Sometimes a single post captures, with uncomfortable precision, the mix of emotions many of us are struggling to articulate. It reflects not only the depth of feeling across our community, but also our grief that something fundamental has gone so badly wrong.
This is a moment of profound sadness and horror for the university. I know that some of us are angry about the failure of academic standards, while many others, are instead angry about how the university could set up a young black man to fail, and in such a horrible way. Many of us, of course, are justifiably furious regarding both. Whatever your feelings, let us direct our confusion and hurt and rage upon the senior figures who were responsible for maintaining academic integrity, our duty of care to scholars, and the university’s reputation. Whatever the final conclusions regarding this awful moment may be, it is clear that something has gone appallingly wrong. Our leadership has fallen desperately short of the standards that they were entrusted to. I feel only sadness today, and am struggling to make sense of it all, as I am sure others feel too. The road ahead will be hard but we cannot continue on the road that took us to this point. [@Pain, here ]
The problem lies in the institution. Had Cambridge University’s Research Integrity Office acknowledged the issue rather than repeatedly denying it, the matter might have been addressed without the need for public scrutiny.
Anger should be directed at those who failed in their duty of care, integrity & stewardship.
Overnight, news broke that the hugely expensive lawyers, Carter-Ruck, were employed to deter a journalist from Times Higher Education who was investigating matters at Cambridge University.
This sits uneasily with repeated assurances on protecting academic freedom / freedom of speech in newspaper articles from the Vice Chancellor, Professor Deborah Prentice, and the Chancellor, Lord Chris Smith of Finsbury.
We cannot continue along this road. Regent House must act.
88 Comments
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 07:11
As I noted in the previous post, the full episode of Free Speech Nation is here:
https://www.youtube.com/live/gduP8bGbNDU
The part on Cambridge starts at 59:30.
I repeat what I said many times: there is no free speech at Cambridge University.
Since August 2025 I have received an increasing number of measures against me that seek to silence and break me. These measures include prohibiting me from contacting hundreds of University members, namely all University HR and the senior leadership, limiting my use of my @cam account, redirect and review the emails I send, decide the topics I can discuss with some University members, prohibit me from contacting co-authors of my own research where I am the senior and corresponding author of the project, not responding to my questions namely regarding the actions against me, giving me incorrect and misleading information namely regarding my current rights in the University, ignoring my complaints regardless the topic, retaining against my will my belongings that I need for my research, dismissing, without any investigation, the whistleblowing disclosures and safeguarding referrals made by third-parties based on detailed medical evidence on how this situation has been affecting my physical and mental health, starting an internal investigation against me where I am threatened that my “crimes” could be reported to the police, and ultimately expelling me as a student from a Department that has nothing to do with the issues that I have raised since June 2023 without even showing me the evidence used against me, while in parallel telling me that even after being expelled I still cannot contact these hundreds of University members, including individuals who no longer work for the University of Cambridge.
This is pure nonjudicial gagging and many people know about this, including Deborah Prentice & Chris Smith, but do nothing about it.
What happened with Jason Arday does not surprise me and many others because Cambridge University does not have limits when it comes to cover up misconduct.
Xerxes · 27 July 2026 at 07:20
Top trending story on X all weekend. 12k postings.
SPARTACUS · 27 July 2026 at 07:58
This is all profoundly sad but predictable. The regime of Debbs is finished. She is ultimately responsible and has no alternative but to resign, as do all ProVCs, and Council.
Dave Harris · 29 July 2026 at 22:01
I completely agree with this post. I have always felt that Arday has been badly let down by supervisors, reviewers, editors and appointment panels at several major universities, above all Cambridge.
PVC Watch · 27 July 2026 at 07:58
Arday’s PhD supervisor was Professor Philip Vickerman, who happens to be PVC for Student Experience at Liverpool John Moores University, which reportedly cleared Arday of wrong doing.
https://www.ecscience.org/post/celebrating-black-scientists-jason-arday
https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/about-us/structure/executive-leadership-team/professor-phil-vickerman
!!!!! · 27 July 2026 at 08:12
A university spending public money to prevent discussion of the truth? This has to see top level resignations.
Alice · 27 July 2026 at 08:18
POLIS cases either NDA-ed or gagged. Astronomy case, lawyers paid for by the university supported
McMahon’s defamations
Happens all the time in University management, that’s what public money is for.
Solidaridad · 27 July 2026 at 08:28
For the enemies of democracy there can be no forgiveness.
The Telegraph were also threatened with similar letters over the Connolly case:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/01/30/cambridge-academic-plagiarised-phd-student/
Public money well spent? Let the British people decide.
