Bloomberg News accidentally published Steve Jobs’ obituary. Before presenting the story of this mistake let us underline that Apple Inc.’s Chief Executive Officer and co-founder is very much alive.

The blunder occurred at 4:27pm AET when a Bloomberg reporter that was working on an obituary for Steve Jobs accidentally published it. The reporter was working to update the obituary which was marked "hold, not for release," Gawker.com reported. The obituary updating of leading public figures is a widespread practice among news agencies.

The accidentally-published obituary of Steve Jobs was quickly deleted and Bloomberg editors wrote instead:

"An incomplete story referencing Apple Inc. was inadvertently published by Bloomberg News at 4:27 p.m. New York time today. The item was never meant for publication and has been retracted."

The Bloomberg obituary details the considerable accomplishments of Steve Jobs and also estimates how would the company’s stock react when news of his death are made public.

There has been a great deal of speculation regarding Jobs’ health especially after news of his pancreatic cancer and his recent weight loss.

Jobs’ recent health issues seem to be the main reason why Bloomberg chose to update the CEO’s obituary, but the news agency maintains that it was a routine update performed by the obit department.

However, it seems a mistake quite hard to make. The obituary’s head line “Steve Jobs, Apple Co-Founder, Arbitrator of Cool Technology, XXXX” (the xxxx remained to be completed with Jobs’ age and death) and its marking “HOLD FOR RELEASE — DO NOT USE — HOLD FOR RELEASE — DO NOT USE” would make even a drunk man think twice before publishing it.

Nevertheless, after being updated, the obituary should have been sent to the agency’s internal wire, but it went on the external wire to subscribers. It was retracted 30 seconds after being published, just in time so it wouldn’t affect Apple’s stock.