Decorated warfighter Ret. Gen. Stanley McChrystal lambasted recent moves at the Pentagon, arguing on Sunday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's focus on rooting out diversity, equity and inclusion is a "distraction."
"I think that the DEI thing is, frankly, a distraction. It's not helpful," he told CBS’ "Face the Nation."
"I am completely aligned with Secretary Hegseth on the idea that we need to defend the nation, that the defense department needs to be as effective as it can be, and that a certain warrior ethos matters," McChrystal explained. "We just define it differently."
The four-star retired Army general challenged the conception that "everybody's got to look a certain way, got to have biceps of a certain size, there's got to be a male, straight."
"In the counter-terrorist fight, where much of my experience was, it became a meritocracy. You didn't care what somebody looked like or how old they were, what their gender was or sexual orientation because it was too important to get the job done.
"America needs to harness talent from every corner of our society, everyone."
McChrystal resigned as commander of the U.S. forces in Afghanistan, only a year into the job, during the Obama administration after a Rolling Stone article attributed scathing comments about President Barack Obama to McChrystal and his aides.
During his short tenure, McChrystal advocated for a buildup of U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
He had wanted 60,000 additional U.S. troops to reverse insurgent "momentum." Obama offered him 33,000.
McChrystal appeared on CBS to promote his new book, "On Character: Choices That Define a Life."
"As a nation, our character is our fate. So, what I am trying to do is convince people to start a national conversation on character, with the idea that it starts at the bottom," said McChrystal. "Not at the top."
"Our national leaders are not the cause of the problem. They are the symptom of the problem. The cause is us," he argued.
"We’ve always had a problem with certain evil in society and corruption, but I think the fact that we see everything so much now that we normalize it," McChrystal said. "We start to accept things in celebrities or leaders that frankly, things we wouldn’t have accepted even a generation ago. And that’s our problem."
Though new audio recordings released by Axios paint a picture of an elderly man suffering memory loss, rare exchanges showed glimpses into former President Joe Biden's earlier days, and shed light on what could have led to Hur's "sympathetic" characterization and findings related to the investigation.
Biden reminisced during his interview with Special Counsel Robert Hur about a 2011 visit to Mangolia where he claimed to have "embarrassed the hell out of the leader of Mongolia."
"I went to Mongolia and, and great pictures," Biden said. "They were showing — they were doing a what they would do at the time of the invasion of the Mongols into Europe in the 14 — in the 800s. And they — and then show what a normal day was, or how they, how they bivouac."
He described being "out in the middle of nowhere" and looking up on a hill, seeing a tiny line of a 20-mile horse race between kids under the age of 16 on bareback.
"And you know, there are sumo wrestlers doin' everything they do," Biden said lightheartedly.
He said the leaders walked over to a target with bales of hay a hundred yards away, where locals were practicing their aim.
"I think — I don't know if it was to embarrass me or to make a point, but I get handed the bow and arrow," Biden said. "I'm not a bad archer. But (indiscernible) where I can pull it back, so I — and pure luck, I hit the goddamn target."
The people in the interview room burst into laughter, to which Biden assured them, "No, I really did."
He went on to describe the scene — "20 bales of hay with a big target in the middle of the bale of hay."
"And so I didn't mean anything by it, I turned to the prime minister and handed it to him and the poor son-of-a-bitch couldn't pull it back," Biden said.
"I was like, ‘oh, God,’" Biden said through the cackling.
Hur ultimately decided the former president should not be charged criminally for having classified Obama-era documents after leaving office, describing him as a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory."
Howard Stern has made it clear: if he isn’t sitting in the front row at Madison Square Garden watching the New York Knicks, then he isn’t going at all.
Stern, 71, is not known to be the biggest sports fan, but does support the Knicks, who hold a 3-2 series lead over the defending champion Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Yet despite the team’s playoff success, Stern will not be a part of the raucous Madison Square Garden crowd unless he gets front row seats.
"You can tell your place in show business by where they place you at the Knicks game. The day they put me in the second row, I quit. Because I consider myself a first-row type person," Stern said on "The Howard Stern Show."
"I’m very aware of where they seat me, and it’s very important to me. If they said to me, ‘Look, you’re not gonna be in the first row,’ I’d turn around and leave. It would be embarrassing to me."
Stern does have interest in going to an upcoming Knicks’ playoff game, but will only attend if his requirements are met.
"I have tremendous interest, but I wouldn’t go. I’m very self-conscious. I wait for them to invite me," Stern said.
"I don’t want to take advantage and I know everyone comes out of the woodwork for the Finals. I don’t want to be that guy. I prefer when the Knicks are dead last, then I don’t feel guilty taking the tickets because nobody wants to go."
While he would like to go to a game, if invited, the longtime host does not have a lot of faith in the Knicks knocking off the Celtics and moving on.
"I still feel like the Knicks are gonna blow it. I get agita with that team," Stern said.
The Celtics won Game 5 at the TD Garden in Boston 127-105 despite not having star player Jayson Tatum due to an Achilles injury he suffered at the end of Game 4.
The Knicks have another chance to clinch the series on Friday at 8 p.m. ET, when the series returns to Madison Square Garden. The team has not made the conference finals since 2000.
ESPN star Stephen A. Smith fired back at Charles Barkley over the warning the Basketball Hall of Famer gave to the sports personality about being overexposed in the media.
Smith prefaced his remarks on his podcast by saying he had a respect and appreciation for Barkley, suggesting the two were very close.