Wyn Evans · 27 July 2026 at 08:40
Ditto this article
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/jun/15/university-of-cambridge-accused-of-tolerating-misogyny-and-bullying-in-tribunal
The Comms office was actually contesting things that the University’s own witnesses had said under oath
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 09:21
I remind readers of what our BreakerMorant told us in October 2025:
https://21percent.org/?p=2757
“*** CARTER-FUCKED ***
‘Sunday Times delays plagiarism story after pressure from University’
They’re going in really hard, will they kill it?”
As we now know, yes, they killed it. This headline and respective story were never published.
Where was this going to be published? Clearly not at Sunday Times!
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 10:22
Meanwhile at King’s College…
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-07-27/cambridge-s-king-s-college-opens-culture-review-after-harassment-allegations
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 10:26
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/cambridges-kings-college-opens-culture-review-after-harassment-allegations
Gillian Tett as the new VC of Cambridge University?
Old Schools refugee · 27 July 2026 at 10:31
Strong move from King’s.
Maybe it’s time we went back to the old way of having a 2 year term, part time VC, rotating among the Heads of Houses. Anything would be better than what we have now.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 10:35
Simon McDonald as VC of Cambridge University?!?!?!?!
I do not think you want that. He reminds me Lord Glossover:
https://21percent.org/?p=2655
21percent.org · 27 July 2026 at 10:36
Much cheaper. Also, we think (in the past) Regent House had a vote and could veto an unsuitable HoH
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 10:40
“Regent House had a vote and could veto an unsuitable HoH”
Ah, OK. In that case, I think that is fine 😂
Sam Levans · 27 July 2026 at 11:06
I dont know what they gain from trying to shut everything down with NDAs and threatening Carter Ruck letters. These efforts just compound the damage, and reinforce the impression of an out-of-control administration/HR who will spend anything to protect their personal reputations. The disastrous story of the CRUK Cam Oncology debacle is already well known worldwide, everyone in the field knows the story and it has done incalculable damage to the reputation of the University (it explains why they could not find a new Director for the Cambridge Cancer Centre, all the international candidates already knew exactly what had happened, why would they want to take over a smoking train wreck?) . There were just too many people caught up in the trail of destruction to keep a lid on it. Why should all those young scientists whose careers have been wrecked by an incompetent HR department have to keep completely silent about what happened to them? Just so that HR can gloss over the damage it has caused and get their comms department to tell everyone how great they are.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 11:51
The 21 Group posted this post in x earlier today and after 3h it has already over 11K views…
https://x.com/21percentgroup/status/2081635047900119110
Is the VC aware that this is getting increasingly embarrassing? I wonder if they are waiting that this story simply goes away and back to business as usual in a few days… Luckily, other stories will come out if the University decides to ignore the situation and continue with this revolting ‘cover-up culture’.
BreakerMorant, keep us updated!
ARAMIS · 27 July 2026 at 12:25
Sam Levans post above:
“The disastrous story of the CRUK Cam Oncology debacle is already well known worldwide, everyone in the field knows the story and it has done incalculable damage to the reputation of the University (it explains why they could not find a new Director for the Cambridge Cancer Centre, all the international candidates already knew exactly what had happened, why would they want to take over a smoking train wreck?) . There were just too many people caught up in the trail of destruction to keep a lid on it. Why should all those young scientists whose careers have been wrecked by an incompetent HR department have to keep completely silent about what happened to them?”
The University has now found not one Director- it has nominated two Co-Directors! Problem solved with inbreeding. UCam knows best! Upwards and onwards…
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 12:40
Why isn’t Varsity covering this topic? Aren’t plagiarism and the institutional responses to it relevant to Cambridge students? I would think they are.
Given this post is about free speech at Cambridge University, and on how the University silences journalists through expensive lawyers, it would be great if the editors of Varsity could come forward and clarify if they have been pressed by the University as we well. The 21 Group told us recently that (https://21percent.org/?p=3971)
“Varsity have repeatedly failed to publish many articles on bullying over the last year (eg CRUK, Astronomy, DAMTP), apparently after intervention or pressure by the University”
This is the time to come forward and expose these practices by Cambridge University.
??? · 27 July 2026 at 13:08
True. This is the biggest scandal online for Cambridge for years. Why are Varsity silent? All students are talking about it. What is going on?
