I know many of you won’t care about this, but it involves a big CEO of a major company whose products I use literally every day. Apple CEO Tim Cook (he replaced the late Steve Jobs) has long supported LGBT rights, publicly and privately. The culture of the business world and tech companies has changed a lot over the years, but I generally think that most tech companies and most people who work in tech are probably left-of-center politically. So, Tim Cook probably wasn’t an outlier in his tech community as a supporter of LGBT rights. Well, during a discussion on CNBC on Friday, Cook was publicly “outed” by CNBC’s Simon Hobbs. Here’s video:
So, here’s my question: does it matter? Tim Cook’s Twitter feed has references to Apple employees participating in Pride (in San Francisco), he tweets about ENDA and LGBT politics and he hasn’t issued one word about the CNBC incident. I tend to think this is a glass closet situation – obviously, his sexuality is his business alone, but it sounds like the people around him know he’s gay and no one really cares. And, as I said, he took part in the Pride March with other LGBT Apple employees. So… does it really matter? I kind of think his silence means he doesn’t really care that he was “outed” on CNBC? Here’s why it matters: it would have been extraordinary if Tim Cook “came out” publicly and became the first major tech CEO to do so.
PRIDE!!! pic.twitter.com/OcrTbnatXM
— Mark Bober (@markbober) June 29, 2014
Congrats to 5000 Apple employees/families who attended today’s Pride parade.Inclusion inspires innovation.#applepride pic.twitter.com/4DncX8F6fO
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) June 29, 2014
Photos courtesy of Twitter, WENN.
Outing someone without their consent always matters, no matter who they are, how many of their friends/family already know, or how accepting society in general. We don’t know his reasons for staying sub rosa.
100+ It should be his choice, no one else’s.
Godwina, i just came to this thread to say exactly that, and you said it so perfectly that I must bow down to you. Are you a real God, btw? I’m so in love with yr screen-name. I want to be named that for reals. I think I would actually allow myself to be reborn and do my whole entire batshit-crazy life all over again if only I could somehow persuade my mother to name me Godwina. >>>sigh<<<
+1000000
+10000
( even if it’s not a secret)
ITA, it’s his business if and when he decides to share it, his friends, family and colleagues may know but he may not have been ready for the world to know.
I already knew this, wasnt he out at the time of his appointment. I know his sexuality was definitely covered in mainstream media because I did know and I’m hardly the most clued up person.
Even if he himself had never said a thing, it may well be that the journalist thought he was out given how widely known this info was. Again seriously, did people really not see the coverage when he was appointed?
It doesn’t matter if Tim Cook is gay or not, but still, I can’t believe what a tool this Simon Hobbs is, who seems gay himself, coincidentally. Why does he feel this is his business to mention it on air? It has no bearing on any kind of news. He really has no class or manners.
I also new that Cook was gay. This was mentioned in business periodicals when he took over for Jobs. There was nothing to “out”.
As a gay man, it matters to me that a highly accomplished person outs himself. His orientation is not the most important thing about him but woukdn’t it be nice to see a gay person taking the place of Steve Jobs. It could influence the way people see gay men in the corporate world.
Does it matter that he is gay? No of course not. As long as someone is happy, it doesn´t matter if they are in love with a woman or a man.
But it does matter that he was publicly outed. I don´t get why someones sexuality is that big of a deal in the first place and why people feel the need to speculate about it. Unless someone is openly gay and happy to talk about it, it´s just nobodys business. Everyone has the right to come out on their own terms or to stay in the closet if they wish to. Coming out is such a personal matter and that someone else did it for him is just wrong.
Thank you, Godwina. I 100% agree.
200% with you.
Should it matter to us that he was outed on CBS? Not at all. He’s still the same person, it doesn’t make a difference.
Should it matter to him? That’s his personal choice really. I don’t know what his wishes were. Whatever makes him comfortable. I hope the person that was interviewed respected that.
Agreed. It doesn’t matter to me at all. Still hate his products
But i hope he’s okay with this too :/
It should matter to us because his privacy is his privacy. The violation of his personal information should matter to every person who believes in the freedom to control your own life and not have others do it for you.
Yes
Privacy is to be valued. And no one should have a secret they have aired so publicly. A secret they have that isn’t hurting anyone at least.
But…
His sexuality shouldn’t matter to anyone. Shame this is something people still care to know. The only time I feel I need to know someone’s preference is when I take an interest in them… And since i’m married I just don’t need to know and I can’t find myself caring.
If anything i’m annoyed people still make this a thing. That outing this man was actualy news to some people. That people care enough to tell the world (for ratings) is the worst part here. Ugh.
You bet it matters that Tim Cook was outed. It’s his business, glass closet or not.
Exactly. Supporting Gay Pride parade doesn’t mean you are gay or outing yourself. It’s just smart businness as a CEO living close to San Francisco. If he is really gay let him out himself to the public in his own way.
apparently he doesn’t care but I still don’t think anyone should be ‘outed’ without their consent.
