Tim Cook Nominated for TIME's 2014 Person of the Year

Monday December 8, 2014 12:53 pm PST by Juli Clover

TIME today posted its shortlist of people who are being considered for the publication's annual "Person of the Year" award, and Tim Cook is once again on the nomination list. TIME is recognizing Cook for the launch of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus and his recent decision to come out as gay.

Back in late October, Tim Cook made the bold move of announcing his sexual orientation in a letter written for Bloomberg Businessweek, where he said that his decision was done to "bring comfort to anyone who feels alone" and to "inspire people to insist on their equality."

Alongside Tim Cook, other nominees include the Ferguson protestors, the Ebola caregivers, Russian president Vladimir Putin, pop artist Taylor Swift, Alibaba CEO Jack Ma, acting president of the Iraqi Kurdish Region Masoud Barzani, and National Football League commissioner Roger Goodell.

timepersonoftheyear2014

2014 Person of the Year nominees, via TIME

Tim Cook, who introduced Apple's iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, Apple Watch, and Apple Pay this year, and whose decision to come out made him the first openly gay Fortune 500 CEO.

TIME's Person of the Year award is given to "a person, couple, group, idea, place, or machine" that has "for better or for worse done the most to influence the events of the year," with the publication's editorial team ultimately deciding on a winner.

Tim Cook was previously nominated in 2012 alongside Yahoo CEO Marissa Meyer, Bill and Hilary Clinton, and the three scientists who discovered the Higgs Boson, but the award went to U.S. president Barack Obama. In 2013, the Person of the Year award went to Pope Francis, and in 2010, it went to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the only tech company CEO to receive the award since Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos won in 1999.

Update December 10: TIME has named the "Ebola Fighters" as its Person of the Year for 2014.

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.

Tag: Tim Cook

Popular Stories

Everything New in iOS 26.2 Beta 3

Monday November 17, 2025 3:20 pm PST by Juli Clover

Apple provided developers with the third beta of an upcoming iOS 26.2 update, and there are still new features that are being added with each beta that we get. We've rounded up all of the changes that Apple made in beta 3. AirDrop Apple added new AirDrop functionality, providing a way for two people to share files temporarily without having to add one another as contacts. iOS 26.2...

• 20 comments

Report: Tim Cook to Step Down as Apple CEO 'as Soon as Next Year'

Saturday November 15, 2025 2:40 pm PST by Joe Rossignol

Apple is preparing for Tim Cook to step down as CEO of the company "as soon as next year," according to the Financial Times. The company's board of directors and senior executives "recently intensified preparations for Cook to hand over the reins," the report said. While the report said that Apple is unlikely to name a new CEO before its next earnings report in late January, it went on to ...

• 466 comments

Apple Brings New AppleCare+ Options to India

Tuesday November 18, 2025 8:42 am PST by Hartley Charlton

Apple today announced an expansion of AppleCare+ coverage in India, with new options for monthly and annual plans, and the addition of Theft and Loss for iPhone for the first time. Options for monthly and annual AppleCare+ plans in India provide more choice and flexibility, allowing users to keep coverage for as long as they require. Apple's vice president of Worldwide iPhone Product...

• 6 comments

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4

Thursday November 13, 2025 11:35 am PST by Juli Clover

Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, the AirPods 4, and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 firmware is 8B21, all up from the prior 8A358 firmware released in October. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 with ANC, and AirPods Pro 3...

• 72 comments

Best Black Friday Apple Deals Live Now - Save on AirPods, iPads, and Apple Watches

Saturday November 15, 2025 1:45 pm PST by Mitchel Broussard

We're officially in the month of Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When ...

• 3 comments

iPhone Driver's License Feature Launching in Illinois

Tuesday November 18, 2025 8:47 am PST by Joe Rossignol

In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Starting this Wednesday, November 19, the feature will be available to residents of Illinois. The announcement confirmed that the...

• 71 comments

iPhone Pocket Now Available to Order, But Already Selling Out

Friday November 14, 2025 6:20 am PST by Joe Rossignol

Apple recently teamed up with Japanese fashion brand ISSEY MIYAKE to create the iPhone Pocket, a limited-edition knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone. iPhone Pocket is available to order on Apple's online store starting today, in the United States, France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. However, it is already completely sold out in the United...

• 204 comments

apple silicon mac lineup 2024 feature purple m5

Apple's 2026 Mac Plans

Friday November 14, 2025 3:23 pm PST by Juli Clover

Most of Apple's Macs are slated to get M5 chips across 2026, and there's a possibility we'll even see the first M6 chips toward the end of the year. Updates are planned for everything from the MacBook Air to the Mac Studio. MacBook Air (Early 2026) The MacBook Air will be one of the first Macs to get a 2026 refresh, with an update planned for the first few months of the year. The MacBook...

• 158 comments

tvOS 26.2 Adds a Useful New Feature to Your Apple TV

Friday November 14, 2025 10:02 am PST by Joe Rossignol

Starting with the upcoming tvOS 26.2 update, currently in beta, additional profiles created on the Apple TV no longer require their own Apple Account. In the Settings app on the Apple TV, under Profiles and Accounts, anyone can create a new profile by simply entering a name and indicating whether the profile is for a kid. The profile will be associated with the primary user's Apple Account,...

Top Rated Comments

NutsNGum

143 months ago

Vladimir Putin?

TIME, please.

Score: 49 Votes (Like | Disagree)

pk7

143 months ago

Putin, Person of the Year?

Might as well nominate Kim Jong Un, too.

Score: 32 Votes (Like | Disagree)

d4rkc4sm

143 months ago

being gay is not a big deal. releasing a big iphone is not a big deal. seriously tim cook?

so a bunch of editors sit around a table and come out with a list, big whoopie-doo.

Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)

bradl

143 months ago

being gay is not a big deal. releasing a big iphone is not a big deal. seriously tim cook?

so a bunch of editors sit around a table and come out with a list, big whoopie-doo.

Being gay in a world where gays and lesbians are still persecuted or killed for who and what they are is sure as hell a big deal. And for someone who the head of one of the biggest companies in the world to come out as gay is a big deal. That gives others hope that it can and will get better.

BL.

Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)