The Jason Arday scandal, part deux

[KatiePricesKnickers]

As the book launch is coming, let the discussion continue.

First thread: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5563599-the-jason-arday-scandal?utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share
This is lifted from the thread in the education section, which is an interesting summary
https://www.ian-leslie.com/p/the-great-and-unfortunate-story-of?r=8w0woc&triedRedirect=true

Or AIBU with not letting this fade away?

I first heard of him during one of his many interviews and appearances on Radio 4. (Don’t forget he guest edited the Today programme). I was amazed by his ability to go from illiterate at 18 to having a degree.

@Lipglossed He had a short contract at Roehampton university. Also Leeds Becket and Glasgow.
Maybe he kept moving because of dissatisfaction or unease. Easier to move him on?
Then with this CV he applied to Cambridge. One question I would like answered is did an insider at Jesus College put him up for it?
One of the panel that interviewed or assessed him has written about there being too much whiteness in education. There is more criticism about too much reliance on Western standards.

He's not 'just a (former) uni lecturer' though is he? Why are you downplaying the position he managed to achieve? He was the 2002 Professorial Chair in the Sociology of Education at Cambridge University, one of the most famous universities in the world. A professorial chair is a higher rank than a mere professor.

The idea that a fraud can achieve one of the most prestigious ranks in one of the most prestigious universities in the world is surely worthy of discussion?

He went from Senior Lecturer to Associate Professor then took his chair (professorship) within 3 years at different universities. That accelerated promotion can only be dreamt of.

Because it’s like something from the Salem Witch Trials and its base bullying.

Tick Tock? Must be true then.

Did you manage to get to the bit of the video where he claimed to have a masters in psychodynamic practices from Birkbeck yet?

I did and quite a few of us also did. Maybe there's something wrong with her audio? He sounds very much like the Arday I've seen in other sources.

Well he has made some incredible claims

Bullying is also pressing people into keeping quiet. You've been doing a fair bit of that.

According to past students he did a fair bit of bullying himself .

It’s unheard of! I mean, it’s just not how the system works.

Of course, I understand that his story, particularly combined with his race, gave him a leg-up at a time when Cambridge was trying to prove something.

But, nonetheless, there is a process - how would such an applicant even make it through the sift? Again, even if all his untruths were truths, it’s just not a level you can get to after such a short time.

Would love to have been a fly on a wall throughout, well, all of this.

I can only assume that no institutions were aware of ALL or most of his lies, because otherwise, it would indicate a very serious level of naivity amongst people who are supposed to be the most intellectually intelligent people, or a very serious level of institutionalised corruption.

The big question is at one level of accumulated improbable lies would you expect these highly intelligent people to start having doubts on the person telling them...

Sartre · Today 07:54
I think people need to back the fuck off the guy to be honest. It’s actually quite sickening how vicious humans become when pack mentality kicks in.

Do you feel the same about the witch hunt against Peter Mandelson and Fergie Duchess of York?

Surely being a liar and a fantasist isn't a mental illness it's just a personality quirk.

Personally I think there are people at Cambridge who should lose their jobs over this because they didn't perform due diligence and checks on him.

Pathological lying is not in itself a mental disorder but is frequently associated with a personality disorder like narcissism or borderline personality disorder.

The issue is not him as such but the concern about institutions that bought into his persona and story.

Is it part of modern life that everyone is so highly attracted to the social sensational story that they can no longer distinguish reality from fiction, and that it's got so bad that even the most prestigious institutions have fallen to the trend?

In this instance:

• a prodigy
• non white race
• learning disability
• immigrant background
• exceptional young age

Ticking almost all protected characteristics that gave managed to achieve above anything above the realm of reality.

Scary world where fiction and reality are becoming muddy waters.

Can you prove it isn’t?
The guy said he went to school with him.

Yes I agree, we are seeing it all at once and thinking how in god’s name could anyone believe any of that? But each of the lies by itself might seem more plausible, especially if you were already primed to believe great things about him, having heard he’s this incredible person.

I am hugely curious about how he came across as a person. “Soft”, interpersonal skills are a huge part of getting to a position like that. Surely someone so arrogant and detached from reality must have ruffled quite a few feathers? Was he really up to all the schmoozing and networking involved in even the lower levels of academia?

If you watch any videos of him he comes across as quite humble and soft-spoken. He seems very likeable.

Those 2 are implicated in profiteering from & turning a blind eye to wealthy men involved in sex trafficking & paedophilia. Hardly comparable to Arday’s ‘crimes’. I am another who is a bit uncomfortable with the glee with which he is being torn apart. He isn’t the first & won’t be the last academic guilty of self aggrandisement & plagiarism. He wasn’t on Epstein Island. Some proportionality is required.

I think the interest is because a lot his claims are outrageous and can be easily disproved
He claimed to be on the documentry series 7up which started in 1964 ,21 years before he was born
Why did no one question his claims ?

Here we go again. It's those magical scales that come out every single time notoriety centres around a left leaning figure. Always a reason to minimise one wrong compared to another.

What is most concerning to me is that, if he hadn't made up all that stuff about being non-verbal or having tumours or whatever, the plagiarism allegations wouldn't have going anywhere, and he'd probably have had a long, illustrious (or perceived as such) career, feted by all and sundry, based on scant output and shoddy-to-no research. Applications even for entry level positions at most universities ask for your five most impressive recent publications: the barriers to a career like this are enormous. It's very galling to know of all the many talented academics with brilliant publications who will never get anywhere near a full-time permanent position, and to know that this was going on.

I understand your point and wish the focus wasn't on JA. I understand why it is but the bigger issue is how Cambridge, and several other universities, have conducted themselves. JA was not responsible for his selection, that decision was made by people who prioritised diversity and an inspiring back story over academic excellence.

Yes he's a prolific liar and appears to have gained a PhD fraudulently but Cambridge did not do their due diligence and they were so delighted with his appointment they issued a press release and he went on a media tour to promote Cambridge as an elite institution with progressive values.

If we do not move on from examining him personally we will not address how far the rot in universities has gone.

Why did no one question his claims?
Who did he make these claims to and how. A passive comment on a night out? At interview.

As said above, if said out of any context that would make you question it, why would you? We have the highest level of insight, it's easy to question everything.

It really comes down to how much each individual/institution were told within a short time. The fact he didn't stay long anywhere might be an indication that people concerned we're starting to raise eyebrows.