The death of Jason Arday, following weeks of news coverage of his life and career, has prompted calls for a new inquiry into press standards. The University of Cambridge academic faced an overwhelming volume of comment from international news organisations, broadcasters, digital-native publications and the public on social media. His family said it all had a catastrophic impact on his life. I should underline from the start that I have enormous sympathy for what Arday went through, and my thoughts are with his family and friends.

Given the demands from some politicians and pressure groups for a public inquiry into the press’s actions in reporting on Arday, it is worth looking at how newspapers covered the emergence of the plagiarism allegations against him, the claims he made about his life and career, his resignation from Cambridge, his death and the reaction to it.

There is a lot of potential material to consider, and a variety of approaches could be employed. Here, I have looked at substantive articles published in the print editions of national newspapers. I haven’t included articles published solely on newspaper websites, nor newspapers’ social media or multimedia output. Nor have I analysed broadcaster or social media output. There is a vast amount of other content that could, and no doubt will in due course, be considered.

However, given that there is pressure for an inquiry into the press, it is sensible to begin with the print editions, which remain a core driver of newspapers’ news-gathering and commissioning processes.

I have looked at the number and type of articles published, and the key themes that they engaged with. I haven’t conducted a close textual reading, rather categorising the overarching themes of an article. I have only considered substantive articles produced by a search using data analysis by the company LexisNexis from July 25, the day the plagiarism allegations were first reported, until August 20. Where a story was repeated in different editions of the newspapers, I disregarded duplicates, and I discounted letters to the editor, promotions or indexes, as well as passing references in articles that were primarily about something else.

I wanted to focus on articles that were chiefly about Arday, his work or the fallout from the events of the past month. That said, I don’t disregard the impact that all of these additional pieces of output may have had on Arday – they contributed to the intense volume of content that has been created during these weeks.

The LexisNexis results produced a result of 553 articles from 14 publications. Cleaning the data produced a final corpus of 242 articles for consideration. The Times produced the most articles – 53 in the daily edition and a further eight in the Sunday Times.

The data about the articles, the date of publication, the type of article, and its themes were coded by hand; the figures in this article were created using AI to visualise the data. There were two peaks in coverage: after Arday resigned from Cambridge University on August 5 and following his death on August 14.

The start of the coverage

The plagiarism allegations were first reported by the Daily Telegraph, The Times and the Daily Mail on July 25. The Times and the Daily Telegraph continue to report the story regularly from the last days of July, with other newspapers starting to publish around the time of Arday’s resignation. In the days that followed, a significant number of articles were published.

Most of the articles are news stories about the developing situation. But there are also several opinion-led pieces too. The Times publishes 30 news stories and 13 opinion pieces, as well as news analysis, leaders, a review of Arday’s memoir, and the only interview with the academic.

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The coverage begins with questions about plagiarism in his academic work, but quickly moves to consider Arday’s wider claims about his life, pegged to the imminent publication of his memoir. From the very beginning, some newspapers frame questions about Arday’s work in the context of Cambridge’s efforts to diversify its academic workforce. The Daily Telegraph’s first story is headlined “Cambridge’s diversity pin-up in plagiarism row”. This sets the tone for much of the subsequent reporting.

From relatively early on, concerns are raised about the amount of reporting and comment the story is generating through both the press and social media. The Times journalist Giles Coren writes about Arday twice in his columns on August 1 and 11. On both occasions, he raises questions about the volume and impact of the coverage. Coren has subsequently been criticised for his choice of language – he referred to everyone “slaughtering” Arday – but he is clearly critical of the way the story is being covered.

Finally, there is the question of the proportionality of the coverage. To what extent were newspapers dealing with questions of legitimate public interest, rather than pursuing a story that had captured a degree of public enthusiasm, with consequent financial benefits to their publications?

While it is true that allegations of run-of-the-mill academic misconduct seem unlikely to interest journalists, it is also true that Arday was an emerging public intellectual. His media appearances – including on BBC Question Time and guest editing Radio 4’s Today – plus the publication of a mainstream commercial memoir featuring a range of extraordinary claims, meant he inevitably had a higher profile than his peers.

Many of the news stories in the sample do attempt to answer questions that are legitimate to ask. On the other hand, some people have expressed the view that the coverage was motivated by racism from the start – Arday’s former mentor at Cambridge Lord Simon Woolley referred to his friend being “hounded to death”.

Framing associated with race is present throughout the sample, and some articles explicitly accuse Cambridge of only appointing Arday as a professor because of the colour of his skin. For example columnist Julia Hartley-Brewer’s article in The Sun on August 7 was headlined “Prof hasn’t been hounded from job because he is black…it looks like he only got the job because he is black”.