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 14:17
What is going on is that there is no free speech at Cambridge University and students who thought there was have been living a lie. The really sad thing is that the people who they thought they could trust, namely their Tutors and Senior tutors, know about the cover-up culture of Cambridge and did not tell them. Cambridge students may want to read this post from the 21 Group, namely the comment from ‘Lean In’ so that they understand how OSCCA operates:
https://21percent.org/?p=2628
True Victim · 27 July 2026 at 13:24
How many students have been taken before plagiarism panels at Cambridge over the years? How do you think those students feel, when their crimes were often little more than failure to include references in the right places? How will Cambridge ever enforce plagiarism in future, when students have been given a green light that such behaviour is not only permissible, but will be institutionally protected and reinforced?
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 14:32
Students should ask these questions to the Senior Tutors and Masters of their colleges, but ask them as a collective, as JCR and MCR. Students should be aware of the cover-up culture of Cambridge University if the senior leadership does not intend to change, and how to deal with it. This case is just one of many that has been burning in the background.
Lower Second · 27 July 2026 at 15:05
Surely this will initiate a wave of legal cases from current and former students who were denied degrees or examined lower as a result of plagiarism panels! It provides obvious grounds that they were treated in a detrimental manner relative to others.
EtonMess · 27 July 2026 at 22:35
Good question, TheResearcher. Good question.
By refusing to publish about serious cases of research misconduct, and of bullying, Varsity seems more interested in being recruited for- and participating in- bullying and covering up research misconduct. Their job is to report the facts. It’s almost 100% certain they’ve been contacted by students and postdocs about cases of research misconduct. Maybe those cases didn’t involve their preferred target so they passed.
If Varsity represent the future of journalism…
He4She · 27 July 2026 at 13:02
Professor Ian Pace is a quiet hero and a good angel.
Remember, the quiet victim in this saga is Dr. Paula Zwozdiak-Myers.
How would you feel, if you found out that someone had copied all your work?
And then, not only that, but that they were lionised, secured a professorship at Cambridge, and paraded in the BBC and Guardian – while you were left struggling it out on tenure track, fighting for your next publication or grant?
Plagiarism is never a victimless crime.
Let’s never forget the woman – ever.
Furious · 27 July 2026 at 13:34
Integrity question: Did Cambridge at any point contact Dr Paula in relation to alleged unauthorised theft of her work? Did they contact Arday? If they did the second but not the former, doesn’t this mean contacted the alleged perpetrator and favouring their side over the victim?
STOP · 27 July 2026 at 13:47
Cambridge protecting male perpetrators against female victims? Surely that would never happen …. just ask Simon Goldhill!
silence? · 27 July 2026 at 15:16
Has Arday made any kind of statement at all since the story broke? Or Cremin or anyone else involved personally in this mess?
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 16:21
Cambridge University does not have good options. I will copy/paste what a former member of UCam told me today, “If they play culture war will backfire. Legal threats now useless. If they acknowledge fault that is the new story.”
My response was, I bet they will go for the fourth option, be silent and wait that people stop talking about it. I really hope that if they choose this option, UCam members, staff and students, decide to contribute to the Open Letter. The clock is ticking for the senior leadership, namely Prentice, Vira and Aston.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 15:22
I think you can tell from what Professor Hilary Cremin, Jason Arday’s HoD, wrote to Dave Harris when he contacted her. She wrote:
“[W]e remain immensely proud of Prof Arday’s achievements and scholarship, and…he has our full support.
I can confirm that, having looked into your concerns about Prof Arday’s work, I arranged a meeting between myself, Prof Arday and my director of research. We discussed the paper in question and the circumstances under which the paper was written, which was clearly before Prof Arday was employed at Cambridge. During this meeting Prof Arday said that he wanted to take the article down from the journal online platform in order to address concerns and re-upload it. The journal has now enabled this, and Prof Arday is working on the changes. We are very grateful for your detailed feed-back on the article in question that has formed the basis of these revisions.
During our meeting Prof Arday spoke movingly about his ongoing experiences of direct and indirect racism, and the conditions that he was living in whilst the 2018 article was being prepared (in 2016). At this time he was early career and living away from home whilst dealing with significant health issues.”
Interestingly, she actually does not mention Arday’s PhD thesis and Paula Zwozdiak-Myers but perhaps in the remaining of the letter she does? Regardless, I doubt she even thought contacting her. The decision about plagiarism was decided before any investigation.
Public Domain · 27 July 2026 at 16:13
To my knowledge all we have is the private email he sent to Dave Harris when he was confronted by evidence of plagiarism, which is republished in the Daily Mail piece.
“Please do not email me again. Should you have time to spare, I invite you to direct your resources elsewhere. Anything further from you will be considered bullying and harassment.”