"That’s my guy, but that doesn’t mean I always agree with him. And it doesn’t mean that I’m devoid of the right to call him a flaming hypocrite when it’s called upon," Smith said on "The Stephen A. Smith Show." "Do y’all know how many commercials Charles Barkley does a year? He’ll tell us two. Have you seen Charles Barkley in two commercials? Are you kidding me? Oh, by the way, the cat that you work with at least twice a week during the NBA season is Shaquille O’Neal.
"Can we count the amount of endorsements he has? How often he’s seen everywhere? What new product he’s pitching? Did you say that about him? No, you didn’t. But when it comes to me, I need to be ‘careful.’"
Smith wanted to get to the "heart of the matter."
"And this isn’t directed at Charles Barkley. This is directed at all the folks out there – I’m making people out there – I’m making people very uncomfortable, and I don’t give s---," Smith said. "You can talk about people not taking me seriously all you want to, we’ll see, because I’m a serious brotha. That doesn’t mean I don’t know how to laugh and smile and have fun, you know who the hell I am."
"I was in the studio last night and I saw he was going to be on ‘Law & Order’ tonight. I mean he is already on ‘General Hospital,’ he’s already on ‘General Hospital,’ now he is going to be on ‘Law & Order’ tonight, and I was just laughing. I was like, ‘Yo man, you are starting to be too much right now,’" Barkley said.
"Like, you are going to be on CNN, you are going to be on ‘Fox & Friends,’ now you on ‘General Hospital,’ now you on ‘Law & Order,’ I’m like, ‘Yo man, knock it off. Stop being on every TV show’ because at some point people are going to get sick of you, and you are going to be like, ‘Yeah I probably did too much.’ But once you do too much, it’s too late and people don’t take you serious, and I think he’s got to be careful in that aspect."
Barkley said he wants to be on TV less and less, because "less is more."
"My friends close to me give me a lot of credit, and I’m not blowing my own horn, I want to be on TV as less as possible, to be honest with you Dan. That’s why I only do a couple commercials a year. I don’t go on a bunch of shows, less is more, because the more you do, the less people take you serious. And I don’t feel the need to grab every dime, I don’t feel the need to grab every dime at my disposal," Barkley said.
"I’ve been arguing with my agent, he said we could do five-seven commercials a year, I said we are going to do two commercials a year, that’s it. I don’t want to be on TV all the time. I get sick of seeing myself do March Madness, but I don’t want to be on TV all the time and I don’t do a bunch of TV stuff because I don’t want to – people get sick of you, that’s my number one thing. People will get sick of you, so I don’t want to be on TV more, I want to be on TV less."
Fox News' Ryan Canfield contributed to this report.
The six-time NBA champion and Chicago Bulls legend will be a "special contributor" for NBC’s coverage of the league as the network is set to broadcast games starting later this year.
The announcement was made during NBC’s Upfront presentation in New York.
"I am so excited to see the NBA back on NBC," he said in a news release. "The NBA on NBC was a meaningful part of my career, and I’m excited about being a special contributor to the project. I’m looking forward to seeing you all when the NBA on NBC launches this October."
Jordan has been away from the game for nearly two years after he sold his stake of the Charlotte Hornets in August 2023 for more than $3 billion. He’s turned his attention to 23XI Racing and the pursuit of a NASCAR championship.
He’ll get to be a part of the game once more as a contributor.
"Michael’s legacy both on and off the court speaks for itself," NBC Sports president Rick Cordella said. "We’re incredibly proud to have him join our coverage."
Jordan is considered the greatest NBA player of all time. He went undefeated during his NBA Finals runs, has five NBA MVP awards and was a 14-time All-Star. He played a majority of his career with the Bulls before he wrapped up with the Washington Wizards.
Comcast secured an 11-year media rights deal for NBA games last July. ESPN/ABC and Amazon will also have NBA games. NBC will also stream them on Peacock.
ESPN announced the show's cancellation in March, and its last show will be on May 23. So, on Thursday's episode, they brought back Jemele Hill, who anchored SportsCenter for a time before she was canned in 2018.
Hill was let go from the network due to social media posts about President Donald Trump and his supporters during his first presidency.
During the episode, host Tony Reali and the other panelists had a segment where they reacted to old takes from her, and Hill could not help but laugh at herself.
"I got a little bit nervous when I saw you were pulling up our tweets. Dude, I just came back, man!" she said.
The episode also featured the return of Kate Fagan, who left the network in 2018. Fagan made a plea for "trans kids" in sports.
"I know it's my last time on [the show], and I want to say something worthy of that platform, and that's trans kids deserve to play sports," she said. "Think about what you remember from your time playing sports. Ninety-nine percent of it is finding that jersey for the first time, your favorite number, community, joy, those high-fives.
"It's that moment when you have a great play with a teammate. It's the feeling of belonging. And it does not know gender. Trans kids deserve the same as everyone else does… Sports is joy. Sports is humanity. And the more people who have that, the better."
There is no law or order that bans transgender children from participating in sports. Trump signed an executive order in February that prohibits biological males identifying as girls or women from competing against biological females.
Shortly after it was announced the show was ending, former panelist Jay Mariotti, who was a regular on the show until a domestic violence arrest in 2010, said in an interview the show is being canceled because it went "woke."
There are now just 11 episodes left of the show, which is over 20 years old.
"Hey, hey, Dan, knock it off right now. Stop it. Come on man, don’t do that."
Barkley said Smith is a friend of his and implored him to "stop" entertaining the possibility of running for president.
