Friday Snippets and Soundbites

• Bloomberg, a well respected business news wire, recently mistakenly—and prematurely—published Steve Jobs' obituary. Jobs is the founder of Apple and very much alive. While it's common for news services to keep pre-prepared obituaries of newsworthy figures on hand, it's rare that one actually sees the light of day before it's supposed to. Jobs was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2003, but has recently denied reports that it has returned. Read more about the gaffe here.

• Family Force 5's new album, Dance or Die, debuted at #30 on Billboards top 200 albums chart and #8 on the alternative rock chart. First week sales totaled $12,989 for the group's second album. The guys will hit the road again on October 6, kicking off the Dance Rawr Dance 2 Club tour in Charlotte, N.C.

• Swimmer and 14-time gold medalist Michael Phelps has had a busy first week after the close of the Olympic Games. He's taught children to swim, forged a book deal, hung out with Tiger Woods, and made plans to host “Saturday Night Live” and be a presenter at the VMAs. And, ec's editor, Mandy, who is a huge fan, has added the Sports Illustrated cover featuring MP to her list of treasured items. Take a look:


• Today's your last chance! Before we leave this afternoon, we'll be putting up the September 2008 Question of the Month. So if you'd like to create your own holiday (the August Question of the Month), you need to weigh in ASAP. Send us your answer via the link on the left side of this page!