I would have scratched my head if you asked me who Joe Rogan was a year ago. I can't say one way or another whether I am a fan. What I don't like about his Podcast is his penchant for swearing. I don't know his politics, not that it necessarily matters. Be that as it may, I appreciate that he is an independent thinker.
He came to real prominence with the media beat-up about him when he live-streamed a video about having Covid and using Ivermectin as part of the treatment regime with great success. That morphed into, "Top podcaster uses horse de-wormer" with the ensuing media hysteria. The story went that a hospital in Oklahoma was overrun by horse de-wormer overdoses because of people like Rogan. It even had a great play in Australia. However, the story was totally false.
In late 2021 and early 2022, Rogan's Podcast exploded with eminent doctors, Peter McCullough and Robert Malone. Between them, the Rogan Podcast garnered some 100 million views. I watched both interviews, and they were highly informative, with two brilliant doctors explaining all things about Covid. Each Podcast lasted for three hours, with Rogan asking pertinent and intelligent questions.
Well, you think an atomic bomb struck the planet from those interviews because suddenly social media, government bureaucrats and even musicians demanded that Rogan be censored.
Recently, the singer Neil Young demanded that Spotify remove Rogan from its platform for spreading disinformation. Young gave Spotify an ultimatum. If they didn't remove Rogan, he would leave. The answer for Spotify was easy––goodbye. Apparently, Spotify had paid Rogan some 100 million dollars to be on its platform. I wonder why? Rogan's Podcast is the most-watched program in all media, with 11 million views per episode. The rest are not even close, as this tweet that someone sent me shows.
Now I don't know where Young got his medical degree. Still, when you want to put yourself against the likes of McCullough and Malone, you are going to look quite silly unless you have several advanced degrees.
I must say, Young was never my cup of tea. I think musicians should stick to their music and stop politicizing. I have walked out of concerts when musicians start to waffle about some pet political agenda. I pay to hear musicians perform, not listen to their political agendas.
Do you think this will create more curiosity about Rogan's Podcast? Absolutely. Someone else has chimed in on Rogan's Podcast, claiming that he is a purveyor of misinformation. It's none other than the current Surgeon General, Vivek Murthy.
Imagine this, Murthy, a top figure in the U.S. administration, calling for censorship of Mr Rogan. Really? Is this America? We know where Murthy is coming from; he promoted studying the effects of climate change on the country's health.
While Murthy is a medical doctor, he is not an expert in all things Covid. Senator Ron Johnson's doctors who spoke to his committee are indeed experts. They have seen thousands of Covid patients and developed early treatment protocols. They have also been critical of the continuing push to vaccinate with a failed product.
I think the reaction to Rogan stems from jealousy and the fact that he cannot be controlled. I say more power to him, and I hope he continues to interview critical thinkers. Suppose it takes someone like Rogan to get informative messages to the masses. In that case, we need more of them and less of the agenda-driven political animals.
I suspect Rogan's Podcast will have more viewers thanks to the likes of Young and Murthy. Today's technique is to accuse people of misinformation instead of seriously debating these individuals. It's more like the psychological principle of projection. You accuse someone of what you are actually doing.
The people who are trying to censor communication speak to their arrogance. Most people have enough intelligence to discover the truth when all sides of an issue are presented. The censors don't care about the truth. They are into submission and compliance to their cult or ideology.
Rogan I would think appeals to a no nonsense male audience. And they are a dangerous category to wake up.
Good article