Spotify just deleted over 100 episodes from the Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) podcast, and it looks like.
According to Engadget, however, the deleted episodes don't seem to coincide with the whole Neil Young incident. For the unaware, the veteran rocker called out Rogan for repeatedly peddling COVID misinformation on his podcast and had his music taken off the platform as a result.
So far, it seems like a total of 113 JRE episodes have been taken down. It also looks like the episodes aren't being deleted in order.
As per Gizmodo, among the episodes to bite the dust was the one that featured Ukrainian-American author Michael Malice. He recently tweeted that two of the episodes featuring him have been deleted from the platform:
Spotify has deleted two of my @joerogan appearances pic.twitter.com/ZjKu8TUgcO
— Michael Malice (@michaelmalice) February 4, 2022
The most recent episode that got removed, which is numbered #1218, dates back to December 2018. It seems like Spotify is removing these episodes at random, with no discernable rhyme or reason.
Much of the deleted episodes are being tracked by the website JREMissing. Among the most notable ones to be taken down include those with controversial comedian Chris D'Elia (#1458), and the one featuring "Conspiracy" producers Kip Andersen and Keegan Kuhn (#750).
Quite simply, all of the deleted episodes did not feature the recently controversial ones, which featured alleged COVID misinformation. And this coincides with recent statements made by Spotify CEO Daniel Ek.
According to Ek, the erring JRE episodes apparently didn't break any rules. But he also clarified that Rogan still has to "abide by those policies" even if he is technically the platform's most popular podcaster to date.
The JRE podcast averages a massive 11 million listeners per episode, making it the music streaming platform's biggest in terms of listenership. They gained exclusivity rights to it by signing Rogan to a $100 million deal in 2020.
When Will Spotify Relent?
Spotify doesn't seem too keen on giving Rogan more than just a slap on the wrists. As previously mentioned, his controversial episodes tackling COVID are still up and not even included in the list of recently deleted ones.
But in order to try and save face, the platform did say that they're putting up a content advisory warning on any topics talking about the pandemic. However, many people aren't too convinced by this move, arguing that Spotify still doesn't have a concrete COVID misinformation policy, unlike its competitors.
Furthermore, it doesn't seem that Rogan will stop. In a recent 10-minute Instagram video, the former UFC color commentator defended himself, saying that all of the ideas being shared in his podcast are "not that prepared or fleshed out," because he has them in real-time. In other words, the topics on his podcast are never prepared, which is likely what makes them controversial.
For now, it remains to be seen whether Spotify will keep looking to protect its investment in JRE.
Related: No Spotify Action Against Joe Rogan? Platform to Add 'Content Advisory' to COVID-19 Topics
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by RJ Pierce
