When Steve Jobs’s heart doesn’t attack

Alright, people, take it easy. Don’t believe everything you read on those Internets. Steve Jobs has not had a heart attack, despite a “story” that appeared on CNN’s iReport citizen journalism site. Silicon Alley Insider contacted Apple PR, where VP Katie Cotton said the story was completely untrue; the story has since been removed from CNN’s site.

With concerns about Jobs’s health rampant since this year’s WWDC, even a false story like this can have a significant impact on the company. Witness Apple’s stock price, which took a big dip when the “news” was published. Beyond the potential loss of value for shareholders, such a manipulation could easily be used to purchase Apple stock at a lower price—a move that would probably constitute tampering with the stock market, something that, as the Insider points out, the SEC would be all too happy to investigate.

It’s days like this when I just think “isn’t it nice to live in a country where one person can make a difference?”