Spotify CEO Daniel Ek appeared to defend the company’s deal with Joe Rogan amid the controversy surrounding his podcast.
The Verge shared a transcript of Ek’s speech he delivered to the company’s employees.
Ek acknowledged there are “many things that Joe Rogan says that I strongly disagree with and find very offensive.”
He noted there are a “number” of episodes that have been removed from the streaming platform because they are in violation of the rules.
Ek told the employees if the company wants “even a shot at achieving our bold ambitions, it will mean having content on Spotify that many of us may not be proud to be associated with.”
He continued, “Not anything goes, but there will be opinions, ideas, and beliefs that we disagree with strongly and even makes us angry or sad.”
CNN noted Rogan has made inaccurate claims about Covid-19 and vaccines on his “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast.
The company announced it is adding a disclaimer to any podcast that discusses the virus. A few notable figures have left Spotify because of Rogan including Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, India Arie, and Mary Trump.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki reacted to Spotify’s content warnings.
“Our hope is that all major tech platforms — and all major news sources for that matter — be responsible and be vigilant to ensure the American people have access to accurate information on something as significant as COVID-19,” Psaki said.
She added, “That certainly includes Spotify.”
Calling the disclaimer a “positive step,” Psaki added, “But we want every platform to continue doing more to call out misinformation while also uplifting accurate information.”
Rogan said on Sunday he is “not trying to promote misinformation. I’m not trying to be controversial.”
He continued, “I’ve never tried to do anything with this podcast other than just talk to people and have interesting conversations.”