The Basketball Hall of Famer thinks Smith is on TV too much and that people could get "sick" of him.
"I was in the studio last night and I saw he was going to be on ‘Law & Order’ tonight. I mean he is already on ‘General Hospital,’ he’s already on ‘General Hospital,’ now he is going to be on ‘Law & Order’ tonight, and I was just laughing. I was like, ‘Yo man, you are starting to be too much right now,’" Barkley said.
"Like, you are going to be on CNN, you are going to be on ‘Fox & Friends,’ now you on ‘General Hospital,’ now you on ‘Law & Order,’ I’m like, ‘Yo man, knock it off. Stop being on every TV show’ because at some point people are going to get sick of you, and you are going to be like, ‘Yeah I probably did too much.’ But once you do too much, it’s too late and people don’t take you serious, and I think he’s got to be careful in that aspect."
Barkley said he wants to be on TV less and less, because "less is more."
"My friends close to me give me a lot of credit, and I’m not blowing my own horn, I want to be on TV as less as possible, to be honest with you Dan. That’s why I only do a couple commercials a year. I don’t go on a bunch of shows, less is more, because the more you do, the less people take you serious. And I don’t feel the need to grab every dime, I don’t feel the need to grab every dime at my disposal," Barkley said.
"I’ve been arguing with my agent, he said we could do five-seven commercials a year, I said we are going to do two commercials a year, that’s it. I don’t want to be on TV all the time. I get sick of seeing myself do March Madness, but I don’t want to be on TV all the time and I don’t do a bunch of TV stuff because I don’t want to – people get sick of you, that’s my number one thing. People will get sick of you, so I don’t want to be on TV more, I want to be on TV less."
Smith posted to X in April that he is "leaving all doors open" regarding the possibility of running for president, but said he "hate(s) the thought of being a politician."
Whether Smith decides to run for president or not, it’s clear that Barkley doesn’t think the ESPN host has a chance.
A second Temple University student was suspended over an antisemitic incident that took place at a Barstool Sports bar in Philadelphia over the weekend.
The incident occurred on Saturday night at the bar as bottle-service girls brought out a sign to the floor that read, "f--- the Jews." Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy announced the day after that the two waitresses in question were fired and that he talked to the two men allegedly responsible for the sign and agreed to send them on trip to Auschwitz to learn about the Holocaust.
One of the men, who was identified as Mo Khan, reneged on the deal and pushed back on claims that he had anything to do with the antisemitic sign. Temple has already suspended Khan.
He released a statement on Tuesday, saying when he made the agreement with Portnoy, he was under duress.
"Although I had nothing to do with the sign coming out, nor do I know who did it, I know that the sign was provocative because it reminded people of the unjust things Israel is doing around the world, thus leading me to report on it," Khan said, reupping his claim that he was a "citizen journalist" in the matter.
"Dave Portnoy and his friends can choose to be triggered over the sentiments of that sign and even kick me out of the establishment forever. However, they have no right to destroy my life over free speech and ultimately something that was an edgy joke. Frankly, they’re more worried about destroying and uprooting me than the thousands of people getting destroyed and uprooted in genocide."
Khan then appeared on "Stew Peters Live" and agreed with the host’s ideas about "Jewish supremacy."
Portnoy responded to Khan’s statement later Tuesday. He wrote in a post on X that Khan was a "flat liar."
"I talked to him on the phone with his buddy and they both owned up to it and cried about it. He then lawyered up after speaking with his family," Portnoy wrote. "His name got out because he’s a moron and uploaded ‘f--- the Jews’ sign to his Instagram before I even knew about it. He already went viral without me. He spreads hate and uses the conflict in Middle East as his excuse. And did it in a bar with my (company’s) name on it.
"Now he’s trying to profit from it. I’m sure he’ll make money because there is lots of antisemitism in the world. Regardless this is the least surprising thing ever. He is the definition of a coward. Zero accountability for his actions. I don’t care what religion you are or even how you feel about Middle East. This was an act of pure hate and this should disgust you."
Portnoy said in a separate video he felt "dumb" trying to "show grace" and make things right.
"This is what the face of being a coward is," he said of Khan.
On Wednesday, Portnoy wrote on X that Khan "may be the greatest thing that’s ever happened for Jews to fight antisemitism in America" and pointed to other alleged incidents involving Khan.
One of the men accused of taking part in the antisemitic sign controversy that appeared at one of Barstool Sports’ bars in Philadelphia spoke out Tuesday in the latest twist in the ordeal.
A sign that read "f--- the Jews" was spotted at the bar in a video that went viral across social media over the weekend. Dave Portnoy has weighed in, at times furiously, and offered one of the men a trip to Auschwitz to learn about the Holocaust as penance for the antisemitic incident.
Mo Khan, who Portnoy identified as one of the men involved in the incident, released a statement about the antisemitic incident and accused Portnoy of sensationalizing it to his millions of social media followers. He implored those who watched his video to donate to his GiveSendGo fundraiser and blamed Portnoy for the attacks he has received.
"Although I had nothing to do with the sign coming out, nor do I know who did it, I know that the sign was provocative because it reminded people of the unjust things Israel is doing around the world, thus leading me to report on it," Khan said, reupping his claim that he was a "citizen journalist" in the matter.
"Dave Portnoy and his friends can choose to be triggered over the sentiments of that sign and even kick me out of the establishment forever. However, they have no right to destroy my life over free speech and ultimately something that was an edgy joke. Frankly, they’re more worried about destroying and uprooting me than the thousands of people getting destroyed and uprooted in genocide."
