyone much less publicly like Brian did. Yes he DID in fact screw up and did so badly. He at least manned up and apologized to the man he wronged.
Kg4vgc What a bucket of crap.
george gobel Wow. I had the exact same reaction. The whole thing reads like a non-apology apology if ever there was one. I would have done the right thing, but you see, I couldnt, because I didnt want to throw other people under the bus. Nonsense at best, serious self-delusion at worst. Get over yourself. Athynz Im guessing you looked into a mirror then? Athynz Im one of those who stopped reading Gizmodo after the whole iPhone 4 prototype fiasco and I have to give you props and some respect for posting your side of the story and admitting your mistakes. It takes cajones to man up like that and admitting your screwups. And its really cool that you were able to apologize to the man you wronged before he passed I have a new respect for you even though I still have no respect for Gizmodo/ Gawker. To all the grammar police wannabes irregardless IS a word. Its irregular usage yes but it is in the dictionary and it is a word irregardless of how you feel about it. And yeah DOH is also in the dictionary.
ROFL Cat Down That wasnt the apology. What it was is him telling us how things really went down, when at the time he couldnt. The feelings he had then, and the feelings he has now along with the regrets. The apology is the letter at the end that tale, and really its supposed to give perspective. Did you even read the title? Steve Jobs was always kind to me. or Regrets of an Asshole. Meaning, he admits what he did was shitty, and doesnt cover it up or excuse it. And, it is really all about him. Steves dead, whats he going to say to him? Now hes just trying to find his own forgiveness and closure as the one person who could give him that information has passed on. Its really no different than someone who never managed to mend fences with their father before they died, or tell their grandparent they loved them, because they feel they didnt do it often enough Take it for what it is, dont read things into it. It is about him, and its about how he felt then, how he feels now, and his regrets about how he handled it.
Anonymous
Brian, awesome article. I am having a hard time believing how much the loss of Steve Jobs affects me. For the past 2 years I have become so much more critical of every move made by Jobs and the people that LOVED his stuff so much. I made the decision to isolate myself from the Apple world thinking I was so much better. Anyway, today, Im sad. I always knew that most of the non-apple stuff I love today is the way it is because of Jobs, but I didnt want to admit it. As I read everything people had to say about Steve I 100% feel the same way. It is awesome to hear about your friendship with him, and it sucks that things went the way they did to effect that friendship. Im glad that you had your chance to apologize. I feel terrible for my past refusal to believe that Steve was as GREAT as really is. As he mentioned in his address to Stanford, its a lot easier to connect all the dots looking backward that it is looking forwards. It wasnt until the final dot of his life was connected I was able to really see his master piece, and admit I benefit from it. Anyway, thanks.
Karana888 Brian, I read this and it brought tears to my eyes. This is a valadation that you grew up to be a decent and honorable young man. You know how to do the right thing. Mom Shane Nelson This needed to be written for long term readers like myself who lost their growing love for Gizmodo when the iPhone 4 deal went down. Blowme B fucin S.. still gaining miles off a guys death huh? I wont call him a great man.. i know its fashionable to say nice things about the dead..but that said.. you saw a biz opp you took it and didnt give a shit about steve or his company..be a man.. cut the BS http://twitter.com/lizavp Liza V. Pantschenko Wow, so this is where you and Kyle went. Awesome. Sorry for being off topic.
Blakego Brilliant article! I read Mossbergs and while I enjoyed it as you did, yours touched me. In a different world you and Steve would have probably been great friends, he clearly respected you and not to many people in this world will ever be able to say that! BillyBob Weve all been there. Jobs and responsibility sometimes require things wed change. It was nice you wrote the letter. Big errors, bigger man, imho. Anonymous Wow. http://lectiblog.blogspot.com/ lecti That was a wonderful and sincere writing that Ive read in quite a while. Ive quit reading Gizmodo after being banned for expressing disgust at what happened. You helped me hate someone a little less today. Thanks. Rtesten A well written and poignant piece. I too faced a similar dilemma (not on this epic of a scale, obviously),and was sure I was right. That Jobs was all that is written about him is of secondary importance. Your honesty, the fact that you actually thought about the consequences afterward, and acted appropriately is the real heart of the article. Thanks. JLee Thank you, Brian, for sharing your story. Regardless of the outcome, you met Steve Jobs, something that no one ever will have a chance to do now. http://twitter.com/justmeblue5ft3 blue5ft3 Ive had some regrets as an as*hole too you can say I am sorry and hope that is good enough its all youve got, good work. http://twitter.com/justmeblue5ft3 blue5ft3 now thats an As*hole comment shame on you Seth Porges Why I love blam. http://twitter.com/LoriFradkin Lori Fradkin A must-read: http://thewirecutter.com/2011/10/steve-jobs-was-always-kind-to-me-or-regrets-ofan-asshole/
