CLEANING HOUSE

Spotify Purged 70 Episodes of ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’

But not the episode that sparked the most recent controversy.

Spotify has removed 70 episodes of The Joe Rogan Experience from circulation, Gizmodo reports. The most recent excised episode aired in 2018 and has nothing to do with the ongoing pandemic. The streaming company did not cut the episode that sparked Rogan’s most recent controversy, an interview with well-known anti-vaxxer Robert Malone. The interview elicited a letter from more than 200 doctors demanding Spotify take action against the podcaster for spreading misinformation, calling him a “menace.” The company did not take action against Rogan, with whom it has a $100 million exclusivity contract. Spotify previously booted a right-wing podcaster over COVID-19 misinformation. That letter, in turn, spurred music legends Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, as well as several others, to remove their music from Spotify in protest. Spotify didn’t immediately return The Daily Beast’s Friday evening request for comment.

-- Zachary Petrizzo contributed reporting.