Harvard student newspaper backs Claudine Gay but admits she plagiarized — as editorial board dissenters say she must go

Harvard University’s student newspaper cautiously stood by embattled President Claudine Gay — arguing that while she may have plagiarized, it does not warrant her resignation.

The Harvard Crimson’s editorial board conceded in an op-ed Saturday that some of the accusations against Gay “are indeed plagiarism,” but concluded that it appears she lacked the “intent” to steal the work of others.

“To be clear, sloppiness of this kind is unbefitting of a Harvard president,” states the article, representing the “majority view” of the editorial board.

“A sober-minded assessment of the plagiarism charges indicates that Gay’s behavior constitutes plagiarism, but since the errors do not appear intentional, they do not warrant her resignation,” it said.

Members of the board splintered over the editorial, with two penning a spirited dissent, arguing that Gay should resign.

Undergirding the student newspaper’s defense of Gay — at least in part — were concerns that the myriad of negative press about the Ivy League school’s president were “manufactured by conservative activists intent on discrediting higher education.”

The board drew attention to how the plagiarism accusations emerged after Gay ran into controversy with her Dec. 5 testimony before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce about the institution’s policies toward combating antisemitism on campus.

“It would be journalistic malpractice to comment on the allegations without noting that they have only generated such fierce uproar because bad-faith actors already wanted Gay’s head,” the board wrote.

“That many of Gay’s most vocal critics are driven by ulterior motives does not diminish the concerns about her academic integrity,” it went on, arguing that it was having an “honest, fair, and intellectually-serious” discussion about the accusations.

There have been over two dozen documented instances of alleged plagiarism, including in two peer-reviewed journal articles and Gay’s PhD dissertation.

The Harvard Corporation, the school’s governing body, found that Gay’s work contained “duplicative language without appropriate attribution,” and she has since moved to make corrections in the journal articles.

As the Crimson’s editorial board noted, some of the instances in question involved attribution mishaps, missing quotation marks, and straight-up lifting sentences almost word for word.

The Post reached out to the university in October for comment on some of the plagiarism allegations, and the school’s lawyers replied with a blistering letter threatening The Post with legal action, arguing that the accusations were “demonstrably false” and that Gay’s work was “cited and properly credited.”

The student newspaper took note of the threats.

In their dissenting editorial, two members of the board blasted Gay’s conduct and contended that she tarnished Harvard’s “widely revered international brand.”

They pointed out donors’ tepidness toward Gay remaining at the helm of the prestigious school and underscored that the controversy engulfing her expands beyond the plagiarism scandal.

“Our doubts began in the wake of Hamas’ attacks on Oct. 7. Without question, Gay botched her public response to the crisis,” they argued.

“We are tired of reading about Harvard’s failures every time we check the news. We are sick of reporters hassling us for interviews in the Yard,” they went on.

“President Gay may be a good person. She may even be a praiseworthy scholar, despite the allegations. But that isn’t enough to remain president.”

Gay is Harvard’s 30th president, having served in that role since July. She is the first black female president of Harvard.

The Post contacted Harvard for comment.

“I stand by the integrity of my scholarship. Throughout my career, I have worked to ensure my scholarship adheres to the highest academic standards,” Gay previously told The Boston Globe.

The House Education Committee is now examining the plagiarism accusations against Gay as well as antisemitism at the institution.

Gay previously faced calls for her resignation following her congressional testimony that ultimately led to the downfall of Pennsylvania president Liz Magill who appeared alongside her before the Education Committee earlier this month.