http://twitter.com/LoriFradkin Lori Fradkin A must-read: http://thewirecutter.com/2011/10/steve-jobs-was-always-kind-to-me-or-regrets-ofan-asshole/ dwinsmith Awesome. Anonymous Thanks for sharing the story. Always felt you guys did go a bit overboard, and cut ties to a wonderful company in order to get a scoop, but in a way its good to hear that it wasnt an easy choice. Also want to say youre missed at Giz! I dont know if its because you and Jason left, but Gizmodo seems to have totally lost their focus. Theyre not even a gadget blog anymore; 1/4 of their posts have nothing to do with gizmos in the slightest, and another 1/4 are only marginally related. Its very depressing. Jason W. Brian. You learned a valuable lesson and THAT is what is important. http://twitter.com/Dreys Matt Duff Honestly, I thought this post was riveting. Thank you for sharing. Anonymous Ooops read a few other comments where Blam doesnt seem to want to have any mentions of G yet. But, if theres anything I have learnt from reading this post, its that you cant wait too long to tell people how important they are to you. If Brian had waited even a month longer for his last email to Steve, it would have been too late.
Anonymous He gave Gizmodo an out and you told him to fuck himself. Nothing but class at the commode of the internet, Gizmodo.
http://www.facebook.com/chris.furniss Chris Furniss Really glad you got your chance. I always thought it was a douchey move to pounce on that story like you guys did, but I am not your typical Gizmodo reader. Very very glad you got your closure, though. Anonymous
I cant believe you took it as hard as you did. There might be an irresistable urge for just about anyone to please Steve Jobs, it was the easy way out too, but to do that would just be a cop out as the interests of gizmodo and the readers are in direct conflict with apples.
http://twitter.com/kelvinini Kelvin Viola nice article Jafar Al Lahham The iphone 4 was the last iphone steve announced and gizmodo ruined the fun for him.. Rob Very nice article. Im sure he forgave you. Were all just people after all. Sometimes we have to do things that we struggle morally with. It was just a phone; a product his team worked hard on, but a product nonetheless. Im sure Steve understood that. RIP Steve Jobs Schivvers Why should he still be sorry? Just because someone was angry with you for you doing what was right at the time doesnt mean you should be perpetually sorry. Everyone, no matter their station in life is right, and wrong, at some point. Jobs was wrong to demand something that he couldnt claim as his. yeager Great piece Brian. Touched on both the human and competitive sides of both of you for better or worse. I think we all do regretful things almost daily, but seldom do we put forth the effort to let The wronged know our remorse. Nick Brian, Id like to hear your feelings looking back on Ryan Tates posts. Do you feel its good journalism? Are you proud of the Tim Cook piece? Dpang Is Well, if theres a profit in it its only because the public lap it up, and if you dont offer that, then theyre going to buy the other guys paper thats full of those photos and quotes. The media feed the consumer, and the consumer feeds the media. Perhaps there are two parasites involved, two leeches feeding off each other. Theres no one organism feeding of a hapless host, the more the public feeds, the more the media grow.
Search Death Knocks, and youll see it is a common part of journalistic jargon, because everyone engages in it. It was hardly self-defeating, and the amount of buzz it generated for the iPhone 4 was invaluable.
ROFL Cat Down If you think thats profiteering from tragedy you should take a good hard look into the funeral business Shannon Thanks for sharing and letting down your guard in the process Brian. Ive always liked Gizmodo and welcomed even the wacky and sometimes irrelevant articles as diversity and keeping the site fresh. Although Im still trying to get used to the new layout, its not a real big deal to me. I think you need to heed some of Steves wisdom at this time and understand that you cant please everyone, but more importantly to believe in what you are doing to a point where you are able to do great thing, because ultimately, as his life and death has shown us, thats what its all about. http://twitter.com/NerdsByDesign Nerds By Design Fantastic post Brian. look forward to your future work. RIP Steven P. Jobs. Man I would love to see one more SteveNote. http://pulse.yahoo.com/_UOCJS5WTBSUNPG27JOJCCNUDWA jet I just feel lucky I had the chance to tell a kind man that I was sorry for being an asshole The best writing is born of Truth http://pulse.yahoo.com/_UOCJS5WTBSUNPG27JOJCCNUDWA jet You had the privlage to stand up for what you believed and he respected you! Dumbass. Steve was being a bigger man than Lam. Brian did the wrong thing, to a man whod treated him well, just because he COULD. The only thing that sets right about Bs story is that he calls HIMSELF an asshole at the end of it. He was. http://twitter.com/NerdsByDesign Nerds By Design Fantastic post Brian. I look forward to your future writers block lifted work. RIP Steven P. Jobs. Man would I love to see one more SteveNote such a rare human being. halms there was a study sometime ago about how many people actually will return a wallet they found on the street, with the money in it. some never, some did, some just the wallet, some with some of the money. surprisingly, few actually returned the wallet and then admitted using the money
coz they really needed it, and said sorry. its easy to be stupid. but it took a whole lot of courage to admit we are wrong.
