I would appreciate if you didn’t just approve the comments applauding your efforts. Its pretty clear the kind of message you want these comments to portray in comparison with what is actually being said.

This whole comment section and this article is complete garbage. It doesn’t matter how old you are or if you “remember” writing this they are absolutely horrific jokes and inexcusable. Barstool has made some poor taste jokes but never to this level and trying to brush this off is ridiculous. At a certain point you…

i mean...you couldn’t write this article without a) getting defensive, b) making excuses, c) doing a “yeah but” with barstool, and d) pulling the white (male) guilt card. that sure is something. say sorry, own it, and make it about you. no need for a thinkpiece for you to try and explain it all away.

Hi, I’m Barry Petchesky.  I think other people should be held accountable for the things they say, but i was just a kid, so I get a pass.   

So Barry here is why this is problematic: you wrote these things 12 years ago. You just spent 4000 words fauning all over yourself taking about ‘how much you’ve grown up’ since this went down. You made a topical reference to Kavanough to throw the stink off yourself, and called it an article.

just wait until barstool finds the /sp/hl forums
then you’ll really have to APOLOGIZE

Way to throw Will Leitch under the bus! Didn’t he hire you? Also, a pathetic, groveling apology doesn’t excuse rank hypocrisy. You had plenty of opportunities when you were criticizing Barstool to mention that you used to be a shithead too but you never got off your high horse until you were forced to when confronted…

Barry, I’m pretty sure you’re still an obtuse, dumb AF, none-too-funny shithead. Being 22 doesn’t excuse that, and while you certainly wouldn’t write or say such things now, I’m pretty sure that the soil that grew such sentiments is still within you 

The idea that Deadspin specifically, and the former Gawker empire generally, isn’t still premised on casual cruelty is ludicrous on its face. The targets may have changed, but the mean spirit and bad faith remain the same.

My problem with Deadspin/Gizmeodia is the high horse from which they preach.

So does that mean Kavanaugh should be granted the same exemption you’re granting Barry right now? This was decades ago, after all, and so far no allegations of his sleaziness since he was a teenager.

Deadspin: “We Are Barely More Mature Than Barstool, And I Want My Jezebel Coworkers To Remember That”

Just curious, Barry — do you think your past comments should prevent you from being a federal judge or a Supreme Court justice? 

You could do a lot more to end this Twitter-mob cycle by going the other way with this. Why not admit that juvenile jokes, posted in the comment section of a dying blog, actually aren’t that big of a deal? That some words posted on the internet actually, maybe, don’t have as much of an impact as you make them out to…

“....a small fraction of the hurt the things I wrote were capable of inflicting on other people.”

Casual cruelty is still la lingua franca in these comments sections. 

Yeah, we were all idiots online in 2006. But honestly, the Barstool/Deadspin back and forth has been one of the most pathetic beefs of all time. Both sides have truly embarrassed themselves. I hope you both shut the fuck up. 

The fact that we’re all guilty is precisely why standing on a high horse is a stupid move. Deadspin commenters are every bit as vile and cruel as anything you’ll find on reddit or 4chan, which is precisely why it’s so hollow when everyone around here decides to get all righteous for a cause.

Why are you so effing negative? These are car enthusiasts who want to share their enthusiasm with others who are buying cars like theirs. Who cares if the model is electric? Who cares if the make isn’t turning a profit? Who cares if the CEO tweets too much? If this was Hellcat owners offering to show new Hellcat…

Whats so bad about helping a company you believe in? honestly?