Dave Portnoy doesn’t see why Joy Taylor was named in Friday’s explosive lawsuit against the FS1 host, her former on-air partner Skip Bayless, Fox and network executive Charlie Dixon.
What’s more, the founder of Barstool Sports suspects that it is ‘blackmail’.
That lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of stylist Noushin Faraji, accuses Taylor of advancing her career by taking advantage of sexual relationships with Dixon and Taylor’s current co-host, former NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho. Additionally, Taylor allegedly planned to protect her job at the network by fabricating an allegation of sexual misconduct against Dixon, Fox Sports’ executive vice president in charge of talent.
‘Who the fuck cares if they had a consensual relationship or not?’ Portnoy asked about Taylor and Oy’s X. —And since when is Oy a heavyweight who gets promotions? I honestly don’t even know why Joy Taylor is in the lawsuit.
To Portnoy’s question, Taylor is also accused of discouraging Faraji from reporting Bayless and Dixon to human resources over sexual harassment allegations.
Portnoy described the lawsuit as a “shakedown” and later stated that he would “reserve judgment before burying people.”
Joy Taylor (left) is seen sitting next to Emmanuel Acho before an FS1 broadcast.
Dave Portnoy doesn’t see why Joy Taylor was named in Friday’s explosive lawsuit
Noushin Faraji (pictured) accused Skip Bayless of sexual harassment and claims Joy Taylor discouraged her from reporting those allegations to Fox human resources.
“I think it really sucks,” he wrote, adding that he doesn’t have any inside information about the case.
“My bullshit meter is at a hundred million billion on this Fox sports lawsuit,” Portnoy wrote in X. “Just accusing people of bullshit doesn’t make it a fact.” Time will tell. I will say that I think all defendants should not listen to their lawyers and should defend themselves loudly if they are innocent.’
Portnoy, who was previously accused of violent sexual encounters with women in a 2021 Business Insider article, went on to explain why the accused should not listen to lawyers.
“No lawyer in the history of the world has ever told me to defend myself publicly,” Portnoy wrote. “They are always wrong.”
Portnoy sued Business Insider over the 2021 article, which he called a “hit article.” That suit was dismissed and he ultimately dropped his appeal. Portnoy was never accused of sexual misconduct and still proclaims his innocence.
Taylor, Dixon, former FS1 host Skip Bayless and Fox Corporation are named in Faraji’s lawsuit, much of which centers on allegations of sexual harassment, sexual assault, negligent supervision, retaliation and other hostile employment issues between 2012 and August 2024. Bayless is accused of offering Faraji $1.5 million in exchange for sex, while Dixon is accused of groping the stylist’s buttocks.
Portnoy questioned why the lawsuit names Taylor, who is accused of discouraging the plaintiff from reporting sexual harassment allegations against Skip Bayless and Charlie Dixon.
Barstool Sports founder says he’ll “reserve judgment before burying people”
According to Faraji, Taylor was willing to make accusations against Dixon to protect her job.
Taylor herself is accused of dismissing Faraji’s sexual harassment complaints against Bayless and Dixon, telling the stylist to “get over it.”
But on top of those accusations are Faraji’s claims that Taylor leveraged sex to advance her career, first with Dixon and then with Acho, the retired NFL linebacker and Taylor’s co-host on FS1’s ‘Speak.’
With Dixon, Faraji began to suspect that he and Taylor were having an affair in 2016 even though they were both married at the time.
“In approximately May 2016, Ms. Taylor asked Ms. Faraji to meet for drinks in Santa Monica,” reads the lawsuit, obtained by DailyMail.com. ‘When Ms Faraji arrived she found Ms Taylor with an older man, Fox Sport’s executive vice-president of content, Mr Dixon. As Executive Vice President, Mr. Dixon is responsible for overseeing all content and production for FS1. Mrs Faraji, however, did not know Mr Dixon.
“From their body language, Ms. Faraji suspected that the couple were sleeping with each other, and although this worried Ms. Faraji, as she knew that Ms. Taylor had recently married, Ms. Faraji kept her opinions to herself. “.
Taylor was only a fill-in host at the time, but was later added to the network in a full-time position. And according to Faraji, that decision was made at Dixon’s insistence despite Bayless’s objections.
‘Mister. “Bayless later revealed to Ms. Faraji that she did not want Ms. Taylor on the show, but Mr. Dixon insisted that Ms. Taylor should star,” the document reads. ‘At first, the Mr. Dixon arranged a dinner between Mr. Bayless and Ms. Taylor to which she arrived dressed in provocative clothing and acted in a provocative manner. When that did not change Mr. Bayless’s opinion of Ms. Taylor, Mr. Dixon. asked him to approve it as a favor to him. Reluctantly, Mr. Bayless agreed to do it as a favor to his friend.
Taylor would soon separate from her husband, Richard Giannotti, whose name was not named in the lawsuit.
And according to Faraji, it was because Taylor’s now ex discovered evidence of her infidelity.
“Around August 2016, Ms. Faraji attended a dinner with Ms. Taylor and her husband and Mr. Dixon and his wife,” the document reads. ‘During dinner, Mrs Taylor’s husband became suspicious that Mrs Taylor and Mr Dixon were having a sexual relationship. Shortly after the dinner, Ms. Taylor’s husband found evidence of the inappropriate relationship and divorced Ms. Taylor.
Stylist Noushin Faraji (pictured) accused Fox Sports of creating a hostile workplace
FS1 host Joy Taylor used sexual relationships with former NFL star co-host Emmanuel Acho (left) and network executive Charlie Dixon (right) to advance her career, according to Faraji’s lawsuit.
Former Fox host Skip Bayless, 73, is pictured with his wife of eight years, Ernestine Sclafani.
Taylor is again accused of using ‘her sexuality to appear on a show’ in 2020, when she was seeking a spot on Acho’s show.
‘EM. “Faraji did not know Mr. Acho, but realized that the two were romantically involved,” the document reads.
According to Faraji, Taylor all but admitted to having sex with Oy and dismissed any comments about jealousy on Dixon’s part.
“A few months after meeting Mr. Acho at lunch, Ms. Faraji saw him in the hallway while she was at work,” the document continues. ‘EM. Faraji later asked Ms. Taylor if Mr. Acho also worked at Fox.
‘EM. Taylor confirmed and explained that she wanted Mr. Acho to eventually recommend her on the ‘Speak for Yourself’ show.
‘EM. Faraji became alarmed and warned Mrs. Taylor that she probably shouldn’t sleep with Mr. Dixon and Mr. Oy at the same time, since Mr. Dixon is a very powerful man who can get very angry. Mrs. Taylor told him not to worry about it. She explained that she was also powerful now and that once Mr. Dixon was no longer useful to her, she would go ahead with her plan to tell the company that he had forced himself on her. She wouldn’t let Mr. Dixon force her out like other talented women.
Curiously, Acho has since deleted a social network in which he himself praised Taylor for her professionalism.
Fox has issued a brief statement, although Taylor, Bayless and Acho have remained silent on the issue.
“We take these allegations seriously and will allow the legal process to take its course,” the network’s statement read. “We have no further comment at this time.”
DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Taylor and her foundation for comment. Attorneys for Bayless, Dixon and Taylor have not yet been provided to the Los Angeles Superior Court.
Joy Taylor, sister of former Miami Dolphins star Jason Taylor, was engaged to former NBA player turned coach Earl Watson, although the couple has since split.