The Joe Rogan Spotify
After weeks of online turmoil, first regarding allegations that the Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) promoted of vaccine misinformation and then a compilation showing the host's repeated use of racial slurs, Rogan's hosting platform has released a statement supporting the podcaster.
"I do not believe that silencing Joe is the answer," Ek wrote in a memo to employees that was provided to the media. "We should have clear lines around content and take action when they are crossed, but canceling voices is a slippery slope."
Rogan recently released an apology video calling his history of using racial slurs "the most regretful and shameful thing that I've ever had to talk about publicly." Still, Rogan said that he believed that the context of the clips included in the viral compilation made their use acceptable. The compilation included clips from 12 years' worth of content.
Ek confirmed that, following the release of the compilation, Spotify took down dozens of JRE episodes with Rogan's support. Through Rogan's "own reflections" and meetings with the company, they identified roughly 70 episodes to remove, according to Ek.
Ek also said that Spotify will be investing $100 million in the "licensing, development, and marketing" of content "from historically marginalized groups." According to The New York Times, Spotify has a number of initiatives already in place to promote diversity on the platform, and music licensed from Black and minority artists is among the most popular.
Spotify's troubles truly began after Rogan interviewed MRNA vaccine developer and infamous vaccine misinformation source Dr. Robert Malone. Following this episode, hundreds of medical experts signed an open letter to Spotify expressing concern over JRE's promotion of vaccine misinformation. Soon after, artists began removing their music from the platform, and a boycott and "Delete Spotify" movement started online.
Media insiders, on the other hand, say that this case underlines a lack of clarity regarding what responsibilities online companies have to monitor the content posted on their platforms. While most of these companies have managed to avoid being categorized as publishers of the content users post, Spotify is on less certain ground when it comes to the JRE. It has been widely reported that Spotify paid Rogan $100 million for exclusive licensing of the podcast, and Rogan is one of the figureheads of Spotify's podcast offerings. After all, the JRE is the most popular podcast on the platform.
