Tim Cook Describes Fake News as 'One of Today's Chief Problems' - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Tim Cook Describes Fake News as 'One of Today's Chief Problems'

As Apple CEO Tim Cook continues to make his rounds in Europe, Good Morning Britain managed to catch him for a quick interview while he was visiting Woodberry Down Primary School yesterday. Regarding fake news, which has been an increasingly hot topic since the U.S. Presidential election got into full swing last year, Cook said that "this is one of today's chief problems."

timcooklefigaro
In the wake of growing fake news, companies like Facebook have taken action to bring the quality of an article to their users' attention before they share it with their friends. For Apple, Cook said that the solution to the problem is not a simple one.

"We have to give the consumer tools to help with this. And we've got filter out part of it before it ever gets there without losing the great openness of the internet. And so this is one of today's chief problems, it is not something that has a simple solution."

Cook covered another topic during his stay in London this week, discussing Brexit with United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May. According to The Independent, in the talk Cook said that he is "very optimistic" about the UK's future outside of the European Union, and that it will be "just fine," although there will undoubtedly be some "bumps in the road along the way."

In a statement released after the meeting, Apple said: "We are proud that Apple's innovation and growth now supports nearly 300,000 jobs across the UK."

Apple will continue to back the UK in the future, as it currently plans on building a new headquarters at London's Battersea Power Station, expected to be complete by 2021. After its completion, 1,400 employees will be moved from eight locations around London to occupy the company's new UK offices.

Early this morning, Cook also continued documenting his European adventures on Twitter, congratulating the Tate Britain art gallery after he visited its digital artwork exhibit. Yesterday, he stopped in the offices of ustwo games in London to get a sneak peak at the latest mobile game from the company behind Monument Valley.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Popular Stories

Tim Cook Chengdu China

Tim Cook Visits China for the Third Time in 2026

Monday October 12, 2026 6:54 am PDT by
Tim Cook is visiting China for the third time this year, with talks in Guangdong focused on expanding Apple's manufacturing and sales operations, the South China Morning Post reports. This is Cook's first China trip in his capacity as Apple's executive chairman. He moved into the position on September 1 when John Ternus took over as CEO. Apple has said part of Cook's work involves...
apple pro tell logo

Apple Launching Five New Products Today

Thursday November 5, 2026 12:59 am PST by
Apple is launching five new products on Friday, November 6, following pre-orders that opened last week, including its first touchscreen MacBook Pro models. The following new products will be available from today: iPad mini with OLED display and A20 Pro chip iMac with M6 chip 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 chip 14-inch MacBook Pro with OLED touchscreen 16-inch MacBook Pro with OLED...
duo aquarium

More Fun iPhone Duo Apps: 30 New Picks to Try

Friday November 6, 2026 3:27 pm PST by
When the iPhone Duo launched, we shared a list of some of the fun apps developers created for the new form factor. Two weeks out, developers are continuing to come up with fresh ideas, so we thought we'd share some of our favorites. Games Marbles Unhinged ($2.99) - Marbles Unhinged is a marble maze designed for the Duo. When you fold it, the floor turns into a ramp. If you stand the top...

Top Rated Comments

Scottsoapbox Avatar
127 months ago
The chief problem is that people aren't educated enough in critical thinking to be able to discern which news is fake.
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)
simonmet Avatar
127 months ago
Ok I get that fake news is basically an evolution of political propaganda, but is it "one of today's chief problems"? Seriously? What about global conflict, population growth, food security, pollution, habitat destruction and species loss, disease, global warming, inequality between and within nations, the plight of Africa...?

And just what does Apple expect to do? I don't use Apple's News app (deleted it) because I disdain anything that tries to track my activity and preferences. I'm smart enough to get my news from quality sources when I feel so inclined and to read critically even from those. The onus is predominantly on the individual here.

Fake news has developed because of a tendency for certain people to believe what they want to believe regardless of truth, which has always existed (case in point: religion!) and the chief combat for this is education.