Anonymous Thank you for telling your story. After feeling so sad about the death of Steve, I feel like reading this let me see another side of him. On top of that, he kind of presented himself as just another guy, not the CEO of Apple. But at the same time, he still wanted his way. Anyway, if I were you Id assume Id probably quit my job and try to get the phone back to Steve. If however I found a phone from HTC, I cant promise Id see myself giving their phone back if their CEO called. Its just different with Apple for me. Anywho, Im glad you were able to apologize to him before his passing. I know Id feel mighty depressed if I had to keep that type of thing on my heart. This isnt pointed towards you, but Ive stopped reading Gizmodo since this whole iPhone thing. Yeah it was a big story, but it just wasnt right. http://www.facebook.com/look.mother.no.hands Shayne ONeill Its cool, but the wierd iframe scrolling thing is just terrible useability. twomix Terrific story, Brian. It is all about growth and perspective, isnt it? Loved that you could share both with us here. Best wishes, PamIAm Its 5:23 am and Ive barely slept on this business trip. This article was worth losing sleep over. Thanks for your touching tribute. http://www.patrixmyth.com @patrixmyth (Patrick Smith) Well said, Brian. You do have your asshole moments, but dont we all. Glad you had the opportunity to send some positive energy back to him. I remember thinking at the time that the benefits of doing the right thing would surely have outweighed the clicks from going to war. We live. We learn. If were lucky, we get to say sorry. BisAnAsshole He is an asshole. I wish he would of died instead. http://www.facebook.com/dosoqi Maher Dosoqi Brian, Steve liked you and Gizmodo.. you blew the chance of being one of his friends and allies. I hope that you have learned from your mistake as well as everyone whos reading this.
AA
Nasty, horrible comments. Clearly those people did not understand a word of your letter. I very much enjoyed and was touched by the read and felt your dilemma, sadness and regret. I am sure so did Steve Jobs. Thank you for sharing your story it takes strength and intelligence to recognize and accept your mistakes, and then to try to rectify these. I am so happy for you that you sent your email. Good luck with your refreshed writing.
Ale Dear Btian, Excelent article! The life is our biggest school to do things in a incorrect way, review our atitudes and do what you did. Recognize the mistake and do the right thing! Congrats!
Lennart You, Dorothy, are a pathetic excuse for a human being. Gemarks Brian, nice apology, but many reporters today report things from a yellow journalism perspective instead of based on facts. Companies also invest millions of dollars to protect their brand and secrecy. Walt Mossberg has been successful because he knows how to be investigative and mostly objective, but more importantly, he can be trusted. You violated Steves trust when you put him in a tough position. The world needs more people that can be trusted for America to become successful again and that starts with the press, then our political system. The real reason Christie did not run for President?? He did not T want to endure to press scrutiny of what he had for dinner http://twitter.com/brianbowie Brian Cameron Bowie Its unfortunate after such an honest article that people seem to think this is the platform to bash Gizmodo. It takes a big man to realise his mistake and apologise, it takes a even bigger man to print it. Thanks for the article. Anonymous SATAN? Rina Oh
Brian, you suck. If you dont love what youre doing- find something else to do. If you dont love the story youre writing, find another one to publish. You could have waited on your story and published it maybe the day the iphone 4 went live (a good journalist would have made that judgement call). Then Apple would have thanked you, not hated you and blacklisted you and all your co-workers for life. You would have saved yourself the shame and grief youve caused then, a dying Steve Jobs who probably suffered unsolicited stress from you and yours. Nice move. You are what you call yourself. And now youre posting this so people read your lame articles when they google search a man who invented the computer youre probably typing on! Stop writing about your miniscule email exchange. Im annoyed your story pops up when I search Steve Jobs online.
http://twitter.com/jayantr7 Jayant Raj Can I consider it as the best tribute post for Steve Jobs? Yeah! It may be. But life has to go on Anonymous Few have a chance to actually show respect to someone they resect. You had that chance and blew it. Ego, artificial integrity and the desire to have power over the powerful, even if it wasnt earned, led you to act the way you did. You took a great opportunity and pissed on it. That you regret what you did is your saving grace. Admitting we are wrong is never easy but it is always liberating.
Anonymous this site uses disqus am I being monitored here too? (serious q also, what is this spyware you speak of?) Stc4 It is never to late to admit that you did something wrong. Your internal moral code told you that what you did was not the right thing to do. Imagine the respect you would have if you had stood up and did the right thing. Greed and a lack of moral code is driving society to forget what is right. http://www.esfeed.com Jeffrey Effendi I wish youd know the difference between would of and wouldve. Would of does not make sense given the context of your sentence. Wouldve is a contraction of the words would and have. A person who doesnt know the difference between the two shouldnt really be criticising journos. Cathleen
This was a great article. I think it is fantastic that you (Brian) have stepped back and learned from this incident. You have shared a part of your heart in a positive way and I commend you for that. I am so glad you have forgiven yourself allowing you to move forward. Being the incredible man he was, I am sure Steve Jobs would feel the same way. Good luck in your future endeavors.
jjammerzs Brian, Great article Though death is sad, sharing stories like yours lets you see the different sides of the person we are trying to remember Steve must have had numerous sides thanks for sharing the one you were able to see. A fan.
http://twitter.com/mtfan Vahe G. of course was interesting to read.. but was disgusting very much too. you said who are a big fan of him, amazed by what he has done.. then.. when he calls you and asks you to do something which is ethitcal thing to do in first place and says he doesnt blame you.. you just.. you know there are people, who do right thing at right time..and other time they just prepare for that.. like Stevee Jobs and there are people who do just the opposite http://nomic.com Nate Boyd I really do not understand why it was important to insist on going the legal/paper route. Do not understand what this has to do with journalistic integrity or just plan and simple ethics. Cathleen obviously you did not comprehend Brians writing. Hoser Man I hate your site, too much Java Run Time crap, too slow to load and you really screwed Steve, it wasnt your phone. Cathleen WOWwithout anger in your heart, take a moment to step back and read the article again. Perhaps you will see it is not selfish but rather honorable. http://twitter.com/arenasolutions Arena Solutions
Well Im glad you were able to forgive yourself, hopefully the lesson will stick with you in future business dealings. Sometimes Silicon Valley can a pretty selfish, messed up place the way people in business treat one another.
http://twitter.com/GuyStokie Guy Harvey Well lets face it, not as bad has hacking the voice mails of dead people like Murdochs people! Josh Cel Tosh thanks for sharing this experience! It is true, you were a greedy ashold. Rina Oh I take back my previous comment of youre probably typing on an apple computer he invented. BRIAN, YOU ARE PROBABLY ONE OF THE OTHERS, YOU KNOW- THE ONES WHO ONLY SEE BLACK AND WHITE. TEXT TYPE PERSONALITIES. Thats why you wouldnt give him back his phone. Youre just not one of us. Youre not an apple user. Youre a poser. amop Congratulations for this article. I lost all respect for Gizmodo and the whole team associated with the lost iPhone 4 and have never returned to the site. Your article here returns my respect to you. We have never met. Doesnt matter. Well done Mr. Lam. I hope you can sleep better now. You deserve to.
http://profiles.google.com/rhenderson Richard Henderson Brian, I stopped reading Gizmodo because of the way you and your team treated the hand that fed you you guys should have done things so much differently. Taken some pictures, posted some shots, given it back. No hoopla. I still think you should have ended up in jail for what happened. Now, that being said, after reading this its nice to see that you regret some of the things that happened, and found your piece. And youll always be able to say that you went toe-to-toe with Steve Jobs and won. I guess maybe youre not the complete asshole you made yourself out to be back then.
I wish the wirecutter well. I love the e-zine/txtfile style. Its great.
http://www.firstdomainer.com dname Great article!Thanks! ZachMatthews Im not going to read all the comments. I was one of the (starred or whatever) commenters on Giz saying, whoa guys, bad idea. The problem is that you guys were about to get burned for the first time, and we all saw it coming, but thats journalism, you know? Woodward and Bernstein never did anything as big again. They could literally make a movie about what went down at Giz and I would go see it. I was glad to experience it. And when iPhone 10 is out, it truly will be nothing more than a footnote. It obviously cost you personally, BLam, but it also freed you from what I really think is a kind of Tragic Kingdom over there and for that you ought to be happy. We will all miss Steve; this was a good piece of writing and the kind of thing I used to read Gizmodo for on a multi-daily basis. (I stopped). Zach
Largents nice write-up brian. we all learn from our mistakes. some are bigger and affect more people than others. some hurt only ourselves. as i see it, you did it all almost right. http://www.facebook.com/people/Christina-Buquid/3305210 Christina Buquid Great post about that icky moral dilemma all click-hungry reporters face. My vote still goes for the relentless pursuit of truth ps: Im pro old gizmodo too. Stopped reading it after the redesign just because of UI. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=500059332 Fred Goodwin Brian: My story is not directly related but I got a chance to tell my dad (actually my step-father, who raised me from childhood) how much I loved him before he died. As a teen-ager, I fought with him constantly, calling him Archie Bunker and worse. After Id grown up, gotten married, had a child, I was back home for Christmas, and all my brothers and I
(all adults by then) just hugged our dad and told him how much we loved him and how much we appreciated him marrying our mom and raising us. We were all crying like babies. He died a few years later of a stroke. I know many guys grow up hating their dads but later regretting they never got a chance to reconcile before their fathers passed away. I thank God every day that I got that chance and did not miss the opportunity. Im glad you were able to do the same.