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 16:32
That reply strongly suggests that Arday learned quickly the cover-up culture of Cambridge University as he too seems to be familiar with DARVO. Someone should tell him that UCam could not care less about reports of bullying and harassment, and if anything they are used as counter-complaints against whistleblowers:
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2025/apr/12/cambridge-university-accused-of-bullying-cover-up-as-internal-survey-revealed
Wendy · 27 July 2026 at 16:33
That’s Jason Arday’s response? I wanted to be sympathetic to him, but damn, the text of that email makes it hard. For someone presenting as a victim he comes across as dismissive, entitled and rude – especially given the total lack of empathy for the woman whose hard work he apparently copied and then took all credit for.
Multiple victims · 27 July 2026 at 14:34
Unfortunately she is not the only victim. Arday’s plagiarism goes beyond his thesis and includes published articles.
Then there are all the victims of the corrupted research literature, which ultimately include the public.
Tired in Cambridge · 27 July 2026 at 20:25
Arday does indeed seem to have plagiarised widely. Someone with such a lack of integrity may have no problem with Cambridge’s methods. A good fit.
EtonMess · 27 July 2026 at 22:57
@He4She
‘Plagiarism is never a victimless crime.
Let’s never forget [Dr Paula Zwozdiak-Myers] – ever.’
Quite right.
Let’s never forget Dr Magdalen Connolly either. Look at how the Office of Research Integrity handled that case of plagiarism and bullying. Dr Esther-Miriam Wagner is still employed. Note that Varsity never reported on her plagiarism.
Imagine having to go to the Telegraph and Daily Mail, some of the most conservative papers in the UK, to get your story out because of cover up at Cambridge for 4 years. The reporter of Dr Connolley’s story did not take the culture wars angle. She summarised what happened at court. The point is if victims go to the media they lose control over how the story is framed. Their grievance can be used to fuel the culture wars in which everyone loses, except for the institutions they distract from.
These stories must centre on the victims of the research misconduct and of how institutional cover up affected their careers and lives. Is Dr Connolly still in academia? No. Is the the plagiarist Dr Miriam Esther-Wagner? Yes. There ought to be widespread outrage a top university seems set up for whistleblowers to be punished and for plagiarisers to prevail.
daniela · 10 August 2026 at 05:27
I was wondering about that.
David Dunbar · 27 July 2026 at 15:33
“I don’t know what they gain from trying to shut everything down with NDAs and threatening Carter Ruck letters”
Some university and NHS senior personnel (and their legal advisors) are like Marlboro men. Their actions will eat them up. They have the power to act on perceived professional weaknesses or on bad practice claims by colleagues. Convincing themselves that they are the guardians of the light and riding high in their senior roles, they forget/ overlook/ ignore the need for humanity. They have no excuse – they can still retain a humble, collegiate, open and friendly, yet astute, wary approach whilst investigating a colleagues claims, whistleblowing disclosures or apparent reported bad practice or underperformance. But they either choose not to or do not have the ability themselves to manage the situation, difficult that it may be.
‘A powerful fantasy invented by Chicago ad agency Leo Burnett in 1954, Malboro Man was credited with a 3,000% leap in sales of cigarettes previously marketed to women under the slogan “Mild as May”. The campaign ran in a golden age of ad photography, with print and billboard images in the 60s joined by TV in the 70s. At least five of the men in the ads died of smoking-related illnesses, earning the brand the nickname “cowboy killers”. [FB (2026) ‘Marlboro Man ad campaign 1954 – 1999’ The Guardian 4 July].
Let’s hope the fantasy invented by senior HE and NHS managers is soon over, for everyone’s sake.
If senior management and legal counsel (internal and external) individuals repeatedly do not listen to, try to undermine, sweep away, or target individuals for showing concern, complaining about or criticising processes, whistleblowing, protesting about poor treatment, criticising senior staff because they feel or have evidence that those senior staff have acted irresponsibly or malignly, and the inevitable result is isolation, adverse effects on work satisfaction, performance, or worse- ill-health, career jeopardy etc., my view is that these actions constitute gross misconduct (by the senior figure, not an individual fighting back and criticising that senior figure). Further, based on those now well documented effects on recipient’s health and wellbeing, and, often, their career, plus the effects on other family members resulting from such action, I would agree with others and argue that, irrespective of the current legal definitions or the subsequent legal outcome of an individual case, it should be seen as a criminal act.
Blacktivist · 27 July 2026 at 16:09
Question: Does Arday know that he was only hired because the University of Cambridge Faculty of Education – the same faculty that made him Professor – at that exact point in time was being taken to court for racial discrimination by another Black academic?
I ask because of this interview Arday did with C4 in September of 2023 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA78tV8lar8), months before the case went to court, which seems to hint that he knew all along:
__________________
Krishnan Guru-Murthy: So how do you become, you know how do you get to be one of the youngest professors in Cambridge, the youngest black professor in Cambridge?
