Controversial American podcaster Joe Rogan has apologized for using racist language on his shows.
It was the "most regrettable and shameful thing I've ever had to speak out about," he said in an Instagram video on Saturday.
A video montage of statements over the past twelve years had previously appeared.
Rogan had repeatedly used the "N-word" used to racially insult black people.
The 54-year-old admitted the footage "looked awful, even to me."
He "never used the word to be racist because I'm not a racist," he said.
But: "If you ever find yourself in a situation where you have to make it clear that you're not being racist, you screwed up.
And I clearly screwed up.”
He believed that people would understand him as long as he used the word in the right context.
But there is "no context in which a white person is ever allowed to say that word, let alone publicly on a podcast," Rogan said.
Trouble over pandemic talks
The podcaster was recently criticized for spreading misinformation about the corona pandemic.
Prominent musicians such as Neil Young and Joni Mitchell had announced their withdrawal from Spotify in this context.
Young justified his withdrawal with the streaming platform's refusal to withdraw Rogan's podcast.
More than 70 episodes of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast have now been removed from Spotify, according to a report by the New York Times on Saturday.
The streaming service has not yet commented on this.