Joe Rogan presidents Spotify COVID commentary

Photo Credit: JRE

Joe Rogan claims that two unnamed former presidents contacted Spotify regarding his COVID commentary on ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ podcast.

The disclosure came amid ongoing debates about misinformation and content moderation on major media platforms. Spotify faced significant backlash for hosting Joe Rogan’s podcast, which critics accused of spreading misinformation about the pandemic. Musician Neil Young protested by removing his music from Spotify, citing Joe Rogan’s remarks about COVID-19 as the reason.

“Suddenly I hear that Neil Young wants me off Spotify. I was like ‘What the heck is happening? This is absurd,’” the comedian and podcast host said at the time. Rogan recently claimed that Spotify also received calls from two former presidents expressing concern over the content on his weekly podcast.

Rogan criticized mainstream media outlets for their coverage of his podcast, especially him discussing the use of ivermectin in his own COVID-19 treatment regimen. Rogan dismissed media reports that labeled the drug as ‘horse dewormer’ and said it was essential in his recovery from the COVID Delta variant. Rogan then criticized the media as corrupt and profit-driven.

Despite the COVID controversy, the attention on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast had a Streisand effect. His JRE podcast gained two million new subscribers within a month. He also argued that many listeners found his approach reasonable and ‘humble,’ since he was asking questions rather than ‘regurgitating mainstream narratives.’

Spotify responded to the backlash, with CEO Daniel Ek stating that his company would not alter its policies based on pressure from media frenzy. Despite that, Spotify did remove several episodes of the JRE podcast from its streaming platform—which Digital Music News cataloged at the time. Rogan has not revealed which former presidents contacted the media company—but that hasn’t stopped speculation from circulating online. The JRE podcast remains the most popular podcast available on Spotify to this day, despite the early controversy.