Khan claimed that Portnoy and the Jewish community have claimed that they were the victims in this incident, but he said he was the true victim. Khan said he was suspended from his university, lost an internship and received death threats over the incident.
Khan said when he agreed to Portnoy’s offer of an Auschwitz trip, he was making those statements "under duress" because he does not have the means or connections that Portnoy has. He said Portnoy is "hypocritically lynching me" and trying to cancel him while building a business based on an anti-cancel culture.
"Dave Portnoy owes me restitutions and an apology for everything he has done and caused for me in these past few days," Khan said. "In an attempt to expose me, he exposed himself as almost a total fraud, going back on anything he stands for."
Portnoy responded to Khan’s statement later Tuesday. He wrote in a post on X that Khan was a "flat liar."
"I talked to him on the phone with his buddy and they both owned up to it and cried about it. He then lawyered up after speaking with his family," Portnoy wrote. "His name got out because he’s a moron and uploaded ‘f--- the Jews’ sign to his Instagram before I even knew about it. He already went viral without me. He spreads hate and uses the conflict in Middle East as his excuse. And did it in a bar with my (company’s) name on it.
"Now he’s trying to profit from it. I’m sure he’ll make money because there is lots of antisemitism in the world. Regardless this is the least surprising thing ever. He is the definition of a coward. Zero accountability for his actions. I don’t care what religion you are or even how you feel about Middle East. This was an act of pure hate and this should disgust you."
Portnoy said in a separate video he felt "dumb" trying to "show grace" and make things right.
"This is what the face of being a coward is," he said of Khan.
Philadelphia police said they were gathering information about the incident earlier in the week.
Former NFL reporter Michele Tafoya slammed Kamala Harris as "completely inauthentic" as the former vice president made a quiet appearance at the Met Gala.
Harris has been getting back into the public light after her loss to President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election. However, she has been taking steps to push herself back into the political arena. She was set to headline a top-dollar Democratic National Committee fundraising dinner on Tuesday amid reported worries over whether she would run again in 2028.
Tafoya appeared on OutKick’s "Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich" and said the people she has talked to have floated toward political figures who are more authentic with the American people.
"She really has nothing to say, and I think what people are gravitating more and more toward, and I know this for a fact with people in my circle who are saying, ‘You know, the more time passes the more I find myself leaning toward people who are just authentic," Tafoya said. "Even if what they say is something I can disagree with at least I know where they stand. Well, who does that describe?"
"I think that that describes Donald Trump to a tee. That’s why I think people gravitated to him in the first time. Then we had COVID, people gravitated to him the second time because, sure, there are a lot of people out there who hate him. But there are a lot of people who just appreciate knowing where someone stands, knowing that they aren’t being BS’d, knowing that they are getting it all right there, what you see is what you get."
Tafoya said that was not the case when it came to Harris.
"Look, the more these books are written about everything that went on in the Biden administration, people covering up, the worse she looks as well, because she went along with all of that," Tafoya said. "So, she is not trustworthy in addition to being completely inauthentic."
Democratic Govs. Gavin Newsom and J.B. Pritzker are among the frontrunners for 2028.
Harris’ name has also been mentioned as a possibility for the 2026 gubernatorial race in California.
Fox News' Ryan Canfield contributed to this report.
John Fetterman has always been an eccentric character on a star-crossed path.
He is the only United States senator who has adopted a hoodie as his official uniform.
He is also the only one who suffered a stroke on the eve of his primary victory, making it difficult for him to speak, but won the general election anyway.
And the Pennsylvania Democrat doesn’t toe the line on all party positions, especially when it comes to his fierce support for Israel.
But now comes a troubling story in New York Magazine that casts the senator in a much darker light.
The New York Times put it this way: Fetterman’s former chief of staff "was so alarmed with his ex-boss’s erratic behavior last year that he wrote a lengthy letter to his doctor warning that the senator was spiraling out of control and that his mental health issues could cost him his life."
The staffer, Adam Jentleson, added in writing Fetterman’s Walter Reed doctor: "I’m worried that if John stays on his current trajectory he won’t be with us for much longer."
Other former staff members told the Times that colleagues were sometimes "frightened" to be in his presence when he was manic, and that his "volatile" behavior has gotten worse since the election.
Fetterman issued a statement saying that "my ACTUAL doctors and my family affirmed that I’m very well." He called the magazine story a "hit piece" and promoted the idea that its author, Ben Terris, was "best friends" with Jentleson and that they "sourced anonymous, disgruntled staffers with lies or distorted half-truths."
Terris, for his part, disclosed in the article that Adam Jentleson is a "personal friend." So it wasn’t a state secret.
Jentleson wrote to the medical director who supervised Fetterman’s hospitalization for mental health problems in 2023: "He does not see his doctors. I am not sure when he last saw a cardiologist, but I don’t think he’s seen one since he was released. He long ago ordered us to stop putting regular drop-bys with Dr. Monahan on his schedule, despite the fact that he had agreed to those as part of the plan." Brian Monahan is the Capitol and Supreme Court physician.
Fetterman was the first Democratic senator to visit Trump, who carried Pennsylvania and the other swing states, at Mar-a-Lago.
Jentleson wrote another doctor: "We do not know if he is taking his meds, and his behavior frequently suggests he is not."