Jason Arday: … to be honest with you Krishnan there are a lot of exceptional academics out there particularly black and ethnic minority academics who are if not just as deserving possibly more deserving, and a huge thing that you can’t compensate for in life is luck. Sometimes you just get lucky, sometimes you’re in the right place at the right time and that Arc of Destiny can be marked by luck and you know as Al Pacino famously said in Any Given Sunday, life being this game of inches, you know and when it mattered those inches when in my favour.
__________________
So did Arday know all along?
And if not, perhaps isn’t it about time someone asked him for an opinion about that?
Commoner · 27 July 2026 at 16:52
I hope that Arday is reading this.
Arday, I’m addressing you now. By now you must know the truth. Cambridge didn’t want you for “praxis” or academic merit. They wanted you for “blackwashing”. You suspected it from the start, you played along, you didn’t know the full story.
But it is like this: A bunch of white, upper-class, entitled toffs – the sort of wanker you wanted to avoid walking home across Clapham Common or who dissed you time and time again with half-compliment slurs about your eloquence and vocabulary – needed a Black man as a fig leaf to cover a little exposed private spot they had.
And they found it in you. They used you. They don’t really care about you. They don’t care about us.
They knew that there was a pipeline of cases coming down the line for racial discrimination, bullying, and sexual harassment, and they wanted someone to hide behind.
They needed you for what they don’t have. Someone endowed with authenticity to compensate for their smallness. Someone who was real, who saw roaches climb the wall and could pretend they never went to school. Someone who in their youth, said “fuck the police” — and really fucking meant it.
It was your dream to see Cambridge, and now you’ve seen it. You’ve seen the reality.
But now is the time to be true to your roots.
They may give you strained smiles and applause, but you know they aren’t ever going to be like us.
And the second they get the chance, they’ll leave you hanging, too, just like they did to others.
Never forget where you came from.
CommonPerson · 27 July 2026 at 16:59
Oh, rent a flat above a shop
And cut your hair and get a job
And smoke some fags and play some pool
Pretend you never went to school
But still you’ll never get it right
‘Cause when you’re laid in bed at night
Watching roaches climb the wall
If you called your dad he could stop it all, yeah
KUsman4tw · 27 July 2026 at 17:26
Jason is just not suited for academia. It was a bad hire on both sides, he admits it himself.
He could still be a great social media star and activist, if he tells it like it is, and calls out Cambridge for betraying and using him for his blackness. After all, he’s still young. He could return to activism and have an amazing second career by focusing purely on that and putting this Cambridge BS episode behind him.
In the interview I really liked this bit bc for a “woke” hero he seems pretty based. Tbh sounds more like he would rather be on the Joe Rogan podcast and if he does those things, maybe he will be one day sooner than he imagines.
“I really strongly believe in… this idea of will versus skill. Now I don’t have any skill but what I do have is an indomitable will and I knew that I had one or two things I was good at and I was going to drive that as much as I could and I knew that the will to succeed and the discipline and the sacrifice I was willing to make may actually be a difference in terms of me just being able to hang. So I’ll always be punching above my weight but just being able to step in the ring and go a few rounds, like that’s what I wanted to do and I always thought that at some point I’m going to be a 12 round fighter.”
Academia puts you in to a stupid straitjacket, and there’s a better world waiting.
twinkletwinkle · 27 July 2026 at 17:43
My goodness me. If you only had the quote and knew nothing else you’d assume he was part of the far-right manosphere.
??? · 27 July 2026 at 19:24
““I really strongly believe in… this idea of will versus skill”
Something about this makes me feel very uncomfortable. Surely the big problem in today’s world is that we are run by people who value “will” over “skill”.
And isn’t the whole point of academia that, in a world dominated by ego and shortcuts, we are the last bastion where “skill” and objective merit are supposed to count?
TalkvsTackle · 27 July 2026 at 22:12
For someone who self-describes (without irony) as a “12 round fighter” he’s been taking punches four days straight now
Kyla · 27 July 2026 at 23:22
Watch out ladies he says he’s got an “indomitable will”…
Whatever the flubbins that means 😬
Liberal racism · 27 July 2026 at 17:33
Good post. Arday was well aware of the nature of the relationship he was getting into. Here he is educing an early defence by asking whether his was a ‘tokenistic appointment’, just after the Head of Faculty had rolled off some trite condescending nonsense about ‘listening to the voices of our black scholars’. Addressing ‘structural problems’ seems to mean dropping all standards for certain groups rather than removing economic and educational barriers, so as to enable access to the profession on equal terms.
https://youtu.be/g28uXeXz9l8?t=138
WWT · 27 July 2026 at 17:58
My god this video is fucking cringetastic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g28uXeXz9l8&t=138s
Now watch from 1.38, when Cremin steps on the scene.
