Zack Polanski Calls for Probe into Media After Jason Arday's Death

Zack Polanski called for a probe into media culture and behaviour following the death of academic Jason Arday.

Arday, who resigned from Cambridge University as Professor of Sociology of Education, died on August 14, 2026. His resignation followed allegations of plagiarism and questions about aspects of his public biography. Arday denied plagiarism but acknowledged errors in his work. He described an unrelenting level of public scrutiny and personal attack, stating that relentless accusations, speculation and public commentary have taken a profound toll on me and on those I love.

Arday's family stated that a campaign of misinformation became too much for him. London Mayor Sadiq Khan described the situation as an unacceptable public hounding and campaign of abuse and a pernicious public shaming. Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, director of Cambridge University's Autism Research Centre, said Arday told him they've destroyed my life due to immense personal attacks.

Academic and author Kehinde Andrews stated Arday felt that there was no way out. Thousands attended a protest vigil in Trafalgar Square on Monday evening. The Prime Minister called for a moment for reflection. The BBC's coverage of Arday has also come under scrutiny, with claims it spent years uncritically promoting him before his plagiarism allegations.

Nathan Cofnas, an academic, raised claims of plagiarism in Arday's work in a Substack post last month, which fueled over 200 articles in the British press. Cofnas, who believes inherited racial differences make black people less intelligent, used terms like retarded and illiterate to describe Arday.