In Jerry Yang I Trust

I know that I just started Shameless Self-Promotion Week yesterday but I need to briefly interrupt SSPW to comment on today's huge news. As I am sure all of you know by now, Terry Semel has stepped down as Yahoo's Chief Executive Officer and Jerry Yang has taken his place. What many of you may not know is that Jerry and I have been friends for two decades. Jerry and I were dorm mates at Stanford our freshman year and have been friends since. So I think that it is perfectly fair to assume that I am completely biased when it comes to Jerry and to Yahoo. That said, I am thrilled to hear that Jerry has taken the reigns at Yahoo.

Jerry Yang is one of the smartest guys you'll ever have the good fortune to meet. He is also one of the most ethical and decent executives out there. But, more important still, Jerry is profoundly motivated and motivational. He has the capacity to reenergize the company that he started twelve years ago and helped grow into the leading new media property on the web. At a time when it is very much in vogue to dump on Yahoo, I remain extremely bullish on the future of the company.

Congratulations Jerry! I look forward to seeing the great stuff you do with Yahoo in the coming weeks and months.