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’m not an investigative journalist but if I had time I bet I could debunk every silly exaggeration.

And yet, @SevenYellowHammers you keep “falling asleep” before the bit in the video where Arday tells the verifiable lie of having a masters from Birkbeck.

That seems rather convenient.

I’m seeing a lot of people claiming that he’s a fantasist and probably mentally unwell. That ignores another, and in the circumstances far more likely possibility, which is that he’s just an old fashioned con artist. While his con has taken an unusual form, he seems to have pulled it to gain influence rather than significant enrichment, it’s a con nonetheless, and an impossible one to pull off if you’re actually delusional or mentally ill. He’s had to keep dozens of plates spinning for years, and though his qualifications are suspect, he’s obviously a very clever man indeed. You have to have a good head in your shoulders to be able to manipulate people like he has and brazen your way through life on a sea of total bullshit. I suspect he’s probably very charming in person, too. Those types usually are.

Yes, thirty years in HE and I’m struggling to think of anyone who has managed to do this.

Mind you, I did once have a HoD, an external appointment, who on arrival was the least qualified in terms of HE experience in the team of 15. Apparently management thought that a different career gave this person a great advantage and the team would benefit. It took less than a month for the error to be blindingly obvious.

He’s a fantasist and the fawning wokerati fell for it hook, line and sinker.

Yes, I think that’s far more likely.

He isn’t the most exciting speaker.

7 up started in 1964 21 years before he was born they will all be comming up to 70 now
And the one in 2000 featured 7 years olds as he was born in 1985 he would have been 15
So how is he the right age for either of them?

But I would like a Cambridge professor, especially in social science, which is not impenetrable like some subjects, to be an exciting speaker - this is one of the top posts in the world, FFS, and we should ask nothing less.

I have no sympathy for the man at all. He’s an adult, he knew what he was doing. He was getting off on it, telling more and more outrageous lies. No one questioned him, he just kept getting more powerful.

He was given jobs that require academic excellence and a full body of research that takes many years to build up. There would have been other people who had genuinely worked hard who were robbed of the opportunities he’s been given.

Professor Hilary Cremin has made a twat of herself as well. Those videos of her gushing over him “you’re the best in the world” really, Hilary?! If she genuinely thought that plonker was the best in the world then she should resign too because her intelligence and sense of judgement is on its arse!

It’s students who were taught by him that I have sympathy for. They should absolutely get a partial refund on their tuition fees for the modules he taught/supervised and a public apology.

As for Jason, his only hope now is to play the mental health card. He needs to get a family member to release a statement saying he’s suicidal. Similar to what Huw Edwards and Philip Schofield did. He’s undoubtedly not feeling great right now so he might as well tell one more lie to get everyone off his back.

Yeah, it would be wrong of him to fake mental health issues but it was wrong of him to fake being non-verbal and all the other conditions he’s claimed he has so he might as well go the whole hog!

So the twins were selectivley mute not non verbal then
As the parent if a non verbal 16 year old
He cant speak at all not a single word hes not to anyone..

Fair enough I see your point but the telegraph said it was a programme broadcast DECADES before JA was born and that’s not true. There’s been loads of them .

Yep, I can see how it might upset parents of non verbal children but I have encountered parents who believe their children are largely nonverbal but ok at school, quiet but not silent.

No he's not ill, just crook. Who lied about his qualifications and achievements to get a high paying job. He then played the race card...which impacts anyone else who legitimately complains about racial prejudice because they are likely to be viewed as likely to be liars too

There are loads of 7Up strands, all over the world. Michael Apted’s 1964 version was the first but the idea has been repeated . However, I understand that JA was referring to a community project of same name?

There haven’t been load of them, there’s been two-original and the millennium one. 14up, 21up etc is just a follow up of the original 7up cast, it’s a longitudinal study. New people don’t get to join at each stage.
The telegraph is correct because Arday was born decades too late to in the original and he’s to old to have been in the millenium one.

I am totally gripped by this story, not just because Jason Arday is the biggest liar in Liarland, but because so many people enabled him.

I know of several academics in senior posts (not as prestigious as professors at Cambridge) who were caught out with faked information on their CVs, usually after they committed another misdemeanour like fiddling their expenses or sexually harassing a student. I was amazed to find out that qualifications are not routinely checked by all university HR departments.

I'm not surprised that he got away with poor teaching for so long. The vast, vast, vast majority of lecturers in UK universities are talented and dedicated educators, but universities are ill-equipped to deal with academic poor performance.

He was an overt (grandiose) narcissist. Whether that is a mental illness - who knows - but I had a parent who was exactly the same.

• Charismatic and outgoing personality that draws attention in social settings
• Exaggerating achievements or talents to appear superior
• Constant need for admiration and praise from others
• Dominating conversations or steering topics toward themselves
• Difficulty accepting criticism or feedback without defensiveness
• Lack of genuine empathy, often prioritizing image over connection

Someone described Arday as Icarus, which I think is very apt. He became too confident and believed he was invincible, so flew too close to the sun. That was his undoing. Had he kept just below the radar and not drawn attention to himself, as narcissists always do, he could have continued this charade for years.

Why are you so keen to get him off the hook then?

Why are you avoiding discussing his obvious lie about a masters from Birkbeck?

I’m assuming you no longer think it was a deep fake so what’s your new explanation?

Across the world…

A lot of Greek mythology there! Thing is, I don’t think he is charismatic.

I agree. Absolutely not defending his conduct, but I think he’s been outed and everyone needs to watch their step - these campaigns can become extremely dangerous for the individual at 5he centre.

But I hope the lesson will be learned. Most BAME academics have got themselves where they are on merit alone and really this is the only way in the long run, and good luck to them.

You think the telegraph are incorrect because they didn’t think it a possibility that Arday could’ve been part of the Japanese, Swedish, South African versions? Seriously?

But still not non verbsl like he claimed he was .

People, including students, who challenged him were shut down under accusations of being racist.

Right - but all the people @House2House2 listed will also shut people down.

Maybe Elizabeth Holmes/Elizabeth Hoover used sexism or misogyny for example, and so on through the list, with whatever "ism" helped in the moment.

I do think there is some element of racism in this, and part of that is driven by dislike of DEI.

But - DEI was and is necessary to open doors, and eventually, minds.

DEI is essentially what got the doors opened for women all those years ago, and it is still important today as those doors seem to have a hard time staying open.

You sound like him, he actually said "it's only academia!" Which does suggest that he really doesn't grasp what that actually means.

I've got a degree, it's nothing fancy or impressive but it's mine and I put a lot of work into it. If some fucker took all my work, stuck their name on it and said "there, look what I've done, all my own labours" I'd be apoplectic. How fucking dare you!

He stole someone else's work: their ideas, their time, their effort, their commitment and their intellect. And said it was his. All his.

He stole time and effort from the students he was supposed to be "teaching" when they probably had more qualifications in the subject than he did.

He is a complete fraud. Why he is I have no idea, Narcissistic Personality Disorder maybe - big on self-agrandising, in need of constant attention and praise etc.etc.

But he's not a victim - this whole thing really kicked off when he reported the THE reporter to the police for asking him questions..... and got Carter Ruck to write a 20 page letter threatening all sorts if they went ahead and published their investigation. That tells me he knew everything was a lie and he banked on being able to keep on lying, by any means necessary.