Joe Rogan, UFC commentator, stand-up comedian, and controversial podcast host, has had over one hundred episodes of his successful podcast removed from Spotify. This comes hot on the heels of Neil Young pulling his own songs from the streaming service in protest at Rogan’s dissemination of COVID-19 “misinformation”, and a compilation video og Rogan repeatedly using the “N-word” racial slur.
Spotify quietly removed 113 episodes of The Joe Rogan Experience from its service, which it purchased for $100 million in a bid to expand into podcasting. This is despite Spotify CEO Daniel Ek stating that, although he condemns Rogan’s use of racial slurs, he refuses to “deplatform” him.
Spotify CEO Condemns Joe Rogan, Over 100 Episodes of The Joe Rogan Experience Missing from Spotify
“While I strongly condemn what Joe has said and I agree with his decision to remove past episodes from our platform, I realize some will want more.
I want to make one point very clear—I do not believe that silencing Joe is the answer. We should have clear lines around content and take action when they are crossed, but canceling voices is a slippery slope.”
The missing episodes of the podcast include those with Rogan’s most controversial, generally right-leaning, guests. This includes conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones, who once accused parents of children murdered during the Sandy Hook shooting of being “crisis actors”, and far-right leaders such as Gavin McInnes of the Proud Boys. The New York Post is reporting that Spotify has also removed episodes including comedians such as Rich Vos and Little Esther.
According to Bloomberg, it was actually Joe Rogan’s choice to remove these episodes from the streaming service, not Spotify’s. All but one of the removed episodes was recorded before the genesis of the COVID-19 pandemic, so it’s unlikely that this mass removal had anything to do with his Neil Young controversy. It’s more likely that the missing episodes were removed in relation to the recent racial slur.
Joe Rogan rose to prominence as a stand-up comedian, initially enjoying a television career as a cast member on News Radio, and later appearing as the host of Fear Factor. Rogan spent much of his early life in martial arts training, eventually taking up Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu after it was popularized in the US thanks largely to the fledgling UFC.
His interest in MMA led him to become one of the UFC’s early defining figures, with Rogan delivering fight commentary and hosting televised events for the better part of the last two decades. He was a similarly early adopter of podcasting, and today his show The Joe Rogan Experience is the biggest podcast on the planet.
Should Joe Rogan have removed the episodes from Spotify? Let us know in the comments.
Remember to stay up to date with the latest news on TheOvertimer.