Agreed. No news interviewer should “out” someone unless they have asked prior to the interview, and been given permission to ask questions/make statements about sexual orientation etc.
Yes it matters, he should be able to tell his truth in his own time/way.
Yup. One of the many reasons I stopped reading Perez. He is ALWAYS outing people and it’s always inappropriate.
Plus he’s more worried about sucking up to celebrities to try to be one than actually reporting on them
He’s an awful blogger
I thought he was ‘out’, it certainly never seemed like he was trying to hide it in any way. I think there’s a difference between outing someone who’s very much in the closet publicly and just mentioning someone’s sexuality when they haven’t gone as far as putting out a press release about it. Not everyone wants to make a public announcement about their sexuality, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t ‘out’, just that they’re private.
You can be out and you can be private, but the existence of both conditions is not a tacit/passive consent to have your sexual preference made public. Explicit permission is the only way to show respect for someone else’s rights and wishes. Otherwise it is up to the media to guess based on how “out” they feel the subject is acting, dressing, living etc. not cool at all.
Agreed, I just find all these “Hey I’m gay announcements, let’s have a press conference and blather on about how that has impacted my life” :
1-Obnoxious
2-Contradictory
If the message is that straight or gay shouldn’t matter, then these things shouldn’t warrant any announcements. People are not required to declare they are straight why should they be required to declare they ar gay? It doesn’t mean they are in the closet, it just means that they are living their lives normaly and if it is germaine to the conversation or issue that they have a same sex partner or that they are attracted to the same sex they’ll address it but other than that why the heck should they have to announce it?
Then what happens is that every single interview of that person going forward is framed by “the gay outlook of a on b” instead of “the expert/competent outlook of a on b” It’s just as obnoxious as all these actresses, sports women having to defend how much of a feminist they are and how it’s a female point of view so it’s sooooo unique. Nonsense.
I don’t care about anyone’s sexual preference, even more so when it comes to people “in power” : it’s so tacky! Who cares?! Within context yes, if it’s just to make some random announcement and/or having everyone of your next interviews framed by this one component of who you are then no.
btw don’t know if any of you watch Portlandia, one of my favorite episode was when “the mayor of Portland” decided that being gay is so main stream today it’s just boring, and seeing their pride match is just seeing a bunch of normal people walking by so really they should replace the gay pride with something else and so he brainstorms with some employees as to “who is really opressed these days?” “who’s in the minority opinion”, the answer: bigots. So he has a bigot pride march which is just hilarious. Because it’s so ridiculous but then again it’s getting to that point…. so can we let these silly announcements go and just have people live their lives and things come up naturally?
It seems that a lot of gay people have hostility toward well known people who are gay and “in the closet”. It is rather vicious.
I honestly think that by openly supporting the LGBT community and NOT addressing the fact that he was “outed” is good. To me, it just seems better. It’s like a reflection of the kind of future I would like to see, where people have their sexuality and don’t have to say what camp they’re in because it’s no longer an issue. So, if you’re gay, you’re gay. It’s not like straight people come out and tell people they’re straight. I’d like to see a day where gay people don’t have to do that either.
Me, too, Rachel. I think the day will come when it makes no more difference than your hair color, and I can’t wait for that day.
Yes!
I think it’s not OK to out someone publicly without consent (he’s not even a “public figure” so to speak, but someone with a high ranked job), but that he doesn’t even address it looks really awesome to me. It’s no one’s business. No straight person has to issue a statement about it and the same should apply to anyone else.
I always thought it was no ones business but does it matter who the individual is? There plenty of times people are always crying out for someone famous to come out and when they do it feels like it was forced which I think it is still wrong so it will be hypocritical to say it was wrong without their consent and yet people are writing and saying to come out already..
Just saying
It’s always innapropriate but it seems like it might not be a big bad terrible deal because he wasn’t being a hypocritical butt about his stance on LGBTQA rights and such (*ahem* Christian Family Values Closet cases in Congress)
Which reminds me I need to see the documentry Outrage. It’s about closested gay congressmen who ‘ve voted against gay rights legislation.
OMG DO! it was an AMAZING movie
Does it matter that Tim Cook is gay? Uh no. Does it matter that he was outed by someone else without his consent? Oh yeah. Big time. Does cook’s refusal or reluctance to come ot with some grand, public proclamation about his sexuality mean that he’s ashamed of his sexuality? Uh no. It simply means he finds it irrelevant (as well it should be). It seems to me that Tim Cook finds it more meaningful to be predominantly known for his technical genius and business savvy as the CEO of Apple rather than become the poster child for the gay activist community so they can parade him around and say “Look! Gay people can be CEO’s too!” (which would put them in Captain Obvious territory). Just as Colin Powell made a conscious decision to make his race a “non-issue” and instead put the focus on his distinguished career, so too it seems Tim Cook would rather be known for the things he worked REALLY hard to achieve rather than the sexual identity he was born with.
