PITTSBURGH -- The following report by Channel 4 Action News reporter Gus Rosendale first aired on Channel 4 Action News at 5 p.m. on March 27, 2006.

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A man who is now one of the world's most powerful men is facing charges of plagiarism.

University of Pittsburgh professor William King said never thought he'd be talking about a textbook he co-authored with retired Pitt professor David Cleland in 1978.

But that book -- Strategic Planning And Policy -- is making headlines.

"I'm not outraged. I think it's pathetic, really," King said.

Researchers said part of an economic thesis written by Russian president Vladimir Putin in the 1990s was copied -- word for word -- from King's book.

The book dealt with long-term strategic business planning.

Putin's doctoral thesis dealt with strategic government planning.

The plagiarism charge was originally made by the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C.

"At the time, who knows how much this credential meant to him. Certainly, it doesn't mean much to him now," King said.

And whether Putin ever managed to write any part of his thesis is now in doubt.

Scholars said ghostwriting and phony academic credentials were common practice back when Putin was still rising through the ranks.

"Among politicians in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, this is not that uncommon," King said.

In the meantime, the Russian president has had no response to the charges.