Seriously, this is just another fluff piece and useless musing from Tim Cook to try and make him sound socially progressive when really he's just the head of a major global corporation.
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
naeS1Sean Avatar
127 months ago
I feel like he's more politician than anything else these days.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
radiology Avatar
127 months ago
As Apple CEO Tim Cook continues to make his rounds in Europe, Good Morning Britain ('https://twitter.com/GMB/status/829992194366902272') managed to catch him for a quick interview while he was visiting ('https://twitter.com/tim_cook/status/829748543103627264') Woodberry Down Primary School yesterday. Regarding fake news, which has been an increasingly hot topic since the U.S. Presidential election got into full swing last year, Cook said that "this is one of today's chief problems."

MacRumors content image

In the wake of growing fake news, companies like Facebook have taken action ('https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/15/technology/facebook-fake-news.html?_r=0') to bring the quality of an article to their users' attention before they share it with their friends. For Apple, Cook said that the solution to the problem is not a simple one.
Cook covered another topic during his stay in London this week, discussing Brexit ('https://www.macrumors.com/2017/02/09/tim-cook-theresa-may-brexit/') with United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May. According to The Independent ('http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/apple-tim-cook-brexit-theresa-maty-very-optimistic-uk-future-tech-downing-street-meeting-a7572721.html'), in the talk Cook said that he is "very optimistic" about the UK's future outside of the European Union, and that it will be "just fine," although there will undoubtedly be some "bumps in the road along the way."
Apple will continue to back the UK in the future, as it currently plans on building a new headquarters at London's Battersea Power Station ('https://www.macrumors.com/2016/09/28/apple-plans-offices-battersea/'), expected to be complete by 2021. After its completion, 1,400 employees will be moved from eight locations around London to occupy the company's new UK offices.

Early this morning, Cook also continued documenting his European adventures on Twitter, congratulating ('https://twitter.com/tim_cook/status/829996681550667776') the Tate Britain art gallery after he visited its digital artwork exhibit. Yesterday, he stopped in the offices of ustwo games ('https://twitter.com/tim_cook/status/829747892982263810') in London to get a sneak peak at the latest mobile game from the company behind Monument Valley.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues ('https://forums.macrumors.com/forums/politics-religion-social-issues.47/') forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Article Link: Tim Cook Describes Fake News as 'One of Today's Chief Problems' ('https://www.macrumors.com/2017/02/10/tim-cook-fake-news/')
[doublepost=1486732414][/doublepost]Here is my solution to avoid fake news: don't read/watch the news. It's all fake anyway...
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cole Slaw Avatar
127 months ago
Dear Tim;
Please focus on running your company to the best of your ability and spend less time on politics and being a social justice warrior.
Thank you.