Among other things, wrote Jentleson, his ex-boss drives recklessly and recently bought a gun. There are "high highs and low lows; long, rambling, repetitive and self-centered monologues lying in ways that are painfully, awkwardly obvious to everyone in the room."
Joe Biden, who does his first post-White House interview today, with his wife on "The View," is a whole other story.
His problem was not depression but making other Democrats depressed when he insisted on running for a second term. We now know how his wife and his staff protected him from the press and even his own staff to avoid revealing his mental decline.
And that blew up on them in the horrible debate with Trump. Ron Klain has gone on the record with his frustration that his longtime boss walked out on one prep session and fell asleep by the pool.
Now comes a new revelation in a forthcoming book by Josh Dawsey of the Wall Street Journal, Tyler Pager of the New York Times and Isaac Arnsdorf of the Washington Post.
The Times writes, citing the book, that "his top White House aides debated having him undergo a cognitive test to prove his fitness for a second term" in the early weeks of 2024.
Here was the dilemma, according to "2024: How Trump Retook the White House and the Democrats Lost America." And that’s an accurate title.
Biden’s closest aides "worried that the mere fact of his taking one would raise new questions about his mental abilities."
Which is precisely what would have happened. Rather than persuading the former president not to run, they wouldn’t even let him do a soft-focus Super Bowl interview.
During this period in 2022, the Times published an interview with David Axelrod, the former Obama White House official turned CNN commentator. Axelrod said Biden "looks his age"--then 79–and added: "The stark reality is the president would be closer to 90 than 80 at the end of a second term, and that would be a major issue."
Axelrod angrily called Klain, then the chief of staff, to ask why he was fueling doubts about a Democratic president.
"There’s no Obama out there, Axe," Klain told him, according to the book. "Who’s going to do it if he doesn’t do it?"
This was also around the time that special counsel Robert Hur, declining to prosecute Biden on the classified documents he voluntarily turned over, called the president "a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory." That seems incredibly mild now. Biden held a news conference to declare his memory was fine, but referred to the president of Egypt as the president of Mexico.
Talk about good days and bad days. Everyone has bad days, but it has national and international resonance when it involves a senator or a president.
None of this should be used to stigmatize those with mental health or mental acuity problems. But there are red flags here that deepen our understanding of what’s really happening.
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy said Monday he revoked "a teachable moment" offer to one of the men allegedly involved in the antisemitic sign at one of the company’s bars.
The sports media personality explained in a video the new twist that took place. A video of the sign, which read "f--- the Jews," surfaced across social media over the weekend. Portnoy had initially offered to send the culprits to Auschwitz, the infamous concentration camp run by the Nazis in Poland during World War II, to learn about the Holocaust against the Jews.
Portnoy said he talked to two of the men involved in the incident and that both of them "took accountability" for their actions over the weekend. Portnoy said a post from one of the men involved, who he identified as Mo Kahn, posted a lengthy statement on his Instagram saying he had nothing to do with the incident.
The statement claimed that the alleged culprit "documented what took place as a citizen journalist" and added that since the video went viral he’s "faced serious threats to my safety, which has been overwhelming."
The statement then added, "I abhor hate in all its forms. I was raised to respect and be amicable with all people. I hope honest and open dialogue can come out of this incident so we can address the deeper realities of the world we live in. With what I’ve learned (and will continue to learn), I hope to help create a safer space for everyone."
Portnoy said he called Khan after seeing the statement and that Khan told him he felt pressured to admit to something he claimed he had no actual involvement in.
"I’m like, ‘Hey, a--hole, you f---ing uploaded this to Instagram,'" he said. "'I didn’t put your f---ing name out there. Other people got it because you uploaded it to Instagram. You had a good laugh about it.’ And he’s like, ‘No, it wasn’t me, I would never do that.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, I’m getting a million DMs about you, including another antisemitic joke like six months ago. Like, how do you explain that one if you’re not ever doing anything like that?’"
Portnoy said Khan wasn’t going to explain the other alleged antisemitic social media post and added that "maybe my parents can explain that." The moment left Portnoy perplexed.
"I’m like trying to make this a teachable moment, throw a lifeline to a kid, and he’s like, ‘Well, I already got suspended from Temple’ because you got a ‘f--- the Jews’ sign at a bar and posted it on social media,'" Portnoy said. "What don’t you get about that? Maybe if you learn a life lesson. Maybe if people watch you go to Poland and seem like you’ve changed, this gets behind you."
Portnoy made clear he’s not going to send the man after all.
"F---, I’m sorry, man. I tried to throw you a lifeline and make something out of this, and now you’re a ‘citizen journalist’? You’ve had nothing to do with it? Buddy, you’ve uploaded a video with a sign ‘f--- the Jews,’ everyone laughed."
Fox News Digital reached out to Khan via social media for comment. Some of his social media has been deleted.
Philadelphia police said they were gathering information about the incident.
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy blasted ABC’s Philadelphia affiliate on Monday following an interview that was about the antisemitic incident at one of the company’s bars in the city.
Portnoy said in a video posted to his X account that the local ABC affiliate in Philadelphia "begged" him to do an interview. He said when he agreed to do the interview with one reporter, a new reporter showed up.
The new reporter, Portnoy said, asked all the pertinent questions about the incident and responsibility and then "shifts" focus and quoted a professor who said "Barstool Sports creates a culture of harassment."
"Basically, that I’m responsible for this happening at my own bar I never heard the quote. You’re saying some f---ing liberal college professor said they don’t like Barstool. And I was like well who f---ing said it? What is this even journal?"
