NEW YORK CITY – Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman has changed his stance on academic dishonesty after a report revealed that his wife, Neri Oxman, plagiarized parts of her doctoral dissertation. Ackman, who previously called for Harvard President Claudine Gay’s resignation over plagiarism accusations, now believes that it is highly likely that academics will improperly cite others’ work.
In a recent statement on social media, Ackman acknowledged that some plagiarism may stem from laziness but stated that it does not constitute a crime. He commented that laziness reflects the competency and motivation of the faculty member, and firing them could be challenging within the tenure system.
Ackman’s softened position on plagiarism is a significant departure from his previous statements, where he condemned allegations of plagiarism against Gay as a scandal. Earlier, Gay had been accused of plagiarizing portions of academic articles, including her political science dissertation. Harvard initially cleared her of “research misconduct” but later found occurrences of “duplicative language without appropriate attribution.”
Gay acknowledged citation errors in her writings and requested corrections. Despite resigning, she maintained that she never misrepresented her research findings or claimed credit for others’ research.
Oxman, a former MIT professor and Ackman’s wife, now faces similar accusations of plagiarism. Business Insider discovered instances where she lifted sentences and paragraphs without adequate citation in her academic writing. Oxman has admitted to the plagiarism and apologized, promising to review her sourcing and make necessary corrections.
The focus of Ackman’s feud with Gay did not originate from the plagiarism allegations. It began after Ackman wrote a letter to Gay last October about antisemitism on Harvard’s campus following clashes between Israel and Hamas. The conflict between Ackman and Gay escalated after Gay’s remarks during a congressional hearing, where she said that calling for a “genocide of Jews” may be a code of conduct violation, depending on the context.
Harvard has not commented on the accusations against Oxman or Ackman’s campaign against Gay and other university leaders. MIT has also not responded to the allegations against Oxman or Ackman’s campaign against MIT President Sally Kornbluth. The university, however, stated that its leaders remain focused on the essential work of the institution.
In conclusion, Bill Ackman’s position on plagiarism has evolved after his wife’s plagiarism controversy. While he previously spearheaded efforts for Claudine Gay’s resignation over allegations of plagiarism, he now believes that it is highly likely for academics to improperly cite others’ work. Both Gay and Oxman have acknowledged their citation errors and pledged to make corrections.