P.S., if you can find the time could you please update your desktop computers sometime this decade?
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
127 months ago
[doublepost=1486732414][/doublepost]Here is my solution to avoid fake news: don't read/watch the news. It's all fake anyway...
It's like News Papers these days are no longer that, they have become "Opinion Papers".
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Latest Stories
Siri AI Rumored to Become 'More Like an Agent' as Early as Next Year
Siri AI Rumored to Become 'More Like an Agent' as Early as Next Year
4 hours ago
Apple Taking New Approach to Developing iOS 28 and macOS 28
Apple Taking New Approach to Developing iOS 28 and macOS 28
6 hours ago
Early Apple Black Friday Deals on Apple Watch, MacBook Air, and More
Early Apple Black Friday Deals on Apple Watch, MacBook Air, and More
1 day ago
'Backglow' Lets You Customize New MacBook Pro's Glowing Apple Logo
'Backglow' Lets You Customize New MacBook Pro's Glowing Apple Logo
1 day ago
Top Stories: Apple Product Launches, iOS 27.3 Beta, and More
Top Stories: Apple Product Launches, iOS 27.3 Beta, and More
1 day ago
More Fun iPhone Duo Apps: 30 New Picks to Try
More Fun iPhone Duo Apps: 30 New Picks to Try
2 days ago
Hands-On With Apple's New OLED Touchscreen MacBook Pro
Hands-On With Apple's New OLED Touchscreen MacBook Pro
2 days ago
Apple Store With All-New Design Opening Soon in Southern California
Apple Store With All-New Design Opening Soon in Southern California
2 days ago
Control the Glowing Apple Logo on Your New MacBook Pro
Control the Glowing Apple Logo on Your New MacBook Pro
2 days ago
Apple Shares New 'Apple Card: Apply and Use in Minutes' Ad
Apple Shares New 'Apple Card: Apply and Use in Minutes' Ad
2 days ago
Apple Says More Than 100,000 Apps Optimized for iPhone Duo, Here's What's Still Missing
Apple Says More Than 100,000 Apps Optimized for iPhone Duo, Here's What's Still Missing
2 days ago
Early Black Friday Deals Kickoff With Steep Discounts on Apple Watch Ultras and More
Early Black Friday Deals Kickoff With Steep Discounts on Apple Watch Ultras and More
2 days ago
The MacRumors Show: iOS 27.3 Looks Like a Huge Update
The MacRumors Show: iOS 27.3 Looks Like a Huge Update
2 days ago
Best Buy's Black Friday Event Begins With Sitewide Savings on Apple, TVs, More
Best Buy's Black Friday Event Begins With Sitewide Savings on Apple, TVs, More
2 days ago
Apple Releasing Yet Another Two New Products Next Week
Apple Releasing Yet Another Two New Products Next Week
2 days ago
MacBook Air Drops to Lowest Price in Months With Amazon's $250 Discount
MacBook Air Drops to Lowest Price in Months With Amazon's $250 Discount
2 days ago
Apple Rumored to Drop the iPhone's Action Button Next Year
Apple Rumored to Drop the iPhone's Action Button Next Year
2 days ago
Apple's Extended Return Policy Now in Effect for 2026 Holiday Season
Apple's Extended Return Policy Now in Effect for 2026 Holiday Season
2 days ago
Apple Music Classical Updated With New Icon and Refreshed Design
Apple Music Classical Updated With New Icon and Refreshed Design
2 days ago
OLED iPad Mini, M6 iMac, and New MacBook Pros Available From Today
OLED iPad Mini, M6 iMac, and New MacBook Pros Available From Today
2 days ago
Apple Surveys iPhone Duo Buyers About Crease and Camera
Apple Surveys iPhone Duo Buyers About Crease and Camera
3 days ago
Apple's First Touchscreen Mac is Now Arriving to Customers
Apple's First Touchscreen Mac is Now Arriving to Customers
3 days ago
Claude Gets Personal Finance Feature With Bank Account Linking
Claude Gets Personal Finance Feature With Bank Account Linking
3 days ago
Apple Arcade Adds Crossy Road Rush and NBA 2K27
Apple Arcade Adds Crossy Road Rush and NBA 2K27
3 days ago
Apple's New HomeView Smart Home Hub: Here's How Much RAM It Has
Apple's New HomeView Smart Home Hub: Here's How Much RAM It Has
3 days ago
iPad Mini vs. iPad Air Buyer's Guide: Now Just $50 Apart
iPad Mini vs. iPad Air Buyer's Guide: Now Just $50 Apart
3 days ago
First iOS 27.3 and macOS Golden Gate 27.3 Public Betas Now Available
First iOS 27.3 and macOS Golden Gate 27.3 Public Betas Now Available
3 days ago
Apple Announces a New Mac Sales Record
Apple Announces a New Mac Sales Record
3 days ago
Paid $200 for Logic Pro? Apple Says You Won't Get This New Feature
Paid $200 for Logic Pro? Apple Says You Won't Get This New Feature
3 days ago
Instagram's Edits Video Editor is Now Available on Mac
Instagram's Edits Video Editor is Now Available on Mac
3 days ago