Apple cancels iPad meeting with business journalists

Paul Boutin of VentureBeat reports that Apple’s PR people have canceled meetings with VentureBeat, Gizmodo and other publications to talk about the new iPad.

Boutin writes, “Reporter Amit Agarwal, a regular columnist for the Hindustan Times, created a list of 10 writers who have published hands-on iPad reviews. Agarwal dubbed the group ‘Steve Jobs’ new inner circle.’

“Here’s a linked list of the 10 iPad reviews Agarwal found online.

• The Wall Street Journal (Walt Mossberg)
• The New York Times (David Pogue)
• USA Today (Jefferson Graham & Edward Baig)
• Boing Boing (Xeni Jardin)
• Omar Wasow
• TIME (Stephen Fry)
• PC Magazine (Tim Gideon)
• ABC News (Neal Karlinsky)
• Houston Chronicle (Bob LeVitus & Dwight Silverman)
• Chicago Sun Times (Andy Ihnatko)

“It’s entirely plausible that, since most of these reviews were very positive, Apple decided not to put more time into shepherding further professional reviews. But people being people, some of those who got bounced are taking it as a personal snub by Apple, presuming it’s punishment for some indecipherable offense against Steve Jobs.

“As Engadget’s former Apple event blogger and a Wired product reviewer, my advice is not to bother trying to guess what’s going on at Apple. The company operates on its own internal logic (think: no Flash support.) In years past, Apple PR people sent me invitations to events when I wrote for Slate, where my editors didn’t care about new Apple products. Yet those same publicists spent years not letting Engadget writers into events, until co-founder Jason Calacanis complained to Jobs, an Engadget reader.”

Read more here.