Barstool Sports president Dave Portnoy is apologizing for the company’s role in amplifying an internet rumor involving Ole Miss student Mary Kate Cornett. During an appearance on NBC News, the Barstool Sports founder was asked about the company’s involvement, as several employees had posted about the viral rumor that Cornett had been sleeping with her boyfriend’s father—a claim that was later found to be untrue.
When asked what he would like to say to Cornett if given the chance, Portnoy was quick to offer his apologies for how the company handled the situation.
“I would apologize,” said Portnoy to NBC News. “I get why the family is pissed. I’m sad and I wish we didn’t play any part in it. I’d apologize and say I wish we didn’t.”
In the aftermath of the digital brand throwing the rumor into the public eye, Cornett told NBC News last week that her life was turned upside down due to the rumor going viral on platforms like Barstool Sports and The Pat McAfee Show on ESPN.
“I’m not a public figure that you can go talk about on your show to get more views,” Cornett told NBC News last week. “I’m not, sorry.”
Following Cornett’s comments, Portnoy told NBC News that he’s now looking to improve Barstool Sports’ editorial standards among its employees.
“I thought they were really stupid,” Portnoy told NBC News about several employees who posted about the rumor. “For me I’ve been doing this a long time. I thought it was clearly a fake story. I thought we were better than that.”
Meanwhile, McAfee brought up the internet rumor—without naming Cornett—during an episode of his show live from the NFL Combine in February. With Cornett now threatening legal action against McAfee and ESPN for their role in spreading the rumor, McAfee had remained silent on the matter until his Big Night Aht program on Wednesday night, where he seemed to address Cornett once again without naming her.
“I have a lot of people saying that I should be sued,” McAfee said on Wednesday night. “I want to say this: I never, ever want to be a part of anything negative in anybody’s life, ever. That is not what I want to do.”
Subsequently, McAfee expressed his desire to help make amends.
“We will try to figure that out and make some sort of silver lining in a very terrible situation,” McAfee said Wednesday night. “You can have that promise from me.”
Finally, The Pat McAfee Show has been off all week and is scheduled to return to the air on Monday.
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