The Associated Press was blasted and forced to make a humiliating U-turn after they published an article about Claudine Gay’s resignation with a sensational headline that said plagiarism was a ‘new conservative weapon.’
Gay, 53, resigned as the President of Harvard University on Tuesday in a bitter letter to colleagues and students.
She stepped down from her role 28 days after her shocking response at a congressional testimony about campus anti-Semitism. Gay refused to categorize calls for genocide of Jews as harassment or admit that Jewish students had a right not to feel unsafe at Ivy League schools.
The headline that originally said: ‘Harvard president’s resignation highlights new conservative weapon against colleges: plagiarism’ has since been changed to ‘Plagiarism charges downed Harvard’s president. A conservative attack helped to fan the outrage.’
The publication has since told Fox News Digital that the initial headline on the piece was not up to their ‘standards.’
The Associated Press has faced fierce backlash after they published a headline that said that plagiarism is the ‘new conservative weapon’ in a piece about Claudine Gay’s resignation
Gay, 53, resigned as the President of Harvard University on Tuesday in a bitter letter to colleagues and students
Along with December 5 testimony, Gay has also been accused of mounting claims of plagiarism against her – but said she had been the victim of racist threats.
‘It has become clear that it is in the best interests of Harvard for me to resign so that our community can navigate this moment of extraordinary challenge with a focus on the institution rather than any individual,’ she said in her resignation letter.
Gay was president of the Ivy League University for just six months, and in her written farewell, she failed to apologize for or acknowledge the disasters that led to her departure.
The headline wasn’t the only part of the AP piece that sparked major scrutiny, as the copy referred to conservative activist Christopher Rufo, who assisted in exposing allegations against Gay.
The Associated Press cited a tweet that Rufo posted to X as he celebrated her sudden departure and used the word ‘SCALPED.’
The article then went on to define the word as ‘invoking a gruesome practice taken up by white colonists who sought to eradicate Native Americans and also used by some tribes against their enemies.’
The news outlet was attacked on social media for their headline as one said that it suggested ‘having such low expectations for minorities’
Students are seen protesting against Israel at Harvard University on October 14. Many Jewish students said the extended protests and university response to them left them feeling unsafe
Journalist T. Becket Adams took to x and asked if Gay had a second job working as a journalist for AP due to the headline
In response to the publication mocking his tweet, Rufo said: ‘It’s glorious: Academics defending plagiarism. Journalists opposing journalism. Newswires attributing scalping to “white colonists.” Everyone focusing on the frame we set. That is how the game is won.’
Many others flocked to social media to ridicule the news outlet as one posted a clown emoji and said: ‘AP says pointing out plagiarism is a “new conservative weapon.” Community Notes comes in clutch.’
‘Imagine having such low expectations for minorities that you believe they’re not capable of learning on their own,’ it continued.
Journalist T. Becket Adams said: ‘Does Claudine Gay moonlight as an AP writer? What’s happening?’
Another person said: ‘The AP, a once reputable news source has been infiltrated and corrupted by Leftists like so many other institutions.’
They then went on to say that the fact that the publication had to be corrected by Community Notes, a platform on X used to ‘create a better informed world’ made them ‘chuckle.’
A commenter said that the fact that the publication had to be corrected by Community Notes, a platform on X used to ‘create a better informed world’ made them ‘chuckle’
Representative Ralph Norman asked if AP would’ve taken a different stance if Gay was a different gender, religion or race
Representative Ralph Norman, who served the 5th congressional district of South Carolina, also took to social media and said, ‘Imaged @AP’s posture towards plagiarism if Claudine Gay were a male, Asian, white, outspoken Christian, or a Republican.’
Following Gay’s announcement, the Harvard Corporation, which serves as the school board, heaped praise on her ‘devoted’ service and said it had accepted her resignation ‘with sorrow,’ while Jewish groups and alumni like billionaire Bill Ackman embraced the announcement.
She said it had been ‘frightening’ to find herself the target of threats, and ‘distressing’ to have her character questioned.
Gay will be replaced by Alan M. Garber, Provost and Chief Academic Officer, who sat behind her at the infamous December 5 hearing, nodding as she made her remarks.
In the letter, she said it was with a ‘heavy heart’ that she was standing down, but confirmed she would retain some kind of role at the school.
‘I believe we have within us all that we need to heal from this period of tension and division and to emerge stronger.
‘I had hoped with all my heart to lead us on that journey, in partnership with all of you.
‘As I now return to the faculty, and to the scholarship and teaching that are the lifeblood of what we do, I pledge to continue working alongside you to build the community we all deserve,’ she said.
Gay was accused of copying two paragraphs from work by then-Harvard scholars D. Stephen Voss and Bradley Palmquist. One paragraph is nearly identical except for a few words
Gay will remain a member of the university staff and return to a teaching role at the department of political science, and keep a similar salary.
She will retain a salary of around $900,000-a-year from the university, despite being forced to resign amid a plagiarism scandal.
The daughter of Haitian immigrants, became the first the black person to lead the university when she took over as president on July 1.
As she was dealing with criticism of her Congressional testimony, Rufo published accusations that she had plagiarized portions of her 1997 doctoral thesis.
The Washington Free Beacon then published their own investigation into Gay’s work, but on December 12, the Harvard Corporation – which runs the university – announced she had been investigated and cleared.
Gay’s alleged plagiarism of David Canon’s work seen here in bold font
Gay, seen in May 2023, shortly before taking up the role as the first black president of Harvard
Some noted the speed of the investigation: most take six to 12 months, but Gay was cleared in a matter of weeks.
The Corporation said some of her academic work would be ‘corrected’, but her job was secure.
Yet the accusations of plagiarism kept coming, and students began to complain that they would be punished for similar violations.
The Associated Press has a page on their website that details their news principals and values, and highlight that plagiarism is not tolerated.
‘An AP staffer who reports and writes a story must use original content, language and phrasing. We do not plagiarize, meaning that we do not take the work of others and pass it off as our own,’ the site says.