Spotify CEO apologizes to employees over Joe Rogan podcast controversy

• A compilation video of Joe Rogan using the N-word was shared on social media

• CEO Daniel Ek said Rogan would not be pulled from the platform

Spotify (NYSE: SPOT) Chief Executive Officer Daniel Ek apologized to his employees for the impact of Joe Rogan controversy on them.

A compilation video of Joe Rogan was shared on social media platforms on Friday where he used the N-word.

“There are no words I can say to adequately convey how deeply sorry I am for the way The Joe Rogan Experience controversy continues to impact each of you,” he wrote in a note to staff.

“Not only are some of Joe Rogan’s comments incredibly hurtful — I want you to make clear that they do not represent the values of this company,” Ek said. “I know this situation leaves many of you feeling drained, frustrated and unheard.”

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On Saturday, Rogan said in an Instagram post that the video is made up of clips “taken out of context” and described the video as “horrible.”

“It looks f------ horrible, even to me,” Rogan said. “I know that to most people there is no context where a white person is ever allowed to say that word, never mind publicly on a podcast. I agree with that now. I haven’t said it in years.”

“I thought as long as it was in context, people would understand what I was doing,” Rogan said.

In the last few days, many of Rogan’s podcast episodes have been taken down from Spotify but Ek said Rogan would not be pulled from the platform.

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“While I strongly condemn what Joe has said and I agree with his decision to remove past episodes from our platform, I realize some will want more,” Ek said.

“And I want to make one point very clear — I do not believe that silencing Joe is the answer. We should have clear lines around content and take action when they are crossed, but canceling voices is a slippery slope.”

Ek also said that Spotify will invest $100 million for the licensing, development, and marketing of music and audio content from historically marginalized groups.

Covid-19 misinformation

Recently many medical professionals have also criticised Rogan for spreading conspiracy theories about Covid-19. Rogan had once said in his podcast that young adults don’t need to get a shot.

Musicians Neil Young and Joni Mitchell boycotted Spotify recently for carrying Rogan’s podcast even after being accused of spreading Covid misinformation.

More than 250 medical professionals wrote an open letter earlier this month to Spotify asking it to take action against Rogan.

Picture Credits: Getty Images