There is no question that some journalists, opinion columnists in particular, viewed this story through the lens of wider battles over culture. Was it proportionate? I hope editors will reflect on that at some length. But as I pointed out at the beginning, the newspaper coverage is only a part of the volume of content created. All of those who’ve contributed to the firehose of comment need to reflect on their part in it.

The victim in all of this is unquestionably Arday. There may have been questions that he needed to answer about his life and work. But the penalty he paid for being caught at the heart of this firestorm was out of all proportion to any offence he may have committed.

The offer, which includes 10 per cent off flights, follows high demand from Yorkshire travellers flying from Leeds Bradford Airport after easyJet announced it would no longer be flying from the airport.

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Jet2 announces offer for discounted holidays from Leeds Bradford Airport

Steve Heapy, chief executive of Jet2, said: “We have been proudly operating from Leeds Bradford Airport since 2003, when we launched with just two aircraft, and since then we have grown to become Yorkshire’s leading airline and tour operator.

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Will you be taking advantage of this deal from Jet2? Let us know in the comments.

Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan Tate have been reported to Britain’s counter-terror policing unit and the Home Office over an alleged “Russian propaganda” video.

The clip, which was posted on the Tates’ social media channels in June, shows the siblings dressed in camouflage and body armour in Russia. They ride a Soviet-era T-80BV battle tank, arm themselves with weapons including a flamethrower and throw grenades from a trench.

A man guiding them through the course tells them that they could win a “special medal” from the “minister of defence of Russia”.

“Putin has his latest propaganda puppets: the Tate Brothers. Andrew and Tristan Tate filmed themselves sprouting pro-Kremlin propaganda whilst using Russian weapons,” Alicia Kearns, the MP for Rutland and Stamford who made the complaint, said on X.

“The Conservatives’ National Security Act clearly states anyone spreading propaganda for a hostile foreign state is legally required to register,” she continued.

“They need to come clean: How did they get on a Russian military base – did they receive any direction or assistance from the Russian state? If the answer is yes, and they failed to register, they are in-breach of the law. I’ve reported them to the Police to investigate.”

But in a statement to LBC, a Tate representative said that the visit was “private and personal”, adding that the brothers received “no payment, compensation, financial assistance or direction from the Russian state” and did not deliver talking points for the Russian government.

“Going to a gun range is as American as apple pie,” a representative for the Tate brothers told The Independent. “Americans love to shoot guns and blow things up. The Second Amendment gives us that right.

“It is absurd to equate a day at the range with military training. That is like saying a day at the driving range makes you a professional golfer.

“Millions of Americans shoot every year for sport, for skill, and for the plain enjoyment of it, which is to say for the same reasons they golf on the weekend. Lawful conduct does not become a crime because the government finds it frightening.”

Kearns argues there are grounds to investigate whether the brothers were required to register under the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS), which operates under the National Security Act and requires individuals to register where they may be carrying out activities in the UK for foreign powers.

The Independent has contacted Kearns, Counter-Terror Police and the Home Office for comment.

The brothers have previously made comments that appear sympathetic to Russia, with Andrew Tate addressing the Ukraine war in an interview with Tucker Carlson in a 2023 interview.

“What I will say to people who are watching this at home is that if you are naive enough to believe that there are good guys and bad guys in wars and it’s as simple as good and bad and that the bad guys are crazy and the good guys want freedom, then you need to do a little bit more investigation into what is really happening,” Tate said.

He also praised Russian leader Vladimir Putin for his handling of the Covid pandemic.

Tristan, meanwhile, previously tweeted in response to Dmitry Medvedev’s 2024 comments on Nato provoking a response from Russia: “We are relying on Russia to save the world” and warned it not to let the US administration “provoke” it.

The brothers were arrested in Miami on 18 July to face charges of rape, assault and facilitating trafficking for sexual exploitation and remain in federal custody while fighting extradition to the United Kingdom.

The Scarborough Spa Cliff Lift has been shut down after an independent assessment by specialist engineers identified problems with its infrastructure and critical components.

Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire Council, said: “The lift is an important part of Scarborough’s history and identity, and we recognise the affection people have for this landmark attraction.

READ MORE: Emergency services called to incident in North Street, York

“We are now carefully reviewing the report and considering what options may be available.

“No decisions have yet been made regarding the scope of any future works, timescales or funding arrangements.”

Although the lift has undergone routine inspections and maintenance over the years, the latest engineering survey took a more detailed look at the condition of the tracks, carriages, and associated infrastructure.

Built during the Victorian era, the lift was constructed at a cost of around £8,000.

Its coastal location exposes it to salt-laden air, strong winds, and harsh weather conditions, all of which contribute to accelerated wear and corrosion.

North Yorkshire Council has said it will continue to review the findings and will provide further updates in due course.

The shop has created 12 new jobs for the area

Greggs has opened a new branch in a popular Cambridgeshire city. It’s the first branch of the bakery chain to open in Ely city centre, though there is another Greggs on the A10 between Littleport and Ely. The new branch has welcomed its first customers today (Friday, August 21) on Buttermarket.

