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Yahoo board to probe CEO's academic credentials

A special committee is formed, as Yahoo's board attempts to quell the ongoing controversy surrounding the future of Scott Thompson as its CEO.

Charles Cooper Former Executive Editor / News
Charles Cooper was an executive editor at CNET News. He has covered technology and business for more than 25 years, working at CBSNews.com, the Associated Press, Computer & Software News, Computer Shopper, PC Week, and ZDNet.
Charles Cooper
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We'd love to be the proverbial fly on the wall to monitor these discussions. Just a few minutes ago, Yahoo said its board of directors was forming a "special committee" to review the academic credentials of CEO Scott Thompson.

"The special committee and the entire board appreciate the urgency of the situation, and the special committee will therefore conduct the review in an independent, thorough, and expeditious manner," Yahoo said in a release. "The board intends to make the appropriate disclosures to shareholders promptly, upon completion of the review."

Last week, activist investor Daniel Loeb dropped what turned out to be a PR bombshell, when he publicized the discovery that Thompson's resume listed an undergraduate computer-science degree he had never received. Loeb, who is prepping a proxy fight aimed at placing a slate of new directors (himself included) on Yahoo's board, now wants Yahoo to turn over all records related to Thompson and the search process.

Earlier today, All Things Digital reported that Patti Hart, the Yahoo director who led the search that ended in Thompson's appointment, will not intend to stand for re-election.

We've asked Yahoo for comment and will update the post when we get one. A representative of Third Point, Loeb's firm, said the company had no comment on Yahoo's announcement.

Alfred Amoroso, who joined Yahoo's board in February, will head the special committee, along with John Hayes and Thomas McInerney, two directors who joined the board in April. Terry Bird of the law firm Bird, Marella, Boxer, Wolpert, Nessim, Drooks and Lincenberg in Los Angeles has been retained as its independent counsel.