Punchboard Media, a network of board game content creators, have severed ties with Katie’s Game Corner after founder Katie Aidley admitted to plagiarizing articles posted on the network.
Allegations of plagiarism surfaced Wednesday in a closed Facebook group for board game reviewers and media, where it appeared that Aidley had lifted a game review from BoardGameGeek.com and posted as it their own.
In a statement, posted July 5, Punchboard said, “After these allegations surfaced, Katie reached out to Punchboard Media, admitted them to be true, and apologized. The Punchboard Media board decided, after discussing the matter with Katie, that it would be best if they step away from network.”
Katie’s Game Corner, started in 2017, featured Aidley’s take on board games, wargaming, inclusivity and mental health. The blog also featured posts from industry guests including, Tom Russell and Mark Herman.
Aidley’s blog and social media accounts have since been either locked or taken down completely. Before her Linkedin profile was removed, Aidley was listed as Communication Manager for White Wizard Games. White Wizard have not responded to our request for a comment.
Punchboard said it would be working to amend its Code of Conduct.
“…while our Code of Conduct is very clear on harassment and hate speech, it does not address plagiarism at all. That will, of course, be amended shortly,” they said in the statement.
The organization said it would continue to to be an advocate for openness, fairness, and inclusion in the community, and encouraged people not to attack Aidley after the admission.