The “dialogue” is cringe max. “We’ve listened to the voices of our black scholars and our black students”, she says. “We’re able to face up to some of the structural issues that people face”, she says, smiling tightly all the way.
But it seems actually, at this exact point in time her department is being taken to court for racial discrimination and she doesn’t say a fucking word about that.
Nor did she ever do anything to help the guy they screwed.
What a joke. It makes your stomach churn.
Can she tell them apart? · 27 July 2026 at 18:17
What are you complaining about? Sure they mistreated one Black guy, but then, she did a favour to another. And I mean, aren’t they all the same at the end of the day?
Can’t see anything racist about that logic at all!!!!
Jesus crackers…
21percent.org · 27 July 2026 at 18:27
The 21 Group has looked into possible connections between the treatment of Calbert Graham and the appointment of Jason Arday
At first, this seemed implausible. Now, we are not so sure & are continuing to examine this matter
Anon · 27 July 2026 at 19:42
This is all quite concerning. I felt sadness, and now I feel horror. One can surmise that it is no wonder they become so aggressive with lawyers vis-a-vis journalists, were it the case that they knew all along this was not only a story of plagiarism and academic standards, but also, a scandal that would go to the heart of how the university now operates.
Showtime · 27 July 2026 at 18:26
I think part of Cremin’s campaign comes from sincere belief, but still, it is hard not to notice that there was a coordinated PR blitz effort from mid-2023 to use Arday as an advert for Cambridge inclusivity in general and the Faculty of Education in particular. I mean, the BBC, Channel 4, Guardian – those are big-hitter outlets, and that’s not a line-up that happens just by chance.
The big question I think needs to be answered is just how much was from Jason Arday, and how much was really organised by others for their own purposes.
Cambridge Reporter · 27 July 2026 at 18:55
21 GROUP note; Great post, great prose style & great information. We asked Claude to rewrite it!
——
In 2023, a number of overlapping developments within the Faculty of Education invite closer examination in terms of timing and governance processes.
From summer through autumn 2023, the Faculty was the subject of significant public attention, alongside ongoing tribunal proceedings relating to racial discrimination claims. During this same period, between September and mid-October 2023, Hilary Cremin applied for promotion to Grade 12 Professor. The application was reviewed during this timeframe and was ultimately successful, with the promotion taking effect in July the following year.
Earlier in 2023, Cremin had moved to Homerton College, whose Head is Lord Woolley of Woodford, a prominent public figure in political and social advocacy. Homerton is also associated with a number of Faculty of Education members, including Karen Coats, who chaired the committee responsible for reviewing the promotion application.
The committee itself included several internal members from within the Faculty of Education. In many academic settings, it is standard practice for senior colleagues to participate in such processes. At the same time, the presence of multiple colleagues from the same faculty, including individuals within existing professional hierarchies, may raise questions for some observers about how independence and perceived impartiality are maintained. Whether and how potential conflicts of interest are managed would depend on the institution’s specific procedures, including any requirements for disclosure or recusal.
Promotion to Grade 12 typically places weight on leadership. Cremin had served as Head of the Faculty since October 2022, during a period that included high-profile appointments and increased external visibility for the Faculty.
Taken together, these factors —- timing, institutional relationships, and governance structures —- form part of the context of events.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 20:18
Claude should have mentioned that Homerton College is also the College of the (former?) Pro-Vice Chancellor Professor Kamal Munir, an expert in managing conflicts of interest, namely when it comes to grievances and whistleblowing disclosures. Notably, he was the University’s Race Equality and Inclusion Champion back in the days!
https://www.race-equality.admin.cam.ac.uk/events/annual-race-equality-lecture-2020-dr-jason-arday
C R.E.A.M. · 27 July 2026 at 20:52
TL,DR
Cremin awards Arday a superstar salary on the taxpayer’s dime and in exchange uses him to bump her own salary higher.
Darius · 27 July 2026 at 16:42
There is a critical aspect of this case that has yet to be addressed.
Cambridge’s Research Integrity Office has demonstrably failed to meet the standards required of it since at least January 2019, when the current Director assumed the role. In a case that plainly warranted rigorous and impartial investigation, Dr Morgan’s handling was not merely inadequate but represented a serious dereliction of responsibility.
The implications are far-reaching. Every case overseen by the Research Integrity Office since 2019 is now open to question and should be subject to systematic review. Any determination in which Dr Morgan played a role must be re-examined as a matter of urgency.