Portnoy said one of his colleagues, who was with him ahead of the Barstool Sports Bet Gala in Scottsdale, Arizona, started to record the interview. Portnoy posted a clip of himself in the interview with the station and said universities that allowed Jewish students "get harassed on campus 24/7" was the cause for that type of environment. The interview then appeared to turn contentious.
"Who’s creating more hate in the world right now? Are you saying Barstool Sports and White men or college campuses?" Portnoy asked the interviewer.
Portnoy ended the interview soon after a back-and-forth.
"F--- ABC!" Pornoy said. "It makes mad! God, how much I hate f---ing ‘journalists.’"
WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE IN VIDEO
Fox News Digital reached out to WPVI-TV for comment.
Portnoy and Barstool’s bar in the Center City neighborhood of the city were thrust into the spotlight after a sign that read "f--- the Jews" appeared on a video at the bar. Bottle-service girls and reveling accompanied the hateful sign.
Philadelphia police told Fox News Digital earlier Monday that an investigation was launched into the incident.
Ben Stiller, Sen. Dave McCormick and others praised Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy for how he dealt with the culprits who initiated the "f--- the Jews" sign at one of the company’s bars.
Portnoy said in a video on Sunday that the two men who initiated the antisemitic signage at the Philadelphia establishment were going to be sent to Auschwitz in Poland to learn about the Holocaust. More than 1.1 million Jews were killed in Nazi concentration camps at the site.
"Good on @stoolpresidente for not only immediately working to address the horrific display of hate displayed in Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, last night but also using it as an opportunity to educate on the tragic history of anti-Jewish hatred and violence," McCormick wrote.
"We can’t look the other way at antisemitism. It needs to be identified, called out, and crushed whenever it rears its ugly head."
Stiller "agreed" with Portnoy on going scorched-earth on the culprits. However, Portnoy eventually cooled off and decided to educate the men on the horrors of the Holocaust instead.
"Everyone needs to call out antisemitism when they see it. Thank you @stoolpresidente for doing the real work to ensure change," X CEO Linda Yaccarino wrote.
"This is a great use of money," ex-NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya added.
The "f--- the Jews" sign appeared at one of Barstool Sports’ bars in Philadelphia on Saturday. A man who posted the video showed others laughing, singing and dancing as music blared in the background. The sports media personality initially said he was on a "mission to ruing these people."
However, it appeared cooler heads prevailed.
"These are young f---ing morons who did this. They’re drunk. Do you really want to ruin somebody’s life?" Portnoy said. "And let me be honest, I don’t know what’s going on in the world … I’ve been doing Barstool for 20 years, I’ve had more hate, more antisemitism in the last year, year and a half, than I’ve ever had doing it," Portnoy explained.
"And I’m not talking politics or what’s going on in the Middle East – just hating groups of people. You hate my parents, you hate my grandparents – s--- like that, it’s crazy. So, yeah, my initial reaction was I’m going to burn these people to the ground, their families, everything. And it’s like, you know what? Maybe that’s not the best course of action. Maybe I can use this as a teaching moment."
Portnoy said he will try to turn a "hideous incident" into a learning moment.
"I talked to both the culprits who I know are super involved in it, talked to the families. I’m sending these kids to Auschwitz. They’ve agreed to go. That’s, of course the Holocaust concentration camps. Been in touch with (New England Patriots team owner Robert Kraft) who run the anti-hate group.
"We’re gonna send these kids to Auschwitz. They’re gonna do a tour of the concentration camps (in Poland). Hopefully learn something. Maybe their lives aren’t ruined, and they think twice and, more importantly, other people see it’s not just words you’re throwing around. To me, that’s a fair outcome of this event."
Portnoy said two other waitresses involved in the incident were fired.
"I’ve been shaking. I’ve been so f---ing mad for the last two hours," he said in his initial video. "I’m going to make it my life’s f---ing mission to ruin these people. I’m coming to your throat, I’m never ending."
Antisemitism has been on the rise since the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorists attacks by Hamas on Jewish people in Israel.
The Anti-Defamation League said last month that the number of incidents in the U.S. reached a record high last year, with more than half of the 9,354 incidents being related to Israel.
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy said he will send the two men behind the "f--- the Jews" sign at one of his company’s bars in Philadelphia to Auschwitz after the antisemitic incident.
Portnoy made the announcement in a video after he went scorched earth on everyone involved in it. Bottle services girls brought out a "f— the Jews sign" to a group of men and women as music blared in the background. The incident was revealed on social media on Sunday.
The sports media personality initially said he was on a "mission to ruing these people." But it appeared cooler heads prevailed.
"These are young f---ing morons who did this. They’re drunk. Do you really want to ruin somebody’s life?" he said. "And let me be honest, I don’t know what’s going on in the world … I’ve been doing Barstool for 20 years, I’ve had more hate, more antisemitism in the last year, year and a half, than I’ve ever had doing it," he said.
"And I’m not talking politics or what’s going on in the Middle East – just hating groups of people. You hate my parents, you hate my grandparents – s--- like that, it’s crazy. So, yeah, my initial reaction was I’m going to burn these people to the ground, their families, everything. And it’s like, you know what? Maybe that’s not the best course of action. Maybe I can use this as a teaching moment."
Portnoy said he will try to turn a "hideous incident" into a learning moment.
"I talked to both the culprits who I know are super involved in it, talked to the families. I’m sending these kids to Auschwitz. They’ve agreed to go. That’s, of course the Holocaust concentration camps. Been in touch with (New England Patriots team owner Robert Kraft) who run the anti-hate group.
