Controversial columnist Jason Whitlock and David Portnoy, the founder of Barstool Sports, are engaged in a very nasty and petty Twitter war. It all began with Whitlock calling out Portnoy in a column for The Blaze.
In the piece Whitlock has a lot to say about the diehard Boston sports-loving owner of Barstool. Whitlock, who’s never been afraid to push the envelope in what he says, tweeted out about Portnoy.
“David Portnoy is a fraud,” Whitlock announced. “He has no core values. No defined set of beliefs. He has no redeeming qualities other than his wealth. Remove his money, and he wouldn’t have a friend in this world.”
Portnoy tweeted back to Whitlock:
“You’re fat.”
To hear Whitlock talk like that is almost the “pot calling the kettle black,” as he’s long been someone who’s typically rubbed most the wrong way. His takes are usually not received well, and he’s built his brand off of going against the grain, especially with issues of race. While Whitlock’s style has allowed him to become one of the most recognizable faces in sports media, it’s not all peaches and cream.
So to see him go against someone is nothing new. And no, we’re not saying Portnoy is without fault.
Dave Portnoy, El Presidente, is a fraud. He has no redeeming qualities other than his wealth. Remove his money, and he wouldn’t have a friend in this world. If we weren’t living in an era completely hostile to masculinity, Portnoy would be broke in Boston delivering pizza. pic.twitter.com/xw98rzaShj
— Jason Whitlock (@WhitlockJason) August 23, 2022
Whitlock Says Portnoy Built Barstool On Fake Premise
Portnoy is brash, outspoken, and with Barstool Sports you’ve always got the “outside the box” take. Basically, the non-woke take, but Whitlock is claiming that isn’t true at all.
“Portnoy built a sport media empire on pretending to be a fearless ESPN disruptor standing against the wokefication of sports and American culture. It’s now clear he’s a total fraud and sellout. His lone interests are money and access to barely legal women. He sold Barstool to a gambling company for hundreds of millions of dollars, and now Barstool is every bit as woke as ESPN.”
The deal Whitlock is speaking of is 36 percent of Barstool being sold for upwards of $387 million to Penn Entertainment, a casino and racetrack business located in Pennsylvania.
Whitlock calling Portnoy a sellout is nothing new for the opinionated sports bully. He also called former NBA player and current ESPN NBA analyst Jalen Rose a sellout for marrying “First Take” moderator Molly Qerim. He even took shots at Michael Jordan and LeBron James, pretty much calling them the same.
Dave Portnoy is a sellout. He has no interest in bringing people together. His interests are in lining his pockets. I’d have no problem if he’d just admit it. He’s white LeBron James. pic.twitter.com/S9miOWbqkS
— Jason Whitlock (@WhitlockJason) August 24, 2022
He may call it being fearless and saying what others won’t, but constantly going against your own will get you labeled a sellout. But Whitlock doesn’t seem to care, as it hasn’t stopped him from continuing to speak in that manner.
Portnoy Says Whitlock Just Credited Him In December: Helped Small Businesses Stay Afloat
In a mid-December video Whitlock referred to Portnoy as the “the most disruptive and influential force in sports media.”
Is Barstool president Dave Portnoy the most disruptive and influential force in sports media? I think so. pic.twitter.com/AdOWrSeCNH
— Jason Whitlock (@WhitlockJason) December 16, 2021
In part of his response Portnoy reminded Whitlock that he’d forgotten that he did that video.
“You forgot to delete this one.”
Who knows what Whitlock’s intentions really are, as this has sort of been his MO.
To his credit, Portnoy has helped many small businesses amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. He donated $500K to start The Barstool Fund, and then he set up a page where people could donate money to also help small businesses.
In the end, a Whitlock versus Portnoy Twitter beef is something we didn’t know we needed. But something tells us this back-and-forth is far from over.
