Following a controversy that stemmed from a recent podcast episode of comedian Joe Rogan in the "Joe Rogan Experience," streaming giant Spotify announced that it will be adding advisories to any material that discusses important issues, such as COVID-19 and vaccines.
The content advisories will direct listeners to a data hub of COVID-19 facts in a bid to dismantle misinformation, especially those that promote COVID-19 myths and conspiracies.
Last week, Rogan drew flak for interviewing vaccine-skeptic guests in one of his podcast episodes, which easily trended worldwide.
In a BBC report, Rogan is said to have "discouraged vaccination in young people and instead promoted the unproven anti-parasitic drug ivermectin to treat the virus."
The issue caused streamers to unsubscribe from the platform, and a few artists to pull their music from Spotify like Neil Young.
Long-Existing Platform Rules
In response to the growing concerns, Spotify also published its long-existing platform policies for the first time to ensure that "there are rules in place."
Citing its critical role in supporting creator expression while also ensuring the safety of its users, Spotify announced that it is now working to include advisories that will direct its users to a hub of "data-driven facts, up-to-date information as shared by scientists, physicians, academics and public health authorities around the world, as well as links to trusted sources."
Aside from that, the streaming giant is also trying out effective ways to ensure its creators know and understand their accountability on the content they publish through the platform.
Platform policies would also be translated into native languages, so users from any part of the world will understand them.
In the same post, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said the platform has launched various campaigns to raise awareness about COVID-19 and has donated funds to various organizations, such as the World Health Organization and COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) to intensify vaccine awareness.
The advisories will be implemented worldwide in the coming days.
Rogan vows to try harder
Meanwhile, The Forbes reported that Rogan has posted a 10-minute Instagram video hours after Spotify made their announcement about them adding content advisories.
Rogan addressed the controversy surrounding his recent podcast episodes and said that he will do his best to "balance things out" moving forward.
He also said that he agree with the decision to add advisory to his podcasts and thanked Spotify for its support.
"I will do my best to try to balance out these more controversial viewpoints with other people's perspectives so we can maybe find a better point of view," Rogan said, as cited in the report of The Forbes.
Further, Rogan also said that he wants to show "all kinds of opinions" so that people can figure out what is going on and "not just COVID."
