Spotify—Spotify retained Joe Rogan podcast despite COVID misinformation, prompting major artist boycotts
In January 2022, Neil Young demanded Spotify remove his music over Joe Rogan Experience episodes spreading COVID-19 vaccine misinformation. Joni Mitchell and other artists followed. Spotify added content advisories but refused to remove misinformation outright, and removed 70 episodes containing racial slurs. Despite the controversy, Spotify renewed Rogan's deal for up to $250M in February 2024, making it non-exclusive.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Content Moderation | -against | secondary | -0.50 |
| Misinformation | +toward | primary | -1.00 |
| Overall incident score = | -0.745 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (high ×1.5) × confidence (0.66)
Evidence (2 signals)
Spotify renewed Joe Rogan deal for up to $250M despite misinformation controversy
In February 2024, Spotify renewed its deal with Joe Rogan for up to $250 million, making the podcast non-exclusive. Spotify will handle distribution and ad sales, with Rogan receiving a guaranteed minimum fee plus advertising revenue share.
Neil Young and Joni Mitchell boycotted Spotify over Joe Rogan COVID misinformation
In January 2022, Neil Young demanded Spotify remove his music or remove Joe Rogan Experience episodes containing COVID-19 vaccine misinformation. Joni Mitchell followed. Spotify chose to keep Rogan and added content advisories but refused to remove misinformation. Young and Mitchell returned in 2024 when Rogan's deal became non-exclusive.