Dana White sure has a way with words. And he sure loves the media. Especially aggregated media.
Never much of a fan of journalism, when White’s not spending his time bemoaning about members of the press, the UFC president is doing his best to make Power Slap the fastest-growing sport in America. (Take that pickleball!) Though, TBS decided that it didn’t see enough out of Dana White’s Power Slap to renew it for a second season. According to White, had they simply checked the social media metrics, they’d have seen that they had the chance to broadcast the most popular sports property in the world.
And “the most popular sports property in the world” and its perceived lack of coverage isn’t why White is ticked off at the MMA media. Rather, he’s upset with how members of the media have responded to a controversy that happened prior to a promotional event last month.
By now, the relationship between White and Barstool Sports is pretty clear. So, it shouldn’t come as a total surprise that he flew out a Barstool Sports employee to Las Vegas for an event, right? Well, that Barstool Sports employee, Robbie Fox, also happens to be an MMA blogger and has a rather large presence as a personality in the community. Fox thanked White for flying him out and covering his trip expenses. For those of us who didn’t already know, that’s a conflict of interest in the industry, and Fox claims that he’s since received backlash about his unprofessionalism from a handful of MMA media sites.
In attempting to clear the air, Fox asked White during a recent episode on his My Mom’s Basement with Robbie Fox podcast, that he was flown out because of his status as a “world-famous celebrity” instead of you, know, being a media member. After claiming that Fox was merely an “influencer,” White went on a fiery rant against the media. Because of course, he did.
“Tell the rest of the media who think they’re professional to kiss your f*cking ass,” White said. “Every one of those f*cking scumbags are a bunch of unprofessional f*cking douchebags. F*ck every one of ‘em. They’re all awful.”
Robbie Fox: I just want to clear the air here, that, and you can confirm this, hopefully, that you didn't fly me out because I'm a media member, but because of my status as a world famous celebrity.
Dana White: 100%@RobbieBarstool
Full Interview here:https://t.co/ctvJj8og6c pic.twitter.com/W6wjeUeIRy— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) June 6, 2023
“I would love to see which ‘professionals’ are calling you unprofessional,” White added. “They’re a bunch of f*cking bloggers, they’re all full of sh*t. They’re not media, they’re bloggers. Big difference. 100 f*cking percent. Exactly.”
Fox tried to explain to White that he too is a blogger and not a journalist, which he said he’s never claimed to be.
“Listen. Let me tell you how f*cking powerful and influential the media is,” White said. “If it was up to the media, the UFC would have never f*cking made it, okay? If it was up to the media, we would have never gone through COVID. If it was up to the media that had any type of influence or power, if they mattered whatsoever, Power Slap would not be doing what it’s doing right now. So, let ‘em f*cking talk.”
Let’s rewind here for a second.
“If it was up to the media, we would have never gone through COVID.”
That’s an insane quote. But, we’d like to remind you that White is making a documentary about UFC media criticism during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Anywho, White seems to be of the mindset that the media is out to get him, the UFC and Power Slap. So, we don’t expect to be welcomed to any promotional events anytime soon. What a tough break.
[MMA Mania, Jed I. Goodman on Twitter]
