Can Linus pass on his media power?

It drew some angry response. The implication was that Linus has no choice, he must be the spokesman, that's practically his name on the box.

There's a good point there. Linus can't hide. His newsgroup posts are pored over like the sayings of Chairman Mao. When he does grant an interview, his words are parsed as though he were a leading Presidential candidate.

The fact is, however, that Linus Torvalds is not the CEO of Linux. The executive director of the Linux Foundation is Jim Zemlin (above).

Jim is a nice guy. I've talked with him. He's a smart fellow. But he does not have the "rock god" status Torvalds obtained just for making a pun in the name of a kernel he wrote almost two decades ago.

The question becomes, can he get it? Can Zemlin at least get a piece of it, so Linus can spend his time doing what he most likes to do, without fear of having microphones and bloggers following him like he was Einstein or Lindsay Lohan.

I think he can. Many CEOs with even less personality than Jim Zemlin have been turned into media stars. Linux, as an operating system and a programming movement, needs such a star.

The best favor Jim Zemlin can do for Linus Torvalds at this point may be to become one. He needs what we might call a Steve Jobs makeover.  Don't worry Jim, this won't hurt a bit. Well, maybe a little.