The new branch has created 12 jobs for the city. Gillian Long, retail operations director for Greggs, said: “Our new shop in Ely provides customers with a modern, convenient new place to experience their Greggs favourites.”

The Ely shop has opened with a modern look and comfortable seating. It will be open from 7am until 7pm on Saturdays and 8am until 5pm on Sundays.

Just like other branches, the new Ely Greggs will stock fan favourites, including sausage rolls, steak bakes, vegan rolls and a new chicken roll. Greggs is also offering a new line-up of pastas and salads, including a prawn layered pasta salad, and chicken Caesar salad with egg.

Greggs has over 2,700 shops across the country and employs 33,000 employees across the entire business.

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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx co-owner Marc Lore has agreed to sell his controlling stake in the franchises to limited partner Marc Shad at a $4.5 billion value barely a year after his purchase was finalized, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.

The person spoke Friday to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because details of the agreement were not being publicized.

Lore, a New York e-commerce entrepreneur, and partner Alex Rodriguez, the former Major League Baseball star, bought the NBA and WNBA clubs from Minnesota businessman Glen Taylor. That complicated and contentious process lasted more than four years until the $1.5 billion sale got league approval in June 2025.

Lore and Shad are essentially swapping roles, the person said. Rodriguez will remain as a co-owner.

Lore, Rodriguez and Shad issued a joint statement Friday expressing their commitment to the current leadership in the organization including chief executive officer Matt Caldwell, Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly, Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch, and Lynx president of basketball operations and head coach Cheryl Reeve.

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AP Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds contributed.

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See AP’s full NBA coverage here

NEW YORK (AP) — Nearly 200 activists in Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s “Make America Healthy Again” movement are criticizing President Donald Trump’s promotion of coal to fuel the rise of artificial intelligence data centers, according to a letter sent Friday.

The letter, signed by at least two former staffers from Kennedy’s 2024 presidential campaign, marks the first major MAHA movement mobilization over fossil fuels and the latest in a series of rifts between the diverse group of activists and the Trump administration over environmental policy.

The letter to Trump, Kennedy and various other Cabinet officials, first obtained by The Associated Press, laments a 2025 executive order that aimed to boost coal to power data centers over pollution concerns and asks the administration to consider renewable options, including solar and geothermal energy.

“We understand the importance of American leadership in artificial intelligence, national security, innovation, and economic growth,” the letter reads. “But American AI leadership should not come at the cost of a more toxic burden for American children.”

The White House and the agencies receiving the letter didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Prominent MAHA figures behind the letter include Zen Honeycutt, a former Kennedy campaign staffer and founder of the advocacy group Moms Across America, and Charles Eisenstein, a former speechwriter on Kennedy’s campaign. Honeycutt said she asked the Kennedy-aligned political action committee MAHA Action to sign onto the letter but did not receive a reply.

Although it may not reflect the views of all MAHA activists, the new line of criticism against one of the administration’s signature policies less than three months before November’s midterm elections could present another challenge for Republicans as they seek to win over the voting bloc in key races.

As health secretary, Kennedy has carried out several policy changes that cater to the MAHA movement, including attempting to scale back childhood vaccine recommendations, a central priority for some activists. He also has sought to remove artificial dyes from food and encouraged Americans to have healthy diets free of ultraprocessed foods.

But many in the MAHA movement, which Trump credits with helping him win back the White House two years ago, say they have grown frustrated with the administration over its embrace of pesticides such as glyphosate and its deregulatory environmental agenda. Some have said they plan to vote on issues over party this fall, raising the political stakes of their increasingly public tensions with the Republican administration.

He also has been a vocal advocate for data centers, which power artificial intelligence and cloud computing, framing them as a necessary component of winning the AI race against China.

“If I were the mayor of a town or the governor of a state, and I had a chance to get a big plant in, an AI plant or a data center,” Trump said this week, “I would absolutely want it because the jobs are enormous and the money paid, the taxes paid, are just enormous.”

Data centers have become a political flashpoint in this year’s elections. Voters across the political spectrum have criticized them for jacking up electricity bills, draining water supplies, and creating unhealthy amounts of air and noise pollution.

Friday’s letter asks the administration to require transparent review of data center location and power sourcing decisions, and respect existing environmental review requirements in the permitting process.

Honeycutt said that after Trump’s executive order last year, she researched the impact of coal ash on communities and was disturbed by what she found. She said she was also concerned about other aspects of data centers, including their land use and their effects on the people living near them.

“The data center push has been an overwhelmingly negative impact on our communities, and there are many in the MAHA movement that are extremely disappointed about that,” she said. “We vote for those who put health and safety first.”

Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist John Doyle will perform at Victoria Hall on Friday, August 28 from 7.30pm to 9pm.

His career spans over the past 20 years and includes collaborations with Joan Baez, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and Irish fiddler Liz Carroll.

Doyle has also played alongside bluegrass musicians Tim O’Brien and Dirk Powell.

He was nominated for a GRAMMY for the album Double Play and played guitar on Eric Clapton’s latest album.

He is also a member of the Transatlantic Sessions band.

The Wall Street Journal said: “Doyle on guitar has risen to a level occupied by him alone.

“No one in Irish traditional music is a better guitarist than him right now.”

Earle Hitchner, writing for The Wall Street Journal and the Irish Echo, described his performance of The Arabic as “unforgettable.”

The Chicago Tribune praised Doyle as “A complete rhythm section all on his own,” while the Philadelphia News said he has “More talent than anybody deserves to have all to themselves.”

Tickets for the show are priced at £20.

Settle Victoria Hall is located at 24 Kirkgate, Settle, BD24 9DZ.

The student died in hospital earlier this year

A Cambridge student died from “poisoning”, an inquest has heard. Eliot Golding, 20, died in Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, on March 18, 2026.

An inquest was opened into his death on Thursday (August 20) at Vantage House in Huntingdon. Coroner Simon Milburn told the court that his cause of death, after a post mortem, was confirmed as “sodium nitrate poisoning”.

Mr Milburn adjourned Mr Golding’s inquest for an inquest in writing to be held in the week commencing October 19.

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Alex McCarthy, 16, was one of five young people who died in the M9 road tragedy in the early hours of Sunday morning

The priest who presided over the funeral mass for a teenager who lost his life in the M9 collision paid his respects to the innocent family harmed in the head-on crash.

During Alex McCarthy’s service at the Holy Family Church in Askea, Carlow, Fr Tom Little remarked that a “tragic accident can happen in seconds”.

He recognised that a collision such as the M9 incident, which claimed five lives and left four injured, evokes a “deep sense of shock, anger, questions, regret and even a sense of disbelief.”

Alex McCarthy was amongst the five young people who perished after their group travelled in a high-powered BMW the wrong way along the busy motorway, striking a family heading to Dublin Airport during the early hours of Sunday morning.

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Sisters Niamh and Alma Kinsella, alongside Ella Hendricken and a seven year old boy who were travelling in the other vehicle, suffered catastrophic injuries. All remain hospitalised, reports the Irish Mirror.

During his address earlier today/yesterday, Fr Little paused to offer prayers for the injured family, who were remembered during the prayers of the faithful.

He stated: “We come together in Holy Family Church, Askea, with heavy hearts and a deep sense of sadness.

“Conscious that lives have been lost, others have been injured, and families have been left to carry the grief that is so difficult to put into words.”

He added: “A tragic accident can happen in seconds and the result of it can last a lifetime.

“These types of accidents bring a deep sense of shock, anger, questions, regret, and even a sense of disbelief. Words cannot express the true feelings of our heart, so today is a day for compassion, prayer, and remembrance.”

We remember in our prayers those who have been injured and pray that they may make a good recovery. “Thanking God that they have survived. Thanking God for the emergency services, doctors, nurses and ambulance staff and all who care for the sick.”

His homily went on: “We remember those who have died to this world, knowing that each life is God’s great gift to each one of us, to be treasured and respected. Those who have died were loved by their family and friends.

“Their absence leaves a space that cannot simply be filled. We remember families on both sides of the accident to God in prayer. We are bringing today our human emotions of hurt, loss, confusion, sadness, responsibilities, in prayer to God.”

Recognising the profound effect the collision would have on loved ones, Fr Little urged people not to “carry sorrow alone”. He added: “For us who remain the journey ahead will not be easy. There will be moments of grief and sadness.

“As part of God’s family let us support one another. Let families not feel that they must carry their sorrow alone.”

Alex’s remains, placed in a baby blue casket, arrived at the church shortly after 3pm in a horse-drawn carriage. Those walking behind wore t-shirts bearing Alex’s image alongside the words “The Boss”.

As the casket was brought out, family and friends lifted it high, banging on the sides while cheering.

Several photographs of Alex were displayed outside the church, accompanied by a large screen showing images of the 16 year old. During the service, Alex’s grandmother Tina gave several readings – breaking down in tears at one point.

Following the service, Alex’s casket was carried from the church and once more raised aloft and struck. Sulkies were also present before his remains were transported to St Mary’s Cemetery for burial.

A substantial Garda presence was maintained throughout the proceedings. Numerous officers were stationed at roundabouts and on roads approaching the town.

Armed Gardai were also deployed in the vicinity. The other four teenagers who lost their lives are Joe Carthy, 15, Jack Kennedy, 17, Jeremy O’Brien and 17 year old Kamil Pustkowski.

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