A suspended Temple University student allegedly involved in displaying an antisemitic sign at Barstool Sansom Street on Saturday night has denied responsibility for the hateful message and now demands an apology from Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy.
Mohammed Adnan Khan, the 21-year-old student who first posted video of the sign on Instagram, recorded a message Tuesday night on X, formerly Twitter, claiming he has been made a "victim" of cancel culture. In the video, Khan said Portnoy's public reaction to the "edgy joke" has resulted in death threats against him, the loss of an internship and the possibility of expulsion from Temple.
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"Dave Portnoy sensationalized it to his 9.2 million followers on Instagram and X, essentially turning it into a global news story," Khan said. "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 a lot of the unjust things that Israel is doing around the world."
Khan claimed he was at the bar with friends and made a video of the customized sign – a perk of ordering bottle service – to "report on it" on social media.
Temple placed Khan on an interim suspension on Sunday, and the university announced Wednesday it has suspended a second student who allegedly was involved in the incident at Barstool Sansom Street. The second student, who was not identified by Temple, was suspended as part of an ongoing investigation by the division of student affairs, the university said.
On Sunday, Temple President John Fry called the antisemitic message "abhorrent" and said any other students found to be involved would face disciplinary action. Philadelphia police also said they are investigating the incident.
Portnoy posted a pair of videos on Sunday condemning the sign at his bar and vowing to thoroughly investigate what happened. He said two employees at the bar were fired for their roles in allowing the sign to be displayed, and he said Khan and another person had taken responsibility for the sign during phone calls with him over the weekend.
"On the call, they both cried their eyes out but ultimately accepted responsibility for their hateful actions," Portnoy's team said in a statement posted Wednesday morning on X.
Portnoy, who is Jewish, offered to pay for Khan and the other bar customer to travel to Poland to visit Auschwitz, the Nazi concentration camp where 1 million Jewish people were killed during the Holocaust. The pair initially agreed to make the trip in exchange for Portnoy keeping their names private, Portnoy said, but Khan later backed out during a follow-up call on Monday.
In his video Tuesday night, Khan claimed that he initially accepted responsibility for the sign "under duress" because of Portnoy's power and influence as a media personality. He said Portnoy was "triggered" by the message at his bar and had threatened to ruin his life. Khan's LinkedIn profile describes him as an honors student double majoring in marketing and management information systems.
"Dave Portnoy owes me restitutions and an apology for everything he has done and caused for me in these past few days," Khan said.
Khan appeared Tuesday on the radio show of right-wing commentator and Christian nationalist Stew Peters, who openly decried "Jewish supremacy" and invited Khan to weigh in on the topic.
"Do you think that now is the time for humanity to join forces and become tribal against Jewish supremacy?" Peters asked.
"Absolutely," Khan said. "And especially in this case, in the case of the Americans, what this constitutes, our First Amendment rights."
Khan also questioned whether the reaction to the sign at the bar would have been as severe had it been directed against Christians or Muslims.
"I didn't realize to the effect that people were getting hurt over just a couple of words," Khan said of the video he posted on Instagram from the bar.
On Wednesday afternoon, Fry said Temple is aware of Khan's appearance on Peters' show.
"The content of this interview was both appalling and deeply offensive," Fry said. "Antisemitism is not tolerated at Temple. We condemn it in the strongest possible terms, and we will be relentless in efforts to combat it, especially when members of our community have been targeted because of their Jewish identity."
Portnoy's statement on Wednesday called Khan an "anti-Semitic moron" and criticized him for going on "what appeared to be some Third Reich Nightly News Show." His statement also attacked an unnamed 6ABC journalist for a contentious interview on Monday that Portnoy ended abruptly when the reporter asked whether Barstool Sports' abrasive brand of media fuels social division. The news station defended its coverage in a statement Tuesday, refuting inaccurate speculation about the identity of the reporter who interviewed Portnoy.
Temple has encouraged students affected by the incident to seek support through campus counseling services and the IDEAL Interfaith Inclusion Center.
"While Temple is committed to honoring the principles of free speech and fostering an environment open to a diversity of thought, opinion and peaceful expression, the language and views expressed in these instances are reprehensible and not in keeping with our university’s values," Fry said Wednesday.
This story was updated with new information after it was published.
