Jason Arday #2

[Harlot O'Scara]

A very sad end to what would have probably been a few weeks' diversion in the press and then mostly forgotten about.

I've certainly criticised him for his lies and exaggerations, but bore him no ill will and if he really was in such depths of despair then I feel terrible for him.

Mary Beard is very dishonest to try to use his death to shield Cambridge from questions about their conduct. They played a significant part in this whole affair and they need to answer for it. They've already been put on the spot by other academics on staff about their approach to making appointments and whether or not they consider PR over the actual value of the individual and their work.

Yes, Arday told a pack of lies and given how frequently and widely he repeated them it was inevitable people would ask questions but he wouldn't have been in his ultimate position had there not been many people who wished to benefit from their association with him and his "story", whether reputationally or financially.

All of these people fed into his delusions/grift/ego/all of the above and contributed to the whole thing snowballing out of control. I doubt he came up with his grand story a decade + ago with the master plan of becoming a Cambridge Professor.

If people had been a bit more level headed, he could have quietly pottered on lecturing at one of the "lesser" universities, and he'd probably still be doing it now, even if he was known as a bit of a naff teacher who talked a lot of rubbish. He'd hardly have been the first.

 

[FrumpyCat]

It’s not funded by public money, it’s business

A business that is desperate to keep it's reputation and money

 

[TartanTallulah]

Frankly I think they have more questions to answer.

I agree. The part of me that still wants to know how much of Jason Arday's personal narrative is true is being ghoulish and I disapprove of it, but I do think it's in the public interest to find out what actually happened within the university system rather than everyone getting tiny snippets of information from their preferred news outlets and filling in the gaps according to what we want to believe.

Also, there have been various comments in various places hinting that Jason Arday's situation was not unusual in academia. If this is true, and if there are other known impostors and fantasists in high ranking positions, I would like to think that universities will take heed and relieve them of their responsibilities compassionately and discreetly while making amends to students impacted by the teaching and decisions of an unsound professor.

 

[Valiofthedolls]

Generally speaking, named living people don't need to sign off on their mentions in an autobiography.

Without knowing about your friend's ex's book, it's possible the details about their relationship might open the author up to defamation suits or something of the kind. So whatever they signed was probably "we're okay with the book, and we promise we won't sue".

That makes complete sense- it ended fairly badly between them and neither of them came out of it showered in glory, including in the book. Thanks for the quick response and apologies all, for the conjecture/derail.

 

[Jelly Bean]

I agree. The part of me that still wants to know how much of Jason Arday's personal narrative is true is being ghoulish and I disapprove of it, but I do think it's in the public interest to find out what actually happened within the university system rather than everyone getting tiny snippets of information from their preferred news outlets and filling in the gaps according to what we want to believe.

Also, there have been various comments in various places hinting that Jason Arday's situation was not unusual in academia. If this is true, and if there are other known impostors and fantasists in high ranking positions, I would like to think that universities will take heed and relieve them of their responsibilities compassionately and discreetly while making amends to students impacted by the teaching and decisions of an unsound professor.

I know - the rush to minimise it with a 'pfft it happens all the time' as though the uncovering of his lies was unwarranted is quite staggering.
There should be far more scrutiny now - not less because of this terrible tragedy.

 

[maytoseptember]

is it all on Cambridge though?

No, it isn’t.

It’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation. What came first? The elite university under pressure to increase numbers of BAME staff and students, or the wunderkid young professor, ready to make history?

 

[HotesTilaire]

A business that is desperate to keep it's reputation and money

You can’t FOI a business, only publicly funded organisations

 

[HotesTilaire]

No, it isn’t.

It’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation. What came first? The elite university under pressure to increase numbers of BAME staff and students, or the wunderkid young professor, ready to make history?

Well as I said the imminent release of the book we’ve all been reading from the US release probably played a big part in the last two days, so no, it’s not.

 

[PurvyPanda]

I’m already sick to the back teeth of people popping up Instagram saying everyone should be ashamed of themselves for hounding him and that it was all racially motivated! No doubt there are some racists who jumped on the bandwagon picking holes in his stories. But I do believe for the majority it was the fact that his back story was riddled with lies and exaggerations and not just necessarily targeted because of his skin colour. It was Cambridge who made it about race from the get go by declaring him the youngest black professor. This case of positive discrimination by Cambridge has hugely backfired affecting their reputation. Putting a fantasist like arday on pedestal (didn’t the woman who hired him say ‘you’re the best in the world at what you do’) was so damaging. It was all tokenism.

