Spotify and Joe Rogan have been in the headlines a number of times over the last few months after it was revealed they had paid handsomely for the right to license his podcast and stream it on their platform. Joe’s incredibly popular podcast will be streaming on Spotify exclusively in the coming days.
As part of the deal, Joe told Spotify that he didn’t want to censor himself or his guests at all, however, this has reportedly angered some people who work at Spotify. Fans of the show know Joe is a fan of free speech and open dialogue, and he doesn’t see a problem entertaining ideas on his program.
Either way, reports claim that Spotify employees aren’t happy with the streaming juggernauts for hosting his program. Digital Music News reported this week that New York-based Spotify workers have been considering a strike and a protest if they don’t censor his program.
Digital Music News says Spotify employees are asking for the company to implement a strict editorial process over the program. This would mean the right to remove parts of the podcast and also block uploading episodes deemed as “problematic.”
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The employees have also asked for Spotify to be able to add citations, corrections, trigger warnings, as well as references to other articles that Rogan often touches on during the show. As it was noted above, Spotify purchased the right to stream Joe’s program on their platform a few months back amid the news that Joe would be moving to Texas from California.
For years, Joe has been talking about the flaws of California, including the fact there are too many people living there as well as the political situation, including lockdowns and more. Many members of the podcaster’s crew have done the same thing, including Theo Von and Joey Diaz among others.
It’s unclear what this means for the Los Angeles comedy scene, but some people believe the pandemic will have changed it permanently. Joe’s show, due to its popularity and the election, has come under fire in recent weeks.