Former NFL quarterback Boomer Esiason has called the latest controversy involving Barstool Sports owner Dave Portnoy an ‘absolute, obvious’ example of ‘cancel culture syndrome.’
Portnoy is set to host a pizza festival in Brooklyn, New York and got word that a reporter from the Washington Post was emailing several advertisers of the event for a story she was working on.
The focus of the story was ‘how some of the sponsors and participants have drawn criticism by seeming to associate themselves with Dave Portnoy, who has a history of misogynistic comments and other problematic behavior,’ according to a screenshot posted on Barstool’s website.
Portnoy took issue with the alleged emails and contacted the reporter via a phone call that he recorded and later posted online.
‘The real question is do you think Dave Portnoy has ever called somebody who’s advertising within the Washington Post and says, “Do you know what these people are doing behind the backs of everyone else?”‘ Esiason said, according to FOX News. ‘It’s a one-way street.’
Boomer Esiason has described the issue between Dave Portnoy and the Washington Post as ‘Cancel culture syndrome’
Portnoy recently recorded a call with a Post reporter before posting it on social media
The 1988 NFL MVP called the situation an example of being ‘woke.’
‘This is basically proof positive of what the woke aspect of this world is all about, right there,’ Esiason said.
Portnoy also captioned his post of the phone call by saying: ‘I Caught Wind That The Washington Post Was Writing A Hit Piece About Me And My Pizzafest So I Did What I Do. I Went On The Offensive.’
During the call he also claimed that he didn’t think the Post would give him a fair story since the reporter involved was trying to ‘shame sponsors.’
There has been no official word on if sponsors have dropped out of the event or not.