> Cambridge initially said claims of plagiarism regarding Arday's thesis and some journal publications had been investigated by Liverpool John Moores University (LMJU) and the journals in question.
> LJMU - which awarded Arday his PhD in 2015 - concluded that he had not plagiarised work.
It is absolutely undeniable that there has been a witch hunt against minorities in positions of power in the last few years. It is unclear to me whether this guy actually did anything wrong.
What is clear to me, though, is that the level of scrutiny and the attacks he received are not consistent with what most white men in similar situations received.
https://retractionwatch.com/2026/07/27/cambridge-jason-arday...
You can examine his writing and the writing he stole from, side by side. I would suggest doing that instead of believing an institution who has no choice but to lie if they want students to apply to their grad schools in the future.
How will not admitting they screwed up affect their reputation?
1. He exaggerated/lied about some of his accomplishments and aspects of his life. 2. The accomplishments and aspects of his life he exaggerated/lied about did not seem to be about his academic success. Generic life puffery that, while dishonest, did not make him unqualified for his position. 3. Anti-DEI crusaders decided to make an example of him. 4. Had he not been a person of color, the scrutiny would have had a very different shape.
He was a fabulist who certainly was more scrutinized because of his skin color, but it really shouldn’t be disputed that he plagiarized and lied profusely.
That doesn’t mean remotely he deserved this.
I also have little hope that everyone who contributed to this sordid tale, from Cambridge, police etc. will have to account for their profound failures.
The total opposite occured. He was uncrutinized because of his skin color.