Portnoy blasts New York Times reporter’s ‘hit’: ‘No interest in telling the truth’

Barstool Sports mogul Dave Portnoy hit back at a New York Times reporter on Monday after he revealed posts that contradicted his claims that he had not provided answers to his series of questions as part of a more great “hit track” that she allegedly compiled over several months.

The Times published a critical article highlighting Portnoy’s ties to the sports betting industry. Journalist Emily Steel has listed a variety of controversies the Barstool chief has found himself embroiled in over the past two decades in what appears to be an attempt to portray him as the wrong person to push legalized sports gambling.

Portnoy, who has emphasized that he is not an inherently political person, told “Tucker Carlson Tonight” on Monday that he contacted Steel around April and was aware of the article – that he called it an “investigation” – for more than a year.

“When I heard about it, I said, let’s sit down – open book. I’ll answer all your questions,” he said. “I don’t care about your politics, how you sit – I witness a story that you’ve been working on for almost a year and I say, ‘I’m going to sit with you. You can ask me anything. I’m not saying “lawyers in the room”. Nobody, just me.”

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Steel, he said, had “no interest” in such a meeting, and that their correspondence remained dark for a long time until the reporter suddenly offered several questions with a short window to answer.

“Hey, we want all of these answers to all of these allegations in 48 hours,” he said.

“That would be the equivalent, if it’s a court case – because that’s what the Times does – [alleging] I’m a bastard and I try to sway people – whether you give a lawyer a year to present the whole case [and] you have 30 seconds now to defend yourself. Who would ever do that?”

Portnoy has been the subject of mainstream media ire for some time. Recently, Berks County, Pa.-based gaming giant Penn Entertainment purchased the remaining stake in Barstool and brought Portnoy even higher profile.

“[Steel] I never wanted to know how we organize responsible gambling training in our company. It was a hit play, and she had no interest in hearing my side of the story,” Portnoy said.

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(REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo)

“[Steel] never had an interest in telling the truth. All she wanted was to build a case against me. She never spoke to any of my friends, to anyone who would defend.”

In a recent request for comment for a separate story on Portnoy, a Times spokesperson told Fox News Digital that “more than a week before the article was published, we offered Mr. Portnoy the opportunity to answer detailed questions related to our reporting, which was thorough and fact-based.”

“Although he declined to provide answers, we have included his sentiment in the story itself, despite his claims to the contrary,” the spokesperson said.

Portnoy called the Times a “liberal rag”, while lamenting that it “got a little politicized”.

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Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy has accused the New York Times of issuing a misleading statement claiming he ‘did not provide answers’ to a series of questions related to an unflattering article written about him .
(The Dave Portnoy Show with Eddie & Co/Youtube)

“Look, I don’t care if people don’t like me — really don’t. All I’m saying is give people the full picture,” he said.

Portnoy has made waves over the years, especially when it comes to the NFL. He was once kicked out of Super Bowl media day, denied the chance to watch a game with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell despite winning an auction to do so, and was detained at league headquarters in New York for protesting New England’s suspension. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

The feud has even made its way to Congress, where House Judiciary Committee member Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, recently urged Goodell to “ban[ning] Dave Portnoy of NFL Games” despite his role as a member of the press.

Fox News’ Brian Flood contributed to this report.