John Schnatter, Papa John’s founder: N-word scandal that led to ouster was ‘fabricated’

Ousted Papa John’s founder John Schnatter claimed Tuesday the N-word scandal that led him to resign as head of his pizza franchise was fabricated by the company’s board to remove him from leadership.

“I never dreamed that people that I cared about, that I loved, that I made multimillionaires, would do what they did,” Mr. Schnatter said to WDRB.

Mr. Schnatter resigned from his company after reports surfaced of a May 2018 conference call where he had used the N-word.

While Mr. Schnatter admitted to using the word, he said he used it in the context of diversity training and was quoting an unnamed famous individual to convey the dangers of racism.

“They fabricated it. Shame on them,” Mr. Schnatter alleges, “This is all a farce. Nothing sells like the truth, and the truth, sooner or later, all comes out.”

Mr. Schnatter claims the board of directors seized on the opportunity to get rid of him.

“I just didn’t know it would happen from people on the inside doing this,” he said. “I thought it would come from the outside.”

“The board of directors all used the black community and race as a way to steal the company,” Mr. Schnatter claims. “They stole the company, and now they’ve destroyed the company.”

Mr. Schnatter said the changes in Papa John’s have led to a decrease in morale at the company and worse pizza.

“They’ve hurt people that wake up every day and make this company great,” he said. “I mean, it’s a miserable place over there. … They’re losing all of their good people. The key to this business is good people,” he said.

“I’ve had over 40 pizzas in the last 30 days, and it’s not the same pizza,” Mr. Schnatter said. “It’s not the same product. It just doesn’t taste as good. The way they’re making the pizza is just not fundamental to what makes a Papa John’s pizza.”

“Stay tuned. The day of reckoning will come,” he said. “The record will be straight.”