Rogan Goes Rogue
The divisive figure of Joe Rogan has had a unique career, spanning occupations such as construction work, comedy and martial arts commentating. His popular Spotify talk show, “The Joe Rogan Experience,” makes him the current highest-paid podcaster in the world as of 2021 (Variety). In the past few months, Rogan has been hit with a string of controversies that are being heavily discussed across mainstream media platforms and internet forums. He has also been criticized before on several occasions for hosting far-right guests Milo Yiannopoulos and Alex Jones, as well as for consistently making unsubstantiated remarks against marginalized groups. Currently, Rogan lies at an intersection of complex conversations regarding free speech, accountability and corporate responsibility. Rogan’s role in amplifying known anti-vaccination personalities and the casual racism he has exhibited in his past warrants de-platforming that Spotify is reluctant to perform.
This situation started in December of 2021, when hundreds of public health professionals accused Rogan of perpetuating coronavirus (COVID-19) misinformation following his interview with Dr. Robert Malone (The New York Times). On an episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience”, Malone–who is a notorious vaccine skeptic–drew parallels between the motivation behind people seeking out vaccines and the “mass formation psychosis” present during Nazi Germany. Previously, Malone was banned from Twitter for spreading COVID-19 misinformation, and after Rogan gave him a platform to reach millions of listeners, 270 doctors and educators wrote an open letter to Spotify requesting that they address this as an act of public endangerment. Considering Malone’s infamous reputation, it is shocking that Rogan chose to invite him onto his podcast and spend almost an hour questioning the validity of COVID-19 vaccinations. Following this incident, notable creators including musician Neil Young and podcaster Roxanne Gay demanded that their discographies be removed from Spotify due to the company’s lack of action against Rogan. Spotify then promised to add “content advisories” to podcast episodes that contain potential misinformation but skirted around Rogan himself, citing protection of free speech (TIME). Many observers have attributed this to Rogan’s popularity and Spotify’s rumored $200 million deal with the podcaster. Spotify’s neutrality is, in itself, a political statement, as it has signaled to many consumers that the corporation is more concerned with preserving their relationship with a profitable creator than respecting audience feedback. Not only is this a morally irresponsible decision on the part of Spotify, but consultants and crisis managers have also pointed out how it is damaging to the corporation’s long-term reputation (TIME).
“I think [Spotify should regulate their content] if it is in response to their audience,” junior Arman Omidvar said. “Spotify acts in its own self interest at the end of the day, and they should not be beholden to some ‘perfect free speech’ type of declaration.”
Public ire towards Rogan grew even more in the first week of February, when singer India Arie posted a video compilation on her Instagram Stories of him saying the N-word over twenty times on different occasions. The video then went viral, prompting Rogan to issue an apology on his Instagram account for his use of the racial slur (Los Angeles Times). Following increased audience criticism, Spotify responded by saying they will strive to maintain a balance between expression of free speech and protecting the safety of users. Additionally, they have dedicated $100 million to “socially conscious programming”. However, this dollar sum is half the amount Spotify reportedly paid Rogan for his exclusive podcasting contract and therefore does not seem like genuine commitment to supporting marginalized creators. By choosing a more conservative stance, Spotify has offended a large portion of their audience and representative artists. Rogan’s mistakes have thus become a catalyst for many complicated debates since they were first brought to the public’s attention. Arie has stated that she seeks to remove her work from Spotify not only due to their response to Rogan, but because she wants to spark a larger discussion about being an artist of color exploited in the streaming economy (Rolling Stone).
“I think [an apology] is the most [Rogan] could have done,” junior Mason Lee said. “Realistically, there is not much else he could have said. It does not change the fact that what he did was wrong and does not change the fact that in the future he is most likely going to keep bringing people on [to his podcast] that have some very interesting opinions about everything.”
Rogan’s use of the N-word is egregious and irrefutably deserves condemnation; however, handling the topic of COVID-19 misinformation requires more nuance than just “canceling” Rogan. In a society that is increasingly defined by polarization and partisan politics, using words like “canceling” to encompass all issues of accountability is too simplistic. Spotify’s lackluster promise to add “content advisories” to episodes of “The Joe Rogan Experience” is insufficient. Nonetheless, silencing any creator that elicits controversy is a danger to free speech. The response to Rogan’s misdeeds has been rightful mass outrage, but instead of jumping on the bandwagon of “cancellation” and indiscriminate censorship, it is important to advocate for accurate information.“The more it seems like an organized attack against someone that is promoting a concept, the more people are going to rally behind that concept,” English 2 Honors and Advanced Placement English Language teacher Kristian Engle said. “The danger is an issue of trust–these are people who already lack trust in the system that we have right now. The [preferable] alternative is the reinforcement and the dispensing of information that is the most helpful.”
