Dave Portnoy appeared on one of Joe Rogan's podcast episodes where the two discussed John Skipper, the former ESPN president. Rogan was shocked to know the reason why Skipper left ESPN. He even admitted that he had never heard about Skipper before.
Throughout the nearly three-hour show, Portnoy, the founder of Barstool Sports, briefly mentioned his turbulent history with ESPN. He portrayed Skipper as a foe and applauded his unceremonious retirement later that year.
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'I don’t know who that is'
Portnoy briefly mentioned how Skipper unexpectedly discontinued Barstool Van Talk after only one episode, citing an inability to separate the show from Barstool. "I don't know who that is," Rogan responded when Skipper's name was mentioned.
ESPN canceled Barstool Van Talk in 2017. Following a cocaine extortion attempt, Skipper resigned as president of ESPN less than two months later due to substance abuse, stating that he needed to focus on treatment. He confessed months later that his resignation was motivated by an extortion attempt. Rogan was stunned to know the reason for Skipper leaving ESPN.
'That’s f*cking so stupid'
Skipper insisted he resigned and was not fired, but it's always been puzzling that he and Disney couldn't agree on a leave of absence to focus on treatment, especially when he joined DAZN as executive chairman six months after leaving ESPN. "He had to leave ESPN because of a coke dealer?" Rogan inquired, surprised. Rogan continued, "That's f**king so stupid, he was doing coke," AWFUL ANNOUNCING reported.
“Maybe I’m naïve,” Portnoy added. "But to be like, 'yeah, I've done coke,'" he said during the podcast episode. "Who cares?” “I think in that world, you can’t even admit you did coke,” Rogan explained. “It’s a stupid world. It’s a stupid world where you have to pretend to be a fake person.” Skipper is currently the CEO of Dan Le Batard's Meadowlark Media. Ironically for Rogan, his UFC commentary is now available on ESPN, due in part to Skipper's resignation.