I always thought he was out?
I thought so as well. When he took over for Jobs there were stories and there were never any denials about them. It was not a secret and it was something he never denied and also not talked about.
Does it matter that he’s gay? Not to me, and hopefully not to anyone else. Does it matter that he was outed? I think so. That’s a huge, huge overstep. Unfortunately being gay still has a stigma, and as such, I think it’s up to the individual to decide whether or not they want to enter the fray and I will not judge anyone’s decision to remain in the closet, or to come out of it. It’s intensely personal, and I actually feel really angry on his behalf.
I don’t see everyone’s need these days to advertise what they do in private. Why does everyone need a label?? Can’t we just conduct our private sexual lives in private?? What’s next? Hiring out a billboard to advertise what your sexual preference is?? If he wants to keep his private life private, kudos to him. More people should learn to do the same.
This is about is sexual orientation not his sexual preferences.Also it drives me crazy when people mention Gay people need to keep their sex lives private.This is not about sexual behavior or sex lives.I know several Gay people who are virgins and a few others who are celibate.They are still Gay despite the fact they don’t have a “sex life”
I guess I should be happy nobody has used that ridiculous statement about Gays “flaunting”
Cont
Mentioning your spouse or having a picture of your partner on your desk is only called “flaunting” when it’s a same sex partner.
I have yet to read a comment about a heterosexual couple announcing their engagement called “flaunting” their heterosexuality or throwing their sex life in people’s faces.Sorry for the rant but I am helping my best friend who is Gay plan his wedding.I’m so tired of hearing people refer to his sex life or comparing his love to other sins like adultery.
I am fine with everyone hetero, gay, bi, lesbian … whatever you want to do if you’re a consenting adult. I don’t see why love needs all these labels. You love a man? Great. You love a woman? That’s great too. My cousin is a lesbian and I love her the same as I did when she was married to a man. It makes no difference to me, she is still the same person.
I just look at ppl like Miley and etc who want to flaunt their crotches in our faces and wonder if anything that is supposed to be private is actually private anymore.
Gawker and NYT have been “outing” this man for years.
I thought he was out. I’m an Apple fangirl and assume that most Apple-types knew anyhow. Still not cool to be outed without consent, but it seems to have been a genuine mistake.
why does anyone’s sexuality matter when discussing something non-sexual?
it’s the same old stupid bs as mentioning a female’s choice of clothes when discussing their public policy.
way to keep enforcing stereotypes. it is petty and what is the true motivation behind bringing it up? usually to belittle and undermine, consciously or subconsciously.
is there really no hope for intelligent news? maybe we are too obsessed with sex as a culture.
He was already out by his own choice at the time of his appointment. His orientation made news back then. Not defending the newscaster’s general behavior.
Co-signing with everyone who says no one should be outed without their consent.
Two things: First, Tim Cook’s sexual orientation has been pretty well known for a long while. He is a brilliant executive. Sexual preferences have no bearing on one’s ability to do their job. Cook has never kept it hidden. But neither has he made an explicit statement at an awards ceremony a la Jodie Foster outing herself at the Academy Awards. Cook did reference his sexuality in several public speeches he’s made on human dignity and anti-discrimination in recent years. In this respect he’s been a lot like the actor David Hyde-Pierce, who when asked directly said something to the effect that he hadn’t come out because he’s never been in.
Secondly, I never condone anyone outing a person without their consent/knowledge. In this case however, I do think CNBC’s Simon Hobbs made an honest (albeit very unfortunate) mistake. If you watch the clip, it appears he genuinely thought Cook had publicly confirmed his sexuality. I don’t think Hobbs will make the same mistake again. If he does, no one will believe it’s a mistake.
Back when he got the job, MSNBC put up a graphic of gay business leaders and he was on it. I remember seeing it specifically. So, I can’t see how this is news or that he was newly outed. It had already been done.
Still think it’s appalling to talk about somebody’s sex life, however. Barring a love of small children, and maybe non-consenting goats, it’s not our business.
If I were him, however, I’d worry more about Samsung and less about this.
So it’s bad when it’s him but when it’s some actor or singer it’s fine to drag them out of the closet?
For me it doesn’t matter what he is, what he does, his sexual orientation, if he’s doing his job properly and being a good person in general. I’m fine with him being straight or gay… He shouldn’t have been outed by CNBC without his consent, that’s for sure.
But, unfortunately some eople around the world won’t see it that way, and the company may take some backlash (hope it doesn’t happen) though…
Everyone already knows he’s gay. To quote George Constanza: “I was OUTED and I wasn’t even IN!”
Who cares.
oh right, this was in America.
World Pride just finished up in Toronto (loads of fun BTW)
they were here, they were Queer and we are all so completely used to it.