"We’re gonna send these kids to Auschwitz. They’re gonna do a tour of the concentration camps (in Poland). Hopefully learn something. Maybe their lives aren’t ruined and they think twice and more importantly other people see it’s not just words you’re throwing around. To me, that’s a fair outcome of this event."
Portnoy said two other waitresses involved in the incident were fired.
"I’ve been shaking. I’ve been so f---ing mad for the last two hours," he said in his initial video. "I’m going to make it my life’s f---ing mission to ruin these people. I’m coming to your throat, I’m never ending."
Nazi Germany operated the Auschwitz facility in Poland which house more than three dozen concentration camps. At least 1.1 million Jews were killed at the camp.
Antisemitism has been on the rise since the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorists attacks by Hamas on Jewish people in Israel.
The Anti-Defamation League said last month that the number of incidents in the U.S. reached a record high last year, with more than half of the 9,354 incidents being related to Israel.
A Barstool Sports bar in Philadelphia was thrust into the spotlight on Sunday as bottle-services waitresses held up a sign that read "f--- the Jews."
The video was posted on the Instagram account of Mo Khan and the video tagged Mike Wade. It showed the sign lit up with several other men and women partying without a care in the world.
The U.S.-based Stop Antisemitism advocacy group brought the incident to light on X.
Dave Portnoy appeared to be enraged by the incident.
"I’ve been shaking. I’ve been so f---ing mad for the last two hours," Portnoy said in an "emergency press conference" video posted on social media. "… I’m going to make it my life’s f---ing mission to ruin these people. I’m coming to your throat, I’m never ending."
Portnoy said he was on "the trail" for the last few hours to find the culprits behind the antisemitic sign.
"You think I’m going to put up with this s--- at my bar?" he asked. "I want consequences for f---ing actions. So, I’m not just sitting back … no, trust me. I have been on it."
Portnoy said he had talked to one of the waitresses at the bar and described her as a "total idiot." Another man, identified as Mike Wade, whose Instagram handle appeared in the video, wasn’t at the club, Portnoy said.
"I had this kid in tears turning state witness to me, rolling on the people there," Portnoy said of Wade.
The Barstool Sports founder said Khan told him that he wasn’t "antisemitic." But Portnoy said he didn’t believe him.
"Who the f--- would do that sign in my f---ing bar? You think I’m just gonna sit here? I’m gonna make it my f---ing mission to put you in lights. My f---ing mission," Portnoy said.
He said he the people were allegedly behind the sign to come up with a way to "make it right."
"What I’m saying is, I’m getting the names, I’m trying to be a little responsible, I’m trying to keep it together, but I’m on it," he said. "But I’m on it. I’m f---ing on it."
Portnoy later said the two of the bottle girls who were at the bar had been fired.
"I have Mo Khan’s cell and talked to his buddy who did it," Portnoy said. "I gave them 1 hour to make it right whether it be anti semitism classes etc. If it’s not up to snuff I’ll put em all in lights," he wrote.
Khan has since deleted his Instagram account.
Antisemitism has been on the rise since the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorists attacks by Hamas on Jewish people in Israel.
The Anti-Defamation League said last month that the number of incidents in the U.S. reached a record high last year, with more than half of the 9,354 incidents being related to Israel.
White House officials celebrated on social media after a horse named Sovereignty beat out its rival Journalism at the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.
Sovereignty trailed most of the race and didn't make a big move until near the final turn to edge out Journalism, the favorite horse going into the race, and secure the victory.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was one Trump administration official who took note of the outcome on social media.
"Sovereignty > Journalism," Hegseth wrote. "On the track. And in 2025 America."
Hegseth has been the subject of recent scrutiny after The New York Times reported that he shared details of a March military airstrike against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen in a chat on the Signal app that included his wife, brother and personal lawyer.
Hegseth accused "disgruntled former employees" of "trying to save their a--" by peddling stories, arguing that the mainstream media's focus should instead be on "the decimation of the Houthis, how [the U.S. is] pushing back the Chinese, how we have a new defense area at the southern border."
Miller also went head-to-head with reporters at a White House briefing last week, admonishing them over their coverage of MS-13 and Tren de Aragua violence in the U.S.
Miller accused some members of the media of trying to "shill" for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an accused MS-13 member the Trump administration deported to El Salvador.
He also accused the press of only covering the sexual assault and murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray by two alleged Tren de Aragua members in June 2024 because Trump "shamed" them.
"Most of your papers never covered her story when it happened, to the extent that you covered it at all, it was because President Trump forced you to cover it by highlighting it repeatedly over and over again," Miller said. "He had to shame you into covering it."
Fox News Digital’s Taylor Penley, Diana Stancy and Ryan Morik contributed to this report.
In a significant legal victory for the Trump administration, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has granted a stay on a lower court's order that had mandated the reinstatement of over 1,000 Voice of America (VOA) employees and the resumption of full broadcasting operations.
"This is a huge victory for President Trump and his Article II powers granted in the United States Constitution. It's also a victory for US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) and VOA," Kari Lake, a USAGM senior advisor to the Trump administration, told Fox News Digital following the court's decision Saturday.
The decision allows the administration to proceed with its efforts to restructure USAGM and its affiliated broadcasters.
"We are eager to accomplish President Trump's America First agenda which has always been to modernize and make our government efficient while cutting waste, fraud, and abuse," Lake said.
