New Plagiarism Accusations Against Harvard President
New plagiarism allegations have surfaced against Claudine Gay, the president of Harvard, sparking a debate over the university's standards.
New Plagiarism Allegations
New plagiarism allegations have been made against Claudine Gay, the president of Harvard, threatening to engulf the university in controversy. The accusations were published in The Washington Free Beacon, a conservative online journal that has been critical of Dr. Gay in recent weeks. These new allegations join around 40 previously circulated accusations, all seemingly from the same source.
Dr. Gay has vehemently defended herself, stating that she stands by the integrity of her scholarship and that she has always adhered to the highest academic standards. However, these recent allegations have raised questions about whether Harvard will hold its president and students to the same standard.
Accusation Details
The new complaint against Dr. Gay includes 47 examples of alleged plagiarism, adding to the 39 examples found in the initial complaint. While Dr. Gay has not been accused of stealing ideas, she is accused of copying language from other scholars' papers. The changes made are often small, such as substituting words or rearranging phrases. The alleged instances of plagiarism primarily involve technical boilerplate language.
Harvard's investigations have also uncovered instances of inadequate citation in Dr. Gay's dissertation and at least two of her articles. These findings, combined with the plagiarism accusations, further complicate the situation.
Chronology and Speculations
The new complaint against Dr. Gay is accompanied by a five-page chronology, presenting a range of emotions from somber to sarcastic. The author of the chronology, who chose to remain anonymous, submitted the first set of allegations to Harvard on December 19. In explaining their decision to remain unidentified, the accuser cites concerns about Harvard's potential legal action.
A previous report indicates that the New York Post approached Harvard with plagiarism allegations against Dr. Gay in October, prompting the university to respond through a defamation lawyer. The accuser questions why Harvard was motivated to expose them and speculates whether Dr. Gay wanted to show gratitude for assistance in improving her work.