Megapixeldave didnt find this article sincere. wanted us to think it was but i dont buy it. have a good life. hope you learned something. Anonymous Nice writing blam. U were engadget. I hope to see you writing more soon. http://pulse.yahoo.com/_SQ5BZH55HF6IPMWMJPXJM57JGM Lierre de Poison Loved this article. I react exactly the same when I am in situations such as this. Im glad that the guilt has lifted for you. You are a wonderful writer. GBU. http://samulczyk.pl Sebastian Samulczyk Nice story Colin Ng Brian, The fact that you liked this post proves to me that youre not actually sorry, and havent changed a bit. Im not trying to be harsh, but do you see what I am getting at? In your original writing to SJ, you never once took responsibility for your actions. It was always somebody elses fault either the masses that need to know or, the team I cant throw under the bus. Did you once think that, maybe, perhaps, you were actually really reall y wrong? And lets not say somebody else is wrong, or maybe others were a-holes in the past. This really is about your decision, and your own conscience. Im not throwing stones Ive screwed up too. But the sooner we really begin to accept our faults, the sooner we can correct them. The first step of the 12 step program
Dont hide behind the facade of people cheering you on, or blaming Apple, or even those blaming the masses for wanting the scoop. There are PLENTY of other journalists, like Mossberg, who got the scoop because they have proven they can be trusted. Maybe you are young, but really, the sooner you get out of the habit of blaming others, the sooner you can start to earn their trust. This applies to your readers as well as those who have the info you seek. Good luck! C
http://plus.google.com/108674524375052114820/posts David Abraham Thanks for this. Anonymous Nice story. Youre lucky. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=596875406 Leslie Irish Evans This is a really touching piece. Thank you for it. Byrnebuffalodown this was a pretty touching article. I think sometimes we can learn something we never expected about ourselves from places we didnt expect. Anonymous Amazing story. Im glad you wrote this and its not easy to admit you did something wrong. Anonymous quit sucking up. Joe Lowery Dude Ive enjoyed your story. You did the right thing by apologizing to Steve about the hassles it caused. It was ok to ask for the letter the letter was the positive proof. That was your job. And he knew it. Like you said, Apple used to like to stick it to The Man, but now, they ARE The Man. And your apology was just right. And Denton is a shithead for his journalistic trashmouth, saying you should be writing for The Apologist. Apparently, he has no heart or soul. You have both, and you did the right thingeach time. My regards, Joe Lowery alan
you need more line-height in your body copy it would be a lot easier to read
Tenzin Peljor Brian, an honest and nice article. Thank you! Cclbr I agree.. after gizmodo changed their site to be so ocmplicated, I stoppped reading it. It was always my number one site before. Cablegod01 It makes you said my comment is next to yours? Let met elaborate why I said what I said. I fully recognize what Brian is doing, making peace with what happened. But it does not change what happened Mr Jobs asked for a contained leak and it didnt happened. Did I read the article? Hell yes. . Did I like what I was reading. . Of course!!!! But, did I realize Jobs asked for this device and to remain quiet about it. . . Definitely not. . . I see it as a jab directly to him and the company he helped create. Common, they could have come to an agreement, but instead they brought it forward and ruined their credibility. Was it directly with Lam, probably not. . . but it was parent company, so I believe they lost more than a simple hey we brought you the leak of the iphone 4 before everyone else.. I for one still have my iphone4 and havent lost anything, what have they lost??
Anonymous Wonderful piece. Im moved, no joke. Brian Lame That was one of the most self serving articles that I ever read. Brian, there are two things I cant forgive you for: 1) Being absolutely wrong in the way you blackmailed Apple, 2) Timing your apology so that it would reward you with many hits. I assume youll be posting an apology for the timing of this apology? You should have apologized to Steve Jobs privately and leave it at that. Guest Hes just doing his job. Fem Bot I stopped reading Gizmodo and everything Gawker that day. I worked at Apple at the time and saw the rage and disappointment on everyones faces.
Its one thing to create something beautiful, that millions will see and still be ethical. Its another to ruin the hours of love and passion in a fit of unethical greed and publicity. I worked at Apple for 7 years on interfaces and never once saw greed drive what we did. Youll understand when you create something beautiful, without greed. One day, I hope you do.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Zhanna-Khachatryan/100001068166736 Zhanna Khachatryan Will there be another Steve Jobs? At a different time, different place, and different focus, yes. http://www.coldscoop.com/2011/10/10/will-there-ever-be-another-steve-jobs-the-opinions-ofthose-who-know-him-better/ Matt Dudek Great article Brian. Not that it matters to you, but youve earned my respect for writing this and apologizing. Im sure this wasnt easy. I have now put wirecutter in my RSS feed though, good luck with it.