In light of this, the 21 Group should consider compiling a comprehensive register of individuals who have submitted complaints that may have been improperly adjudicated. This record could then be formally presented to the University to support a full and transparent reassessment process.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 17:40
I already asked Dr Morgan if his team is considered HR and if they would be affected by the external audit of HR practices that the Grace now waiting for votes is asking for. Dr Morgan did not reply yet, but if he does not reply or if his team will not be affected by that Grace, I think this idea is excellent.
EtonMess · 27 July 2026 at 23:09
@TheResearcher
That’s the mystery. Who oversees the Office of Research Integrity? What disciplinary processes apply to them?
I’d think information on these accountability questions should be publicly available. It can’t be ‘the Office of Research Misconduct knows best, just trust us’ at a public institution. These staff must be accountable to some overseeing body or policy, and there must be a way of enforcing compliance.
21percent.org · 27 July 2026 at 23:13
Our understanding is that the Office of Research Integrity is overseen by the Pro Vice Chancellor for Research, Professor Sir John Aston.
EtonMess · 27 July 2026 at 23:05
@Darius
‘a comprehensive register of individuals who have submitted complaints that may have been improperly adjudicate’ is definitely needed.
I suspect the number of mishandled cases is high and mostly involves favoured academics being accused of research misconduct.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 19:34
One of the comments to this post on X asks, “Have they sacked him yet?”
The answer is no and Cambridge will hardly do that. As it happened with Simon Goldhill, Arday will have to resign so that the University will not assume any responsibility. Of course, if that happens, the University still needs to explain the cover up, namely the “investigations” or lack of thereof, the intervention of Carter-Ruck, the payment of Carter-Ruck, and the silence of the senior leadership that is useless, among other uncomfortable topics.
Tired in Cambridge · 27 July 2026 at 19:35
I’m a black academic and a woman. My sympathy goes to Dr. Paula Zwozdiak-Myers who actually did the work.
I take issue with the patronising comment that Arday was set up to fail by Cambridge. Nonsense. This is his own doing. He has agency. To suggest otherwise will delight my more racist Cambridge colleagues.
Of course Cambridge’s response is abysmal and typical of patterns we’ve seen in other situations.
SPARTACUS · 27 July 2026 at 19:52
100% this:
“I’m a black academic and a woman. My sympathy goes to Dr. Paula Zwozdiak-Myers who actually did the work.
I take issue with the patronising comment that Arday was set up to fail by Cambridge. Nonsense. This is his own doing. He has agency. To suggest otherwise will delight my more racist Cambridge colleagues.
Of course Cambridge’s response is abysmal and typical of patterns we’ve seen in other situations.”
American Queen and her oligarchs have to go! Rhys Morgan and his Director have to be fired NOW!
21percent.org · 27 July 2026 at 20:16
Prof David Harris has published the 97-page plagiarism report that he, Jack Grove (journalist at THE) and others submitted to Cambridge and Liverpool John Moores University in September 2025.
It has new sources which Prof Jason Arday plagiarised, including authors from Australia, the US, Nigeria and Scotland (University of Edinburgh).
It’s a fairly basic website, so it’s worth pointing out that file 4 is the big one (63 pages) that was initially submitted. All on Prof David Harris’ website
https://www.arasite.org/
Amazing · 27 July 2026 at 20:25
I have to say that this is all absolutely astonishing. I never thought anyone would be able to reveal & expose all the terrible things that have been going in Cambridge. The Employment Tribunal was already a shocking eye-opener to many people, but now we have this huge scandal playing out on an international stage. Never has the incompetence of our senior leadership been so brutally exposed.
No word from Prentice or Smith or the pro-VCs. They must be shell-shocked at what the 21 Group has done to them. Just amazing.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 20:35
“No word from Prentice or Smith or the pro-VCs. They must be shell-shocked”
They are all taking a nap, waiting that this goes away without their intervention.
Stay tuned because there are more scandals to come. When people realise what happened in POLIS, for example, and who was involved, it will blow people’s minds. Meanwhile, check what happens in the Consigliere University https://21percent.org/?p=3097
anonymous · 27 July 2026 at 20:41
Won’t surprise anyone, they’ve been bullying junior academics for decades. The only difference is that no-one ever took them on and won.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 20:52
There are still many people who do not know the real Cambridge!
This said, note that there are a few people from POLIS at King’s College and the Provost is encouraging people to step forward and report misconduct. The question is, only members of King’s can report to Gillian Tett what they know, or external members of the College can contribute to the investigation as well? If people know the answer, please let us know!
