A Mississippi State University student has been arrested after yelling antisemitic comments at Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy.
The arrest of 20-year old Patrick McClintock, a mechanical engineering student at MSU, came after Starkville police were “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”, the police department said in a statement.
According to a video of the incident which has gone viral on social media, Portnoy could be seen recording a segment of his One Bite pizza review outside Boardtown Pizza & Pints last Friday. A few moments later, someone began yelling an antisemitic comment and throwing coins towards Portnoy, who is Jewish.
Following the incident, Starkville police issued a statement, saying: “Every person has the right to feel safe and respected in our community … 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.”
The police department issued a warrant over the weekend and McClintock was charged with disturbing the peace on Monday. According to the Clarion Ledger, McClintock withdrew from MSU on Monday afternoon.
The same day, Portnoy released a video of his pizza review as well as his response to the incident. Posting a mugshot of McClintock, Portnoy called him a “loser”, adding: “I hope it was worth it for this kid to do this little stunt.”
In an interview with CBS after the incident, Portnoy said there has been a “definitive shift” towards antisemitism. Speaking to CBS host Tony Dokoupil, Portnoy said: “For me, being a Jewish person, like, you got to step up … You’re kind of someone people look up to in the Jewish community. You have to be, like: ‘All right, this is not normal haha with the guys. People are coming up with real hate.’”
Earlier this year, Portnoy said he would send two customers to tour the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland after an antisemitic incident at a Philadelphia sports bar he owned. However, he later withdrew the offer, saying one of the customers involved had “done a 180” and denied any responsibility for what happened.
According to Portnoy, the incident had involved a customer ordering bottle service accompanied by a sign that read “Fuck the Jews.”
