Barstool founder Dave Portnoy has claimed that former "Call Her Daddy" co-hosts Alex Cooper and Sofia Franklyn devised a plan to falsely allege sexual harassment at the company as a means to break their contracts. Portnoy detailed the alleged scheme in his new book, "Cancel Me If You Can."
The podcast, launched by Barstool in 2018, gained significant popularity, with Cooper and Franklyn sharing personal stories about their dating lives and sexual experiences. However, contract negotiations and a public falling out between the co-hosts led to their split in 2020.
Portnoy stated in his book that while Cooper was amenable to an offer allowing them to retain their intellectual property, Franklyn desired to leave Barstool entirely. He recounted telling the hosts, "You guys realize I’ll sue you if you take the podcast to another network before your contract is out, right?" Portnoy wrote that Alex Cooper then claimed they had a plan to "say they were both sexually harassed at Barstool."
According to Portnoy, this was their contingency plan if he did not agree to relinquish their intellectual property and allow them to move to a rival podcast network. Portnoy, who has faced accusations of misogyny in the past, asserted that he has never been accused of inappropriate workplace conduct. He acknowledged that even a baseless claim of sexual harassment could have been difficult to contest in the court of public opinion.
Sources indicate that Cooper and Franklyn did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding Portnoy's claims. Portnoy also discussed talent retention challenges with WSJ Magazine, noting that external offers can complicate matters. He reiterated his account that Cooper had informed him of the alleged plan to claim sexual harassment to exit their contract.
Ultimately, Cooper remained with Barstool long enough to secure her intellectual property and subsequently moved "Call Her Daddy" to Spotify under a contract reportedly worth $20 million annually. Franklyn has since launched her own podcast, "Sofia with an F."