After Spotify founder defended keeping Joe Rogan in its catalog , about 70 episodes of the show were removed from the platform last weekend, the 6th. The case, however, is not related to the claims made by Neil Young and other artists.
According to Billboard , the move came after R&B singer India.Arie shared footage in which Rogan repeatedly used racist vocabulary to refer to Black people. The website also reported that the host made a six-minute video expressing regret and saying it was the "most shameful" thing he had ever had to say publicly.
Spotify CEO and founder Daniel Ek sent a letter to his employees, which Billboard obtained . In it, the businessman apologizes for how the entire controversy with Joe Rogan has affected the rest of his company and clarifies that the presenter's "incredibly damaging" comments "do not represent the values of this company."
“I think it’s important for you to know that we spoke with Joe and his team about certain content on his show, including his history of using racially insensitive language. After those conversations and reflecting on his own, he decided to remove a number of episodes from Spotify. He also published an apology over the weekend,” wrote Daniel Ek.
The CEO also commented that although he “strongly condemns” Rogan’s words and agrees with his decision to remove the episodes from the platform, he “doesn’t believe” that “silencing” the presenter is the answer. “We must have well-established boundaries regarding content and act when these are crossed, but silencing voices is dangerous territory. If we look more openly at the problem, it is critical thinking and open debate that strengthens real and necessary progress,” he wrote.
During the last week, a number of artists followed Neil Young's example and asked to have their catalog removed from Spotify in protest against Joe Rogan's podcast remaining on the air. The program is known for its denialist content and for featuring conspiracy theorists as guests.
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