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Terrin-Bell/690507487 Terrin Bell I like they insight into the lost iPhone drama especially your remorse. I thought Gizmodo handled that incident very poorly. The story was the phone being lost and the circumstances around it. Nothing more. Gizmodo, however, made the story about Gizmodo once it bought the phone because a person cant legally sell something the person does not own and Gizmodo shouldnt be buying something it knows belongs to somebody else. The only reason Gizmodo got away with it is the local prosecutor didnt feel like wasting resources on the BS free press issue. I takes no sense that the person who finds the phone is being prosecuted, but the media corporation who was equally if not more complicit is not. Once Gizmodo bought the phone for the sole purpose of taking the phone apart it was not reporting a story but creating it. Further, Gizmodo failed to have compassion by calling out the Apple Engineer who lost the phone under questionable circumstance. The persons name wasnt needed to make the story. Moreover, Gizmodo showed port taste in its emails to Steve complaining that it had to take the actions it did because Apple supposedly locked it out of its events, which seems like BS if Steve was a big fan of the Site. Some lessons are learned the hard way, and I appreciate you owning up to your mistakes. Gizmodo didnt need a letter from Steve that it was his phone because if it didnt know it was Steves phone, it wouldnt have paid for it. Had Gizmodo treated this matter much differently, by
just doing the right thing and giving the phone back, Steve would have remembered that, and you would have felt better about yourself.
cloudspotter love this I would hire you, even if I worked for Apple. Great life lesson. Guest Also, kind of not cool to wish death on someone, but I guess that grammar mistake was much more important. Jamie Great post. Great read. AbsolutReh i didn;t think it was that bad? The new site is kinda bad. Jeevan Takhar It may have been better if this article wasnt posted so close to Steve Jobs death. It was an interesting read nonetheless. Anonymous Just wonderful! Well-written, every line made one want to keep on reading. Good insights into Steve himself and into your dilemma and later reactions to it. Youve shown that Steve could be a real class actand your reflections on what happened and your apology demonstrates that you are, too! Congrats on an essay that really is a different take on Steve the human being. Createorconsume OMG! You make it sound like you killed someone or something! I think in hindsight we can all agree that this story only helped fuel the unstoppable hype machine at the time. You got a scoop. You published it. Steve got angry but still sold a bazillion phones. You got sad:( aaaww. Neither you, Steve or the public suffered from that lost phone so quit whining. Writers block! Jesus.
Fotoguy99 Free speech is a pain in the ass, isnt it Tony. Bet youre pissed that you cant ban commenters HERE! I wasnt aware of the background story behind the iPhone thing, so now I understand why YOU moved or banned every commenter who dared to disagree with Gizmodos recent deification of Mr. Jobs. I agree my comment was a little harsh (fotoguy99 btw), but you were
banning other people for next to nothing. Guilty conscience much? Desperately trying to win Apple back? As for this article, I respect Brian for coming clean here. He did something wrong, but he was man enough to publicly apologize for it. Thats not something you normally get from a journalist. Sometimes whats best for your career isnt whats best for your integrity or conscience. Thats a harsh life lesson that the Gizmodo staff should learn from. I enjoyed Giz a lot more before the iPhone fiasco, but now it just seems to be all about the clicks..
Steve Jobs While most of this article is true, I did write a response to your apology, its probably in your spam. (the supposedly late)steve (conspiracy theorists gonna conspire theories)
Anonymous apple is not some virtual entity, but instead it is made up of a lot of actual people. probably thousands of them have worked for years to build the then new iphone. you are basically shitting these people in the face for a very brief smug Gotcha! moment and some $$$. You may lie to yourself that you are doing some sort of service by doing this really? nobody wins from this kind of reporting except Apples competitors and you, at least in the short term. by now however you probably realized that you guys will be barred for life from any kind of Apple access. In many ways I am disgusted by Hollywoods paparazzis and tabloids and their utterly parasitic existence. They do not create but they exist solely by leeching. They have no morals, in fact the worse the better as this will sell their crap. You are the tech equivalent of this. shameful.
Artist If this was sincere, maybe now you can look at your site with a clear eye, because anything Apple always has a sarcastic/negative slant, wheres the sincerity in continually doing that? I havent had to read the articles since the 4 fiasco, the Titles tell me the flavor ahead of time.
http://www.facebook.com/philip.machanick Philip Machanick Thats number of not amount of.
