Joe Rogan vs. Spotify

I can't say I've bothered listening to The Joe Rogan Experience podcast. The few times that I did attempt it, I wasn't overly drawn in. But, even if I'm not listening, millions of other people most definitely are. Heck, according to the National Post, his podcast gets 190 million downloads per month. Like, wow, that's....a whole lot of downloads, dude.

Then along comes Spotify, the wildly popular music streaming service with its 286 million users. They decide to give Joe Rogan a rumored 100 million bucks and it means that, by the end of the year, Rogan's podcast will be exclusive to Spotify.

In Spotify's own announcement of the deal, they praise Rogan, tell us how excited they are to have him on board and that with them he has found a supportive home.

By partnering with Spotify, Rogan and his team will enjoy the support of the world’s leading audio platform.

From his earliest days behind the mic, Joe has been a commentator, fixture, and driving force in culture helping to lay the foundation for the podcasting renaissance we are experiencing today. While Spotify will become the exclusive distributor of JRE, Rogan will maintain full creative control over the show.

Wow! Spotify loves him!

At least that's the way it sounded at first. Now, things are going off the rails and Spotify is in disarray over some of Joe's content. It has created a mini uprising at Spotify with some people on staff demanding that Joe's content be censored. So much for Joe's full creative control over his show. So much for the support of Spotify.

There is talk about some on staff actually going so far as striking over this split. They are demanding the ability to censor, edit and have editorial power over Rogan's podcast.

So, what is their problem?? Well, they feel that he spreads false information (granted at times, it appears that he does). They are also pissed off because they see him as transphobic (and we all know how heavy of a charge that is these days, with JK Rowling as a good example). Let's see, what else? Oh, right. He likes to have controversial figures on his show, and that doesn't sit well with some. Overall, it's fair to say that there are those at Spotify who aren't fans of the guy.

So, did those signing big cheques at Spotify never listen to an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience? It's not like they haven't had ample opportunity seeing as there are over 1600 of them to choose from, for frick sakes. Was there not an internal discussion of this BEFORE someone at Spotify decided to spend an insane amount of money getting what is probably the most successful podcaster on the planet, and the history of podcasting?

As it is, despite their claims to support Rogan, when Spotify made his podcast available on their platform, they decided that they weren't going to upload certain episodes with guests considered to be, well, right-wing or even far right-wing. His episodes with famed Infowars wacko Alex Jones, for example, didn't make the cut. So, already, Spotify was proving to be a problem and it didn't bode well for the future.

Does Joe Rogan have controversial guests? Damn right he does. And that isn't a bad thing. Rogan has proven to be someone who is willing to talk to anyone from anywhere on the political spectrum. He wants to listen to people and learn about what they think. Of course, in the hyper polarized current political climate we are living in, this is seen as bad. "How dare he give a platform to the wrong people!" Well, quite frankly, this is just one reason Rogan is so popular. He is willing to give everyone a chance to express themselves. He is willing to have a good, honest discussion with pretty much anyone and everyone. He leaves it up to his listeners to decide whether or not they agree with him or not. And what is wrong with that? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. In fact, it's a breath of fresh air in an atmosphere that frowns upon doing such a thing. It's one of the reason his podcast is downloaded by so many people every month. He has a winning formula that some at Spotify now want to completely mess with.

I don't understand why more people don't have an, "If you don't like it, don't listen to it," response instead of an, "I don't like it therefore no one should get to listen to it," approach? And where exactly is this going to end? What else is Spotify going to start meddling with? Is every podcast going to be scrutinized in the same way? Who is going to decide what is and isn't okay to say in a podcast that can be listened to on Spotify? Should all podcasters be concerned here? And how tight are the guidelines for acceptable content going to get? What else is Spotify going to buy up and then forbid us to listen to? This is not a positive direction that the company is heading in.

Spotify credits Joe Rogan with creating a "podcasting Renaissance" making the medium as popular as ever. Now, will Spotify be the platform that kills podcasting? Time will tell.