Joe Rogan’s Spotify pod sparks backlash from doctors and Neil Young, as moderation takes center stage
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“The Joe Rogan Experience”... just got more complicated. JRE is the world's largest podcast, with an estimated 11M listeners per episode. In 2020, Spotify signed a deal to make the pod Spotify-exclusive for a reported $100M. Now, a viral December episode is drawing fresh criticism:
- The guest: Rogan interviewed Dr. Robert Malone, a virologist who worked on early mRNA research. Malone is now a Covid vaccine critic, and was Twitter-banned for posting misinfo.
- The episode: Malone promoted baseless conspiracy theories — from claiming hospitals have financial incentives to diagnose deaths as Covid-related to saying that getting vaxxed is riskier for people who've had Covid.
- The backlash: 270 medical experts signed a letter asking Spotify to curb misinfo on its platform, citing the Malone episode. On Monday, singer Neil Young demanded that Spotify remove all his music — or remove JRE.
I’m a pod-star, not a doctor... Rogan has said he is not anti-vax, and that he encourages "many" people to get vaccinated, but this isn't the first time he's been criticized for Covid misinfo. Spotify has removed thousands of episodes containing Covid misinfo in the past. It has also reportedly removed 42 JRE episodes, including ones featuring far-right activists — but none related to vaccines. As its pod business booms, critics want clearer moderation policies.
- $1B+: How much Spotify has splurged on pod-related purchases. Including: The Ringer and Parcast — plus, exclusives like “Call Her Daddy.” Targeted pod ads make up a growing share of Spotify’s $2.5B quarterly revenue.
- #1: In October, Spotify overtook Apple as the US's biggest pod platform, largely thanks to its "gated garden" strategy.
With great publishing power comes great responsibility… The calls to action were broader than JRE — they were directed at Spotify’s moderation policies (or lack thereof). Unlike many large platforms, Spotify doesn't appear to have a defined misinformation policy, or at least one that’s consistently enforced. Yet moderation will likely become a growing issue for Spotify as its business grows — just as it is for other social and streaming giants.