Gyqicvqvcvqecvqv I HAVE NEVER SEEN SOMEONE WITH MORE STUPID MORAL VALUES THAN YOU UDUMANN OR SHOULD I SAY UDUMASS. However, Brian Alm you are not a bad person after apologizing. Afsagfgagvsvfhgdsha oh the random email becomes ur name I meant Guest. Bbhbhibvhibvhivhik But he dint do something right. Your arguement is invalid to the extreme. Maryswetnam Brian You are a weak person and seemingly havent learned a simple lesson. When you find something that is not yours and you know who it belongs to, you return it immediately- any 5 year old knows this. It is so simply. Your too-little too-late apology was simply to assuage your own conscience. If it did, then the next time you have a simple decent act waiting for you- you will probably fail and try to justify the indefensible. http://www.massauthentics.ecrater.com joshua hastings You know this site uses disqus too though right? http://www.massauthentics.ecrater.com joshua hastings I agree, I really enjoyed the entire story and how it connected, great post brian. http://twitter.com/Krugmania Krugmania I wonder if you sent your apology because you knew that Steve was in his last days. micker ja neumim moc dobre anglicky, ale tento clanek me diky ceskemu prekladu http://jablickar.cz/o-redaktorovi-vycitkach-a-vzpominkach-na-steva-jobse/ velice pekne oslovil, dekuji za nej. steve jobs byl a je opravdu velky clovek. jeste jednou dekuji za velice pekny clanek. michael nemec google translate: I can not very well English, but this article my thanks to the Czech translation of a very nice said, thank you for it. Steve Jobs was and is truly a great man. Thank you again for a very nice article. Michael Nemec Curtiswalker
Your best writing yet.
himelator Himel The threat of liabilty and swinging lawyers can sometimes reduce the ability to be charitable and kind to each other.the simple act of helping can often turn into an unkind liability getting acknowledgement aside.sometimes we just have to get agrevated for the sake of business Lickirishallsorts Interesting article, if I wanted to teach my kids the definition of greed, Ill discuss this iphone episode. You made a bad call, whats patronising is the attempt to cover it by saying you had a job to do, in simple terms you bit the hand that fed you Sorry to say this, but most infants know better. Steven Dodd Brian Lam Ultimate Vendetta Fail The war between Brian Lam (former Gawker Head) and Nick Denton (Current Gawker Owner) has been escalating in recent months but it went sideways for Brian Lam recently. As the story goes, after hearng a particularly disparaging tirade from Mr. Lam, friends of Mr. Lam went to a bar where they accidently met members of a very stealthy and very bad ass south American biker club called Los Mojaves. Mr. Lams friends, whisky lubricated, inferred that it would be good if this guy named Nick Denton was made to be sorry. The main biker guy said, no problemo and some kind of deal was struck. The next morning the friends-o-Lam sorta recalled the conversation but are not entirely sure what they said. Spanish biker-types were seen photographing the staff leaving the New York Gawker offices and nobody knows how to get ahold of Los Mojaves now. Now Lam is in the unenviable position of having to deny it ever happened in order to avoid liability if anything does happen and trying to get his contacts to find the bikers to adjust the deal. Gotta love it
Phreqd I hope he was buried and not cremated. I need to dig him up so you i-Phonies can make sweet love to your hero/dictator. http://twitter.com/twinklecup Twink Slithersby lol prescriptive linguistics English is a living language and if enough people say irregardless with the same intended meaning, its a word. Period. Thats how languages work.In other words youre a pompous idiot who knows nothing about language but sees himself as some kind of authority figure. Its pretty hilarious, to be honest.
http://twitter.com/twinklecup Twink Slithersby who cares if some evil corporation that enslaves impoverished Chinese workers and dumps toxic waste in the Yangtze River is disadvantaged by someone legitimately finding one of their prototypes and writing about it? Why does anyone think theres some kind of moral obligation to keep it a secret? Jesus christ. Anonymous Run along now, little troll. Anon the whole time I was waiting for you to call Jobs the Asshole loL!! Blog Youre a complete wuss. You were legitimately breaking a scoop but felt bad about not letting the big rich guy that gets his way all the time not get his way this time. Why? If he didnt reply to your last email after replying to many of them in the past it means he didnt care about your apology because in the end he did not get his way. You feel bad for Apple? How quaint. Theyre doing just fine regardless of your actions. If they dont want people to report on new prototypes then dont lose those prototypes. It made your spirit weak? Please. Grow a pair. And who ever described Steve Jobs as a kind man? Certainly not his employees or his competitors. Yes, his family and his cult followers but not many more.
Gordon Ung DUDE
I mean we totally fucked it up, man. We fucked up his pay-off. And got the kidnappers all pissed off, and the big Lebowski yelled at me a lot, but he didnt do anything. Huh?
WALTER Well its, sometimes the cathartic, uh.
DUDE Im saying if he knows Im a fuck- up, then why does he still leave me in charge of getting back his wife? Because he fucking doesnt want her back, man! Hes had enough! He no longer digs her! Its all a show! But then, why didnt he give a shit about his million bucks? I mean, he knew we didnt hand off his briefcase, but he never asked for it back.
WALTER Whats your point, Dude?
DUDE His million bucks was never in it, man! There was no money in that briefcase! He was hoping theyd kill her! You throw out a ringer for a ringer!
WALTER Yeah?
DUDE Shit yeah!
WALTER
Okay, but how does all this add up to an emergency?
DUDE Huh?
WALTER Im saying, I see what youre getting at, Dude, he kept the money, but my point is, here we are, its shabbas, the sabbath, which Im allowed to break only if its a matter of life and death
DUDE Walter, come off it. Youre not even fucking Jewish, youre
WALTER What the fuck are you talking about?
DUDE Youre fucking Polish Catholic
WALTER What the fuck are you talking about? I converted when I married Cynthia! Come on, Dude!
DUDE Yeah, and you were
WALTER You know this!

