Hard questions remain - none has a one-word answer.
If you dismiss them by saying ‘racism’, you’re shafting Arday’s memory and the next person it could happen to.
Arday isn’t comparable to the others (eg Wakefield, an appalling fraudster) because questions about race, hiring and ND as well as his own flaws are all crucial to the scandal.
These don’t feature in the other academic cases, which weren’t about such well known figures.
IME Cambridge should have done due diligence on Arday’s CV & asked a few questions about his startling claims of life experiences.
Had they done the boring basics at the time, as well as having a quiet word with him about the achievements he claimed, this tragedy wouldn’t have happened.
Academics are colourful types, and the tall tales could have been dismissed as ND in action.
But Cambridge panicked and cried ‘vile racism’ when doubts began to surface over his credibility shortly into the job. Students raised those doubts because their marks were so low after Arday’s teaching.
The plagiarism issue was raised by a guy who previously campaigned for anti racism, not a frothing gammon.
Cambridge stonewalled the very idea of checking for three years - police, Carter Ruck fuelling the fire - and still did nothing.
By that time too many press knew of Cambridge’s aggressive refusals, and press releases for the autobiography had just landed on newsroom desks. Containing further startling claims. No decent journalist ignores that, and neither should they.
It’s desperate and sad. But Cambridge wasted the four years they had to tackle critics - critics who had a point.