A quarter century · 27 July 2026 at 21:03
Last major victor was Gillian. R. Evans circa 2022.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 21:14
I would argue that the last major victor was Roberto Foa June 2026, and hopefully soon we will be able to say Wyn Evans September 2026.
Drogulous · 27 July 2026 at 21:35
Agreed, this thing is nuts. The silence from the university is deafening. There must be intense internal infighting. The only big development is from Tett. She seems to be the only one who is ahead of the curve
JJ · 27 July 2026 at 21:46
Meanwhile, the real world rumbles on
https://www.spiked-online.com/2026/07/27/woke-privilege-still-reigns-at-cambridge-university/
And · 27 July 2026 at 21:58
https://stephenvainker.substack.com/p/leave-jason-arday-alone-this-is-a
21percent.org · 27 July 2026 at 22:22
Great article — “So, the case of Arday should be understood in the following terms. A mistake, but not the biggest mistake, was hiring him because of his identity rather than his scholarship. The really telling mistake though, was how the university handled the revelation, soon after he was appointed, that his scholarship was illegitimate. This is what Professor Hilary Cremin, the Head of the Education Faculty, wrote to the internal complainant about Arday’s plagiarism:
We remain immensely proud of Prof Arday’s achievements and scholarship, and…he has our full support.
…During our meeting Prof Arday spoke movingly about his ongoing experiences of direct and indirect racism, and the conditions that he was living in whilst the 2018 article was being prepared (in 2016). At this time he was early career and living away from home whilst dealing with significant health issues.
It is here that an educational academic leader – seemingly without a great deal of reflection – insisted the university was ‘immensely proud’ of shoddy scholarship and explained away the plagiarism by saying a 31 year old was ‘living away from home’. In other words, she turned her back on finding out the truth about the value of Arday’s scholarship and insisted, tacitly but nevertheless with absolute institutional force, that he was beyond criticism …. So, race does matter in the Arday affair – which should really be the Cremin affair – but not in a direct, straightforward way. .”
JJ · 27 July 2026 at 22:34
RetractionWatch strong on use of Carter-Ruck against journalists
https://retractionwatch.com/2026/07/27/cambridge-jason-arday-plagiarism-allegations-times-higher-education-exclusive/
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 22:46
Arday in a plenary he gave at the British Sociological Association this April:
“You get the email and they say you conducted academic misconduct. And you think to yourself, ‘Well this is incredible. I’m on the back foot here. How do I defend myself against this machine?” he said. “The instruments that are designed to protect academic integrity, designed to protect our wellbeing and our intellectual property, are weaponised.”
Turn Around · 27 July 2026 at 22:59
Turn around, bright eyes
Every now and then, I fall apart
(Turn around, bright eyes)
Every now and then, I fall apart
And I need you now tonight
And I need you more than ever
And if you only hold me tight
We’ll be holding on forever
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 23:09
And the University continues with the same narrative. Nothing to watch here!
“A spokesperson for Cambridge told Retraction Watch that Arday was a “victim of a vile campaign to undermine his credibility” and that he had been cleared of “allegations of plagiarism regarding his thesis and journal publications.””
Investigate Now · 27 July 2026 at 22:43
“In its letter, the firm wrote that the allegations were false and they would damage Arday’s reputation. The publication subsequently killed the story.”
That is Carter-Ruck communicating open falsehoods in order to prevent publication of the truth, paid for by tacpayer money, via a university that is supposed to advance knowledge.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 23:02
Note it says “Arday enlisted Carter-Ruck.” Was it really Arday or the University who enlisted Carter-Ruck? Why would Jason Arday pay the bill when Richard McMahon and others did not?
Xerxes · 27 July 2026 at 23:03
Just as in the Employment Tribunal Evans versus McMahon, Rampton & Prentice in June 2026, public money was used to suppress or bury bad stories. This is misuse of public funds, it must be exposed.
How much lower will the University sink?
For Shame · 27 July 2026 at 23:09
Whoever signed off on such a shameful decision must be named, shamed, and sacked.
TheResearcher · 27 July 2026 at 23:14
https://21percent.org/?p=2723
Mask · 27 July 2026 at 23:20
Meanwhile at Martha’s Vineyard, the Queen is in a deep slumber.
ZZZZ · 27 July 2026 at 23:32
Top story on X again today. Sweet Dreams, American Queen
Payday · 28 July 2026 at 08:54
The American Queen doesn’t care. It is monthly payday so she gets another $50,000 in the bank so she can enjoy lobsters on the beach in Nantucket. Why lift a finger for a country far away about which she knows little and cares even less. Taxpayer money well spent.