NYC: Prof. Bloomberg's blackboard backlash

"This is a woman who is eminently qualified," NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg said of Cathie Black, his latest selection from the corporate world as chancellor of the city's mammoth school system. This reminded some of the title once attributed to the comic actor, Professor Irwin Corey: "The world's foremost authority."

Bloomberg seems to insist a non-educator chosen in a secretive process can run the school system well given the right management abilities. (We know for sure that his last pick, Joel Klein, was a success because that's what Klein and the mayor kept telling us).  What has yet to be explored, though, is exactly what Black did that made her a success at the Hearst Corp. Pre-emptive claims of success probably won't cut it twice in a row. It will be interesting to see how this plays out -- if Mayor Mike can articulate her excellence as a corporate manager or whether he just liked her when he met her at a dinner party.