Starkville Police arrested a 20-year-old Mississippi State University student on a misdemeanor charge of disturbing the peace after antisemitic comments directed toward Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy could be heard in a video on Friday, Nov. 7.
Video of the incident went viral as Portnoy was recording a pizza review outside Boardtown Pizza & Pints in the Cotton District of Starkville. In a video posted on the X account @LikelyTarnished, someone can be heard saying, ‘(Expletive) the Jews, (expletive) you, Dave Portnoy.’
Portnoy, who is Jewish, was in Starkville for the Nov. 8 Mississippi State football game against Georgia where Barstool hosted a live pregame show on campus.
The student was arrested at 10:29 a.m. on Nov. 10 and released on a $2,500 bond, according to Starkville public information officer Brandon Lovelady.
The student withdrew from MSU on the afternoon of Nov. 10, according to a university spokesperson.
According to the incident report, the Starkville Police Department was made aware of a video circulating online that depicted an individual yelling an antisemitic statement and throwing coins toward another person outside a local business.
‘Every person has the right to feel safe and respected in our community,’ Starkville PD said in a statement. ‘Offensive words alone are protected, but when behavior disrupts a public event or risks violence, the Starkville Police Department will take steps to help maintain safety and security.’
“I’ve seen in my own experience, just being Barstool, the difference between how much hate I get. I never got – I mean, occasionally you get, ‘Hey, k***,” or “Jew” or whatever. It’s every day now. Like, there’s a definitive shift in what’s going on. So, yes, now I – for me, being a Jewish person, you got to step up. You’re kind of someone people look up to in the Jewish community. You have be like, alright, this is not normal “Ha ha” with the guys. People are coming in with real hate.”
In May, a Temple University student was suspended and police investigated after Portnoy responded to videos showing an antisemitic sign displayed at the company’s downtown Philadelphia bar.
When customers order bottle service at the Sansom Street bar, they can also choose a few words to put on a large sign displayed inside. At least one student was involved with an order for “(expletive) the Jews” to be mounted on the sign May 3, according to the university and Portnoy.
The incident was followed by widespread condemnation once images of the hate speech circulated online.
What Barstool’s Dave Portnoy said about antisemitic incident at Mississippi State
Portnoy published his video of the pizza review the evening of Nov. 10. He also addressed the incident.
“On a brighter note, this incident didn’t ruin my week,’ Portnoy said while wearing a Starkville football shirt. ‘It didn’t ruin my day — maybe one minute. But the people of Starkville, I will never judge one (expletive) for the entire city.
‘Everybody was super nice, shoutout to Starkville High by the way. Everybody was super nice and actually bending over backwards during the course of the weekend. They were like, ‘We’re so sorry. That’s so mortifying. Wish that didn’t happen.”
The incident occurred after Portnoy rated Boardtown a 7.2 out of 10. Portnoy did not to revise the score after the incident.
USA TODAY’s Kathryn Palmer contributed to this story.
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