People did the same when Caroline Flack ended her life after the intense scrutiny over her court case.
I remember one of the people complaining about online bullies and sighted herself as a victim, was Helen Wood, who you may remember as being an outrageous bully on Big Brother, and was invited back on the show a few years later to repeat her behaviour, and subjected Brian Belo to such outrageous abuse, that he scaled an 8ft wall just to escape her. When I highlighted that to her on Twitter, she of course didn’t like it.

 

[The Skeptical Gerbil]

The book needs to be pulled for the sake of his family.

 

[monga]

That’s taken a turn

https://news.sky.com/video/share-13573191

 

[ChastityDingle]

There should be far more scrutiny now - not less because of this terrible tragedy.

Spot on.

It is absolutely tragic that it ended like this. But it should not be brushed under the carpet - the reasons WHY things ended as they did. As others have said, in a similar way to Caroline Flack, the events that led to his death should not be overlooked. It should not be a case of BE KIND - the most meaningless words in the English language, imo.

 

[maytoseptember]

It should not be a case of BE KIND - the most meaningless words in the English language, imo.

“Be kind” now means “be quiet”.

 

[PurvyPanda]

“Be kind” now means “be quiet”.

I call it the ‘be kind persuasion’. It’s a manipulation tactic to get worthy pious types to capitulate, because they value being popular and ‘on the right side of history’ as being more important than integrity and wanting the truth, even if the truth is inconvenient.

 

[Madonna_Claws]

I hope this doesn't upset you all, but having read the family statement, why didn't they help more? Of all the people - and I speak generally - your family would know instantly about the lies, exaggerations and general untruths you'd have been doing - not once or twice but over a sustained period of years? If the word enabler is too strong, do you think JA's wife left because she'd had enough. I know I would have done, with two small children.
Edit to add: also, when someone dies, the worst thing is the eulogies and sometimes deflecting guilt. It'll never be the families fault, and once someone dies, you also get shut down for ' speaking ill of the dead'.
That is not the same as wanting to ask, nor is it racism, disablism or any other ist or ism to try and get to the truth

The mother was a mental health nurse. Munchausens-by-proxy when he was a child? Unlikely and yes, I'm probably getting a bit...

 

[minimaz]

I always wonder about the people who come out and crow about how other people have blood on their hands after something like this happens. Do they ever worry that someone who spoke up like for example a former classmate or student might be mentally fragile and this might push them over the edge? Would they feel guilty then?

This idea that criticising a persons actions is beyond the pale is so silly especially if someone has voluntarily put themselves in the spotlight.
Imagine if someone said Nigel Farage has had too much of a pile on because of this £5m donation or lets ease up on Andrew Mountbatten Windsor etc

 

[emm]

Sorry for this, but does anyone have the link for tbe video of him with his (wife/partner)when she was going on about his achievements on some kind of audience show? I can't find the link at all (no sur wife it's been deleted?)

 

[Jelly Bean]

I always wonder about the people who come out and crow about how other people have blood on their hands after something like this happens. Do they ever worry that someone who spoke up like for example a former classmate or student might be mentally fragile and this might push them over the edge? Would they feel guilty then?

This idea that criticising a persons actions is beyond the pale is so silly especially if someone has voluntarily put themselves in the spotlight.
Imagine if someone said Nigel Farage has had too much of a pile on because of this £5m donation or lets ease up on Andrew Mountbatten Windsor etc

I remember Sali Hughes (beauty influencer and no. 1 Tattle hater) having an absolute meltdown on Twitterx over Huw Edwards. Basically 'well done everybody, slow hand clap, you've driven an elderly man into a mental breakdown. I hope you're all happy now. What a world'.
Then the truth came out and she permanently left X.

 

[HotesTilaire]

Why is it the publics fault (I’m thinking of little Owen Jones telling everyone off on X) shouldnt he be DM’ing the journalists who published the story? But it‘s our fault for reading it, cool cool.

 

[monga]