Neil Young has threatened music streaming leader Spotify to have his music removed from the platform, citing statements by podcaster Joe Rogan (“The Joe Rogan Experience”) about Covid-19 vaccines.
A now-defunct letter on Young's website, quoted by various media outlets, said Spotify uses the podcast to spread misinformation about vaccines that could potentially be deadly to those who believe them.
Benjamin Fisher
Editor in Business.
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With approximately 11 million listeners per episode, Rogan's podcast, available exclusively on Spotify, is the largest in the world.
Spotify, in turn, has a responsibility to take action against disinformation on its platform.
“You can have Rogan or Young.
Not both,” the letter continues.
The letter was addressed to Young's manager Frank Gironda, who confirmed its authenticity to The Daily Beast, and to Warner Music, through which his recordings are distributed.
It's not the first time 54-year-old podcaster and mixed martial arts commentator Joe Rogan has come under the spotlight amid the pandemic.
Only recently, around 270 doctors and scientists published an open letter in which they accused Rogan of spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories.
Rogan himself was infected with Covid 19 in September 2021 and shortly afterwards declared that he had taken the horse dewormer Ivermectin for treatment.
He had previously drawn criticism when he said that young, healthy people should not be vaccinated.
He later added that one shouldn't listen to him, since he wasn't a doctor.
Spotify did not comment on the case at the request of the FAZ.
The Swedish streaming service secured the license for exclusive distribution of the podcast for around $100 million in 2020 as part of its podcast offensive.
Young's music, meanwhile, was still available on Spotify as of Tuesday afternoon.