Rogan apologized for using the racial slur in early episodes of his podcast.
Rogan made the decision to take down over 100 videos after discussions with the platform.
Spotify brought Rogan on by paying him more than $100 million for exclusive rights to his show. However, Rogan retained full creative control. And that means Spotify can’t take down his episodes unless they violate its content guidelines.
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek Apologetic
Spotify Chief Executive Officer Daniel Ek issued a statement. He apologized to staff for the impact the controversy has had on them. And emphasized again that he didn’t agree with calls to boot the podcaster off Spotify.
“Not only are some of Joe Rogan’s comments incredibly hurtful — I want to make clear that they do not represent the values of this company,” Ek emphasized. “I know this situation leaves many of you feeling drained, frustrated and unheard.”
“While I strongly condemn what Joe has said and I agree with his decision to remove past episodes from our platform, I realize some will want more,” Ek said in the letter, which was reported earlier by The Hollywood Reporter.
