Joe Rogan posted a nearly 10-minute video on Instagram Sunday night in which he addresses the controversy surrounding his Spotify podcast, Joe Rogan’s experience, and promised to “do my best in the future to balance things out.”
The backlash peaked last week, when Neil Young said he was removing his music from Spotify due to COVID-19 misinformation on Rogan’s podcast. Joni Mitchell and Bruce Springsteen guitarist Nils Lofgren also followed in solidarity with Young. The moves led to Spotify on Sunday announcing updated platform rules and a new approach to handling COVID-19 information including adding content advice to podcast episodes containing discussions. about viruses.
Rogan, who said he agreed with Spotify’s decision to add the disclaimer, added that he wanted to post his videos “because there’s a lot of people who have a false perception of what I do.” may be based on the sound or on the titles of disparaging articles. ”
Rogan attributes the controversy to two episodes in particular featuring interviews with known vaccine skeptics Dr Robert Malone and Dr Peter McCullough, who promoted controversial theories. argue. Rogan said he wanted to talk to those two men – who he called “very charismatic, very smart, very successful” – because they had views that were “different from the mainstream narrative. I want to hear their opinion. I watched them and because of that, those episodes were labeled “dangerous” and had misinformation.
But he added that he has a problem with the term “misinformation” because “many things we considered a mission not so long ago were now taken as facts,” including some things that were not. mainstream media promote, including the effectiveness of vaccines against infectious viruses and the effectiveness of cloth masks.
“If there’s anything I’ve done that I could have done better, it’s had multiple experts with different opinions right after I had controversial opinions,” says Rogan. . “I would certainly be willing to do that. And I wanted to talk to some people who have different views on podcasts in the future. I make my own schedule and I don’t always get it right.”
Rogan said he’s a fan of both Young and Mitchell and isn’t “angry” at the former for starting the wave of artists pulling their music.
“I’m sorry they feel that way. I definitely don’t want that. I’m a Neil Young fan,” he said, noting that he once worked as a security guard at a Young concert.
He has reiterated a few times his promise to get more opinions on his show and research topics more closely and “have the right facts at hand”. He said he never tried to cause controversy and expressed surprise at how a podcast about “I was talking to some friends” had become “some of the out-of-control jugglers I virtually uncontrollable”.
“I am committed to balancing controversial views with those of others so that more people can find a better point of view, I don’t want to just give an opinion contrary to what the story says, I want to give all kinds of opinions. , ” On all topics, and not just COVID-19, he said.
“My point is to create interesting conversations and conversations that people enjoy,” he says. “If I have angered you, I apologize. And if you like the podcast, thank you. ”
He also thanked Spotify for his “support” in the midst of the controversy as well as the haters, he said, who encouraged him to “reassess what he’s doing and put things into perspective and me.” I think that’s good too.”
Watch the full video below.