Heart Touching Story What Is The Use of Crying Nowgj

Caricato da

Informazioni sul documento

Titolo originale

Copyright

Formati disponibili

Condividi questo documento

Condividi o incorpora il documento

Opzioni di condivisione

Hai trovato utile questo documento?

Questo contenuto è inappropriato?

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

Heart Touching Story What Is The Use of Crying Nowgj

Caricato da

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

Heart Touching story what is the use of crying now?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

1 person rated this as good

Asker's Rating: Asker's Comment: Thanks. i thank all.

Email Comment (0) Save

Other Answers (19)

1 person rated this as good

1 person rated this as good

1 person rated this as good

Really a heart stirring story. o o o

1 person rated this as good

Heart touching story :'( o o o

1 person rated this as good

sridaran What a wonderful story!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!..really its heart touching story.. o

Dont cry . Cry is No solution o o o

1 person rated this as good

1 person rated this as good

1 person rated this as good

you cant give up an eye. just sayin o o

1 person rated this as good

2 people rated this as good

2 people rated this as good

Resolved Question Show me another

these are my favourites :) >http://www.bestinspiration.com/stories/W http://varietyreading.carlsguides.com/fo http://www.myfavoriteezines.com/articles http://www.heartnsouls.com/stories/m/s12

window of opportunity its a true story to o o

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

3 people rated this as good

Email Comment (0) Save

Other Answers (14)

1 person rated this as good

so salty/sweet of you for sharing o o

good one, thanx for sharing o o o

1 person rated this as good

good one if we read from a lovely mind o o o

1 person rated this as good

NICE,SWEET. THANK YOU FOR SHARING. o o

Another story! It is a story of a girl who smiled again.

4 people rated this as good

9 people rated this as good

Resolved Question Show me another

Do you know any touching stories?

Veggie misses you...............

Loved those books.

A Long Way from Chicago

4 years ago Report Abuse

Email Share21410 Tweet

"He just kind of looked at me," Kemp said.

20 Inspiring Rags-to-Riches Stories

Email Recommend 2.1k Tweet

away, to extreme poverty, and more.

financialtimes/FlickrThe current head of Brazilian oil giant

Harold Simmons grew up in a shack without electricity and became a multi-billionaire

ForbesNow a billionaire several times over, Harold Simmons

Source: Forbes, D Magazine

YouTube/TuckIn 1980, when he was 19 years old, Bakala fled

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Wikimedia CommonsGeorge Soros survived the Nazi

mission_canada/FlickrThe Canadian-born Lalibert began his

REUTERS/Eric HendersonAs a first generation American,

REUTERS/Robert SorboSchultz grew up in the Bayview

Source: Mirror News

Source: Harvard Business Publishing

FlickrPinault quit high school in 1947 after being teased for