Story of Dave Portnoy's Ascension: A Biographical Account as Reviewed by David McKee
"Roasting the American Dream: Dave Portnoy's Meteoric Rise from the Masses" by Ami Glaze (Editor's note: This article contains mature content and language)
"If you ain't pleasing the public, you're gonna be outta business quick." - P.T. Barnum, visionary showman. The same could be said for Dave Portnoy, the self-styled "King of Content," who climbed the entertainment ladder and made a fortune by catering to the basest desires of the unburdened American masses. Charles Bronson's gun-slinging character in "Once Upon a Time in the West" might've warned us, but who listens to a man with a harmonica, anyways? So here's David McKee's latest masterpiece, "How the Jester Became King," which gives us an up-close look at this bro-tastic phenomenon.
After 40 tumultuous chapters and 374 pages, a crucial lesson emerges (thanks, Mr. Barnum), proving that the tasteless appeal of the American public is unbeatable. Portnoy aimed low, and he soared. He's the king of schadenfreude, the bad homeboy that everyone loves to hate, but secretly idolizes. Keep in mind we're talking about his followers—a rough, rowdy, unshaven horde that dwarfs Portnoy's intelligence.
Portnoy's rags-to-riches tale begins in Massachusetts in 2003, with a $25,000 loan from his lawyer father and a dream of launching a sports-talk newspaper. He hustled 24/7, built his Empire of Shenanigans, and eventually went viral online with blogging, podcasting, and even talk radio (TV remains Portnoy's eternal nemesis). Bold business savvy, a deep-seated sense of grievance, and more than a dash of good old-fashioned luck fueled Portnoy's journey to membership in the billionaire's club. By ushering in a line of pizzas at Walmart and owning a couple of sports bars, he's become the consummate American tycoon.
Born with a chip on his shoulder in 1977, Portnoy some years later admitted, "I've been a dirty degenerate gambler my entire life." The man learned to monetize his miseries like an expert, using his media assets like a modern-day protection racket. There's no doubting that the NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell knows a thing or two about that.
From day one, Barstool Sports has smartly catered to the primitive, testosterone-fueled masses, with raunchy Jeff Dunham-level content—often without so much as a permission slip from the targets. It's all about titles like, "Bottom line is that chicks that aren't quite ready to handle being sexually harassed just a bit should avoid bar crawls, period," found on page 59.
Portnoy just couldn't help himself; he took pleasure in being the biggest dick in the room. His godsend was the 2010 UMass campus riot, where he was busy incite-y'ing a mob. Yet, his efforts to align himself with ESPN eventually proved futile. The corporate machine couldn't abide by his unpredictable, reckless presence, so they watered him down and turned him into pablum for the masses.
Yet, there's more than meets the eye to this brash, medium-rare steak of a man. You might be surprised by the extent of his philanthropy, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. But let's not sugarcoat it—Portnoy's Karma Korners are far and few between.
True, fortune favors the bold, but it also favors the audacious, the unsavory, and the downright scandalous. Portnoy's empire grew steadily under The Chernin Group's aegis, reaching a valuation of $100 million, despite its clueless content team that repeatedly produced disaster after disaster.
In steps Erika Nardini, not exactly a delicate violet, who proved to be a veritable gold mine for Barstool. Under Nardini's vice-like leadership, Barstool exceeded 66 million online visits per month by 2020.
ESPN tried desperately to co-opt the Barstool brand, but the whole endeavor backfired. Portnoy's over-the-top personality and sketchy past made him an uneasy fit for mainstream entertainment. But that's exactly what made him so prosperous. The anodyne content and his explosive mouth created a lucrative, irresistible maelstrom.
The watershed moment came in 2008 when the U.S. Supreme Court allowed sports betting outside of Nevada, a veritable godsend for a frivolous gambler like Portnoy. Betting content became the hot new thing, and his end goal bequeathed him a golden ticket to be scooped up by either FanDuel or DraftKings for a hefty payday.
And then, quite unexpectedly, in swoops Jay Snowden, the chiseled Harvard graduate, and former quarterback. Snowden, always the dealmaker, wanted to turn Barstool into the next SNL. Portnoy and his cronies might have been talented at getting drunk and regurgitating their gambling habits on air, but they were hardly the next generation of Saturday Night Live.
However, Penn Entertainment, the company Snowden led, shelled out $450 million for Barstool in 2016, a curious decision that baffled most industry experts. Snowden was bit by the Portnoy bug, wearing Barstool apparel proudly around the office and underwriting a swanky new Chicago office for Barstool to the tune of $20 million. But this puppy-dog approach from the CEO ended up being his Achilles heel, as Portnoy continued to be a PR nightmare and a costly burden for Penn Entertainment.
Portnoy's rise to fame and the clout he wields cannot be ignored. He's a walking example of the American dream, for better or worse. Love him or hate him, you can't deny that David Portnoy has redefined the face of entertainment, sitting squarely on the fine line between reprehensible and magnetic. If you can't stand him, as superstar pitchman Tony the Tiger would say, "Well, you're gonna have to get over it."
Image Credit: Charlie Stanton, author
"Roasting the casino floor, the bro-tastic King of Content found his next conquest: sports betting. Just as Portnoy monetized his miseries, he turned his gambling habits into a lucrative content empire, attracting both the testosterone-fueled masses and the secret idolizers among celebrities."
"The unburdened American public, eager for entertainment, flocked to Barstool Sports, consuming its raunchy and scandalous content. From books to movies, Portnoy's empire expanded, reflecting his versatile appeal that transcends traditional boundaries, just like the modern-day gamblers navigating the casino."