"Now that we have a favorable ruling in the appeals court, we look forward to accomplishing the plan we've always had; to bring VOA into the 21st century."
The appeals court's 2-1 ruling Saturday emphasized the judiciary's deference to executive authority in matters concerning federal employment and contractual decisions.
The court noted that the district court likely lacked jurisdiction to interfere with the administration's personnel actions and funding decisions, particularly regarding grant agreements with non-federal entities like Radio Free Asia and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks.
This follows Trump's March 14 executive order (EO), which aimed to dismantle USAGM operations.
"Voice of America has been out of step with America for years. It serves as the Voice for Radical America and has pushed divisive propaganda for years now," a senior White House official told Fox News Digital at the time.
The order led to the administrative leave of approximately 1,300 VOA employees and the termination of numerous contracts, effectively pausing the broadcaster's activities for the first time in its 83-year history.
"Unfortunately, the frivolous litigation actually stalled the ability to streamline archaic practices and redundant programs at VOA," Lake said. "The use of lawfare hurt the agency and its employees more than it helped."
Fox News contributor, legal analyst and constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley also shared news of the ruling on X, posting, "The D.C. Circuit just issued a major ruling in favor of the Trump Administration that lifted a stay on the Administration's decision to terminate contracts and positions at Voice of America."
Saturday's decision came as VOA employees reportedly had access restored to their computers on Friday after federal Judge Royce Lamberth's April 22 ruling in favor of the plaintiff's request for a preliminary injunction against Trump's EO, which the administration promptly appealed.
Sheduer Sanders' unexpected drop from a projected first-round pick to a fifth-round selection was the most polarizing topic from last week's NFL Draft.
Longtime ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. was among the staunch defenders of Sanders, and the former Colorado star's fall to the Cleveland Browns appeared to leave the broadcaster in a state of disbelief.
Shortly after Sanders' name came off the board, Kiper unleashed on NFL franchises, which led to a clash between him and colleague Rece Davis.
Kiper said the NFL had been "clueless" for five decades evaluating quarterbacks. Kiper appeared further perplexed due to his belief Sanders is "one of the toughest quarterbacks you’ve ever seen."
NFL analyst Louis Riddick then explained to Kiper that the question wasn’t about whether Sanders could play quarterback but, from a team perspective, whether a team wanted him. Davis agreed with Riddick, who added, "The draft has spoken."
The on-air spat sparked questions about whether some level of animosity existed between Davis and Kiper. But during a recent appearance on OutKick's "Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich," the ESPN "College GameDay" host made it clear he doesn't have a problem with his colleague.
Davis acknowledged the job Kiper is tasked with as a draft analyst.
"First of all, and I'm not doing that thing that Pete Thamel accuses me of, where I say two things nice about somebody and then offer a critique or something," Davis told Dakich. "But the reason there were … whatever the number (of fans) was in Detroit the previous year is largely due to what Mel's done for the draft.
"And Mel’s job is to make his rankings of the players and defend them. And I didn’t mind him disagreeing, and I don’t mind him saying anything he wanted to say when we're there. But I thought that, as a group, the part we were overlooking was the old Occam's razor philosophy — the most likely explanation for something is probably correct. We don’t know for sure."
Davis then pointed to Sanders' widely scrutinized handling of the pre-draft process, arguing it could have played a role in the quarterback's fall.
"But it was almost certain that, at that point in the draft, that something had happened in the pre-draft process involving Shedeur Sanders that was keeping teams from taking him," Davis added. "Now, I think it’s a reasonable debate if you say he's not a top 5 quarterback on tape at this time.
"I'm not sure that it's reasonable that he's not a first or second-round type guy. That seems a little unreasonable to me. So, if you go beyond that, then something else probably happened. And my only point was I didn't think we were giving that the proper credence."
Davis said his relationship with Kiper was in a good place, and he enjoys working with him.
"It’s fine. I didn’t even know there was an issue until I started getting texts like you were saying," he said. "It’s sort of part and parcel of what we do. Sometimes, for the analyst’s own good and for the good of the show, you challenge their position. Mel’s great. I love working with Mel. And he’s the reason the draft is what it is, in my opinion."
Shortly after the Browns selected Sanders on the final day of the draft, he took to social media to share a short but emotional message: "Thank you GOD."
Sanders finished the 2024 season at Colorado with 4,134 passing yards. He will join a crowded quarterback room in Cleveland with Deshaun Watson, Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett and Dillon Gabriel.
NBC's Kentucky Derby coverage was missing a key figure when lead broadcaster Mike Tirico had to step off set Saturday.
Tirico address his absence in a social media post around Saturday evening, saying it was due to a "signifigant" allergic reaction, as Tirico claims to have a nut allergy.
Ahmed Fareed entered in relief of Tirico Saturday afternoon, announcing Tirico had an unspecified illness.
"Mike, as you may have heard, feeling a little under the weather right now, so I'm going to step in, take over for a bit," Fareed said.
Fareed also suggested Tirico may return to the booth later.
"It is not like baseball. If the closer comes in, the starter can come back in the game. So, rest assured when Mike's feeling better, he'll be back right here in this seat," Fareed said.
Prior to Tirico's exit, many fans on social media pointed out that the broadcaster sounded off.
Tirico has led NBC Sports' Triple Crown coverage since 2017. The nine-year run is the longest of any lead broadcaster since Bob Costas had an 18-year run from 2001-18.
The 151st running of the Kentucky Derby has a post time scheduled for 7:02 p.m. ET.
