Robert Scoble is reporting that Microsoft have reversed their position on an anti-discrimination bill which came before the Washington legislature a couple of weeks ago.

This is highly significant, not because discrimination in Washington will be affected by this (the bill has already been voted on) but rather because when Microsoft announced their decision not to back the bill, Scoble publicly chastised Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer accusing him of a lacking in leadership.

Now in most companies, publicly accusing the CEO of a lack of leadership would be a sacking offence – however, instead of that, Steve Ballmer has sent an email around Microsoft reversing Microsoft’s position on the bill – thereby vindicating Robert Scoble’s stance.

This should cause other companies to sit up and take notice. Microsoft is one of the most successful companies in the world. Their chief blogger publicly chastises the CEO and subsequently the CEO reverses his decision. Has there been a shift the power structure?