Dave Portnoy: "I don't go out of my way looking for fights"

1 day ago 6

Welcome to Barstool Sports, a digital-age institution that is simply a unit successful American culture. The office resembles a frat house, and the boss' bureau is simply a mess. "The worst," said Barstool's president Dave Portnoy, a reigning king of contented and controversy.

Portnoy says helium doesn't similar a fight, and won't "go retired of my way" for one, "but if you are going to prime a combat with me, I volition bash thing I tin to ruin you."

What was erstwhile a escaped play paper of gambling tips founded retired of his mom's basement successful 2003 is present an online empire worthy hundreds of millions of dollars.

Asked to explicate what Barstool is, Portnoy said, "You're sitting astatine a bar, watching a crippled with your buddies. Anything you would speech about, that's what we're recording, however radical interact with each different normally."

And that's truly what it is, podcasts and streaming shows of precisely that – radical talking astir beauteous overmuch anything: football, trivia, movies, and food, similar Portnoy's ain "One Bite Pizza Reviews."

Dave Portnoy's apical pizza scores:

@DavePortnoy’s Top Ten Pizza Scores of All Time by Barstool Sports on YouTube

"We person a clump of (hopefully) creative, funny, talented people, and we fto 'em conscionable tally wild," Portnoy said. His occupation is "managing that ship."

As for managing himself, well, helium doesn't clasp back. "I consciousness similar I person a bully motivation compass," helium said. "So, I don't attraction what radical say. I ne'er have."

Over the years, that's led to outrage and accusations that Portnoy is conscionable different online troll – sexist, racist, and, arsenic alleged by a 2021 nonfiction astir his enactment life, "rough and demeaning" successful bed, allegations helium level retired denies, and which person ne'er led to charges.

He objects to media outlets, similar The New York Times, framing him arsenic "Dave Portnoy, who has a past of racist and sexist remarks…" "I entity strenuously to that," helium said. "And I hatred them. They're the ones who person said it, oregon radical who don't similar me. I consciousness similar virtually each azygous disapproval (and immoderate of 'em are brutal) person discourse astir them that a fair-minded person, if they looked astatine the evidence, would beryllium like, 'What they're saying astir him's conscionable not true.' But erstwhile it's said, it volition ne'er spell away."

"People are coming up with existent hate"

Raised successful a wide Jewish location extracurricular of Boston, Portnoy present represents a question successful blimpish authorities – a young, mostly-male instrumentality basal who turned distant from Democrats and voted for Donald Trump.

I asked Portnoy, "What happened to the Democrats? Why did they suffer truthful galore young men?"

"People often deliberation I person the answer," helium replied. "My nutshell is mostly they were precise anti-normal guys."

"What bash you mean, 'normal guys'? Are you saying there's lone 1 mode to beryllium a guy?"

"It's good to beryllium like, if that girl's hot, 'Hey, that girl's hot. I privation to drink, I privation to party, I similar frat parties…' That was each bad," Portnoy said. "And to beryllium honest, the White feline ... was the atrocious guy, became the atrocious guy. And there's a batch of, you know, White dudes who are like, 'Well, I'm not the atrocious guy. Like, what are you getting huffy astatine me for? I wasn't present for colonialism oregon immoderate of the worldly that you guys are complaining astir 200 years ago. Like, what did I do?'

"And adjacent with the Trump stuff, helium won the election," helium said. "You had a campaigner fundamentally calling you a deplorable or, you know, you're a Nazi if you ballot for Trump. I don't cognize if they utilized that nonstop word, but it felt similar that."

Lately, though, Portnoy has been successful the headlines, not for crossing a line, but for his efforts to gully 1 connected antisemitism. He said, "I've seen successful my ain experience, conscionable being astatine Barstool, the quality betwixt however overmuch hatred I get – I never, I mean, occasionally you get, 'Hey, kike' oregon 'Jew' oregon whatever. It's each time now. Like, there's a definitive displacement successful what's going on. So yeah, now, for maine being a Jewish person, you person to measurement up. You're benignant of idiosyncratic radical look up to successful the Jewish community. You person to go, 'All right, this is not normal, ha-ha with the guys. People are coming up with existent hate.'"

I asked, "How bash you explicate that enactment to people?"

"It's a pugnacious one," Portnoy replied, "and sometimes they don't get it."

Just past week, a antheral was arrested for shouting antisemitic maltreatment astatine Portnoy portion helium was taping a video successful Mississippi.

I asked, "The occurrence of Barstool and yourself is based connected not being acrophobic to offend, right? Speech is speech; a gag is simply a joke. Do you spot a transportation betwixt what you unleashed and what you present person to woody with?"

"No," Portnoy said. "Because I deliberation Barstool, and myself, has ever had a beauteous bully motivation compass. So, we've ne'er stood for hatred oregon thing of that ilk. I mean, bash I deliberation that feminists should kick astir a Diet Coke tin being skinny, and that someway is, like, starring to an eating upset by Diet Coke having a skinny can? That I think's crazy. And determination are things that I deliberation radical get acold excessively worked up [about], similar he/she, verbs – like, brainsick to me. Making jokes that you are trying to wounded people's feelings and are based successful hate? That's ne'er flown with us."

He's voted for Trump 3 times. Still, Portnoy, who supports termination rights, says these days he's disgusted by politics. "I mean, who the heck would privation to get into authorities anyways?" helium said. "People ever inquire maine that. It's like, what are you, crazy? You tin get much done arsenic a backstage citizen. Everyone conscionable hates your guts. And I don't cognize wherefore fractional these radical – I consciousness similar it gets the worst candidates, period. Ninety-nine percent of politicians are scumbags. But, you know, look astatine what happened to Charlie Kirk. Serious stuff. Like, I don't privation that successful my life."

Referring to acts of governmental unit that person been inflicted upon Kirk, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, President Trump, and Nancy Pelosi's husband, Portnoy said, "I mean, I similar my life."

Portnoy is legally separated and has nary plans for kids. He does springiness back, boosting tiny businesses each implicit the state with his pizza reviews, and with the tens of millions of dollars helium raised for them during the pandemic. But astatine 48, helium doesn't spot overmuch of anything, including the media.

Which made maine wonder: Why did helium accidental yes to an interrogation similar this?

"It was chiefly due to the fact that I emotion the show," Portnoy replied. "And adjacent connected the mode implicit present I'm like, you know, if this turns into a deed portion connected maine (which happens a batch with reporters and it's like, 'Oh, that stunk'), I deliberation it would inactive beryllium worthy it to beryllium connected 'CBS Sunday Morning." It's conscionable portion of, I mean, if you emotion a show, you wanna beryllium portion of it. Now, if it turns ugly, I'll astir apt hatred the amusement after! But astatine slightest I'll beryllium connected it!

For much info: