Spotify CEO to employees: Canceling Rogan not 'the answer'

100 million to Joe for that one show?? No wonder young people dream of becoming YouTubers or Podcasters.

More proof we have passed Peak Socierty.

Why would they want to give this trash money anyway, by exploiting the ignorant supporters of his

LDTM, how can somebody smear trash

Lots of White people think. Rogan is the great White Hope, instead he only Hype

The attempt to cancel him backfired as should all attempts at censorship

This is not censorship Bronco. Censorship is when the government silences people. When it is the will of the people changing public and/or private policy that is democracy working how it was intended.

Ultimately Spotify has the right to make this decision. In a totalitarian state where censorship is used to maintain power it would not be.

I am not a Rogan "supporter", but I like his podcast because his guests often offer compelling thoughts and ideas, It can be entertaining and even scary to hear whats happening in front of our eyes.

Cancelling Rogan or anyone who just asks honest questions is not right. I can't believe anyone would support that unless there is financial incentive.

Some people will watch their local news channel or trust government messages and anything that questions that narrative must be evil or lies.

I am a happy subscriber to Spotify and will continue to be.

But it's NOT a private company @Bronco and there lies the problem for them. They have shareholders to answer to who are selling the stock right now. I do support free speech, but Spotify is primarily a music platform which is where by FAR the bulk of their subscribers come from - They have to decide if this is their future or hosting podcasts that blur lines. They don't pay their artists enough, fact, Yet, they do have the best interface and their algorithms for playlists are second to none.

I'm a subscriber to Spotify but giving Tidal a go this month, So far impressed. Outside the Apple ecosystem its right up there and this is their time to take advantage.

More than 10 years of racist comments

and he is liberal. Perhaps you are seeing the light on U.S. politics which you think supports social justice for minorities. You vote, they laugh.

How do you know the poster is not white themselves There is no white on white racism.

and how do you know ONLY white people listen to Joe Rogan? You didn't argue that for some reason.

Some white males in the U.S. recently have been complaining about woke or cancel culture, that is until the shoe is on the other foot. Trump wants to cancel his own former veep and members of Congress who go against him but that's not cancel culture, right? Joe Rogan has not been and should not be cancelled but he should know that his own choice of words have consequences. If his slurs were said 'in context,' why did he give that apology? Trump, Rogan and those NFL owners need to realize they are a dying breed and there's very little their money or power can do to stop it. The times they are a changin', like it or not.

Everyone acts like an expert on race in the U.S. on the outside looking in.

Businesses will always look,for an excuse. We see it here with Spotify, we saw it with Burton Ski schools in China, etc etc. when business silently gi along with this, they tacitly support it.

Over the years, Joe Rogan has platformed conspiracy theorists and white supremacists. I don't know or care what his views are, but not platforming these people isn't the same as censorship. I have opinions too, but nobody's just handing me an audience of millions. That's not "silencing".

As for Spotify itself, it's the trashiest of trash platforms. It enriches itself by having one of the worst rates for creators among streaming services. Daniel Ek then goes on to invest millions in US military AI.

This is not censorship Bronco. Censorship is when the government silences people

Does nobody use dictionaries anymore? Look up censorship - the definition does not require government. Too many of the left don't understand these words, or confuse them. Listen to your own recently anti-free speech ACLU:

"Censorship, the suppression of words, images, or ideas that are "offensive," happens whenever some people succeed in imposing their personal political or moral values on others. Censorship can be carried out by the government as well as private pressure groups."

Well, now that he’s apologized, I’m sure that will stop all of the SJWs from calling for his head, right? I mean, he’s admitted it and apologized, so it’s all good now, right?

Never listened to a lot of the JRE, don't have that much time. Did listen to the "greatest hits" album of him saying 'a racial slur against African Americans', it didn't really seem that bad. He wasn't using the epithet AT anyone, or to demean anyone, he was just discussing it with other people. So what? It is the height of racism to tell people that they aren't allowed to use certain words, purely due to their pigmentation.  I mean, even the President of the US is on record using "The Word", more than one time, in public. Should HE be cancelled too?

Rogan DID make the key mistake of apologizing. When the cancel culture comes for you, the first rule is to NEVER apologize. Ignore it, laugh at it, wait for the torch-waving mob to move on to another target.  But never apologize. 

As for Spotify, if they want to retain ANY credibility surrounding the use of "The Word", then I would expect them to also pull the music of EVERY musician who uses it in a song. Somehow, I don't think that will happen though.

The funny thing about all of this is that leftists know so little about this guy they don’t even realize he is a Bernie Sanders liberal.

have opinions too, but nobody's just handing me an audience of millions.

No one handed Rogan that audience. Obviously people want to hear what he and the wide variety of people he talks to have to say.

if they didn’t like what they heard he wouldn’t have an audience.

Does nobody use dictionaries anymore? Look up censorship - the definition does not require government. Too many of the left don't understand these words, or confuse them. Listen to your own recently anti-free speech ACLU:

"Censorship, the suppression of words, images, or ideas that are "offensive," happens whenever some people succeed in imposing their personal political or moral values on others. Censorship can be carried out by the government as well as private pressure groups."

When you quote something it is customary to include your source. Here is Cambridge dictionary’s definition:

”a system in which an authority limits the ideas that people are allowed to expressand prevents books, films, works of art, documents, or other kinds of communication from being seen or made available to the public, because they include or support certain ideas: 

Civil libertarians say that the ruling amountsto censorship.”

It doesn’t come out and define “system” or “authority” but I think you can probably figure that out for yourself. People saying “if you include him on your platform you can exclude me” would be a pretty egregious reading of “censorship” to me. Are you saying that Neil Young shouldn’t have the right quit a company he disagrees with ethically? Because that is what this really amounts to.

for the record i am against censorship and don’t think rogan should be censored. He should be taken on directly and exposed as the clown he is for all to see

Are you saying that Neil Young shouldn’t have the right quit a company he disagrees with ethically?

Some of our posters seem to be hinting at that.

I think they need to consider what freedom of speech means if they do.

bro America

I’ve heard critics and fans of Rogan say this is part of his his target audience.

The conservative Rogan

Is he a conservative?

Some of our posters seem to be hinting at that.

I think they need to consider what freedom of speech means if they do.

I wonder sometimes whether people are struggling with what it really means to be a member of an active democracy. It has been a while since we have had such hard lines drawn with people taking up their causes en masse in a very vocal way in the West. It is understandably hard to deal with on an emotional and political level. For me, I think we have to put up with uninformed mouth pieces like Rogan and Trump (not comparing them politically just as examples of ppl who say controversial, factually suspect thing on a large platform) for the greater goal of freedom of speech. Ultimately, hopefully everything is an excuse for a conversation and an opportunity to learn. But the ability to protest by opting out is as essential as Rogan’s right to express his opinions. They must coexist along with a free press charged with reporting facts and access to that info for all classes for it to work at all

I'm with J-Dake: Let him keep going. He will cross the line eventually and destroy himself. For sure. Spotify have pretty much kept their own counsel and have already removed a number of his podcasts.

People are under some illusion about Spotifys core business here. Hint : It ain't Joe Rogan. Neil Youngs music will he back on Spotify long after the world has forgotten about Joe Rogan.

@Blacklabel

I was talking more about his guests than Rogan himself.

And yes, a lot of people are interested in what many guests of his have to say. If, however, he includes science deniers, conspiracy theorists, transphobes and racists, he should be able to face the consequences. Platforming these people makes their ideas reach a lot of people and legitimize them. Then, listeners will become more interested in hearing what people who support ideas that lead to harmful actions have to say.

ToraToday  07:13 am JST

100 million to Joe for that one show?? No wonder young people dream of becoming YouTubers or Podcasters.

it's just like the late Rubbish Limberger blubbering his doo-doo on the AM dial. He had been doing that stuff since he was 16 and he hadn't matured a day beyond that age.

i don't listen to any of these nerds, left-wing, right-wing, broken wing. I could give better radio talk if somebody spiked my coffee. And so can all of you.

Art Warhol was right. Everybody becomes famous for 15 minutes. As for what is another matter.

Zichi; don't you believe that there is a difference between discussing a racial slur, and using a racial slur as an epithet directed at someone? Or are there certain words that can never be uttered (or written), regardless of context? That is the question, in my opinion. There are no clear guidelines as to how or when certain words can be used. Some people are vilified, some not for uttering the same word in the same situation. Seems to depend on their political leanings, but I could be wrong.

And yes, people can use racial slurs and not be racist. 'Racist' to me implies deep and unchanging beliefs in the superiority or inferiority of people based on race. Even saying a slur as an insult, directly to a person, may not mean you are racist. Just possibly means you are an idiot.

If we listened to 2,000 hours of the average person talking, would they say something that could be taken out of context to be interpreted as racist?

I'm pretty sure that you'd find very few, if any, instances of most people using racial slurs if you recorded 2,000 hours of their speech. That is, unless they are racists or try to be edgy.

I'm a POC myself and don't use this type words because there simply isn't a need to do that when you discuss anything, including racial issues. The debate around this really blows my mind. I thought Americans were sensitive to this kind of stuff.

Joe keep doing your thing and don’t apologize to the leftist.

Was it only leftists who disliked the idea of comparing a black cinema audience to Planet of the Apes?

I’d hope people of any political stripe would see that as at the very least stupid. I hope my faith in basic decency is not misplaced here.

Anyway, he apologized. I’m not a fan of his but the apology seemed genuine.

One defence he uses is that he’s a moron and shouldn’t be taken seriously. This seems a bit slippery to me and a very dodgy get out of jail free card.

I notice his supporters here don’t call him a moron.

And yes, people can use racial slurs and not be racist. 'Racist' to me implies deep and unchanging beliefs in the superiority or inferiority of people based on race. Even saying a slur as an insult, directly to a person, may not mean you are racist. Just possibly means you are an idiot.

Do you think Rogan is an idiot? He seems to think he is.

@KetoCoffee

If I remember correctly, Richard Pryor had one standup routine exactly about how he hates the word. A white comedian, such as George Carlin, had to make it very clear about how they used the word before they did. Speaking of George Carlin, he got literally arrested for using other forbidden words, some of which would barely raise an eyebrow now. So it's not like we live in a woke dystopia in which you can't say anything anymore, unless you're more comfortable with slurs than with swearwords.

Also, I'm probably not the only one for whom the "it's just comedy" argument doesn't fly. Yes, comedians often make their audiences uncomfortable on purpose, but their art is not created in a vacuum devoid of context and consequence. What's more, Joe Rogan's podcasts are, as far as I know, not supposed to be perceived as stand-up comedy.

 ‘We can’t drop him. He has the right to say what he wants

One of these statements is not true

You could record a million hours of me talking and there will never be a single racist slur or any other type of slur.

you just posted slurs, minutes later. as examples. See how this works now?

Why even use it. It's like calling someone a slut, a whore, a Paki, and worse.

Like I said group called Patriot Takes compiled this video of Rogan using the N-word on his podcast. Patriot Takes is aligned with a democratic party-supporting Super PAC called Meidastouch.

I don’t know what that has to do with anything I’ve posted.

I’m more interested in what people think of Rogan’s defence that he’s a moron. I don’t think he is based on what I’ve seen.

Do his supporters agree with his self-assessment, and is it a valid defence for saying things he himself has described as wrong and stupid?

Do you think Rogan is an idiot? He seems to think he is.

I like Rogan huge fan, I think the guy is great and I do love how he gives the ruling class the finger but I also think the guy has made some racial comments, they were a bit out of line, he apologized and now let’s move on. Spotify isn’t going to get rid of him, he’s a genius and a cash cow, why would Spotify even contemplate a suicidal move like that, just entertaining the thought is stupid. Rogan doesn’t take himself seriously and neither should the media.

Me, not a big Rogan fan. I dont have 3 hours a day to listen. He is an idiot for apologizing though.

So Zichi you agree that using slurs AT people is offensive and generally racist. How about the other part though? Using them in a conversation without directing them at anyone? Some people here have already done that inadvertently, such as , "I would never use .... or ..... or ..... at anyone".

As for the President, he used the word more than 10 times in the Senate in 1985 during one hearing. Video is available for the asking. Now, he wasn'T referring TO anyone, just quoting another person but he DID use the word. Which according to the standards of today should be enough for him to be fired and silenced.