Joe Rogan's podcast wasn't nominated for Golden Globe because he wouldn't pay $500
Joe Rogan has explained why his show wasn't nominated for the 'Best Podcast' award at the Golden Globes.
Earlier this month, the Golden Globes debuted a new category at its 2026 awards show, Best Podcast.
The category had fierce competition, with podcasts such as Alex Cooper's Call Her Daddy, Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert and Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes’ SmartLess all nominated.
Amy Poehler would ultimately take home the award for her Good Hang show, which has featured interviews with the likes of Aubrey Plaza, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jennifer Lawrence. But fans couldn't help but notice the absence of one particularly popular podcast.
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Ranked as one of the top 2025 podcasts on platforms such as Apple, Spotify and YouTube, it seemed likely that The Joe Rogan Experience would get a nomination.
So the apparent snub would've come as a surprise to many.
Why wasn't Joe Rogan's podcast nominated for a Golden Globe?
The former UFC commentator has been quick to clarify why he wasn't up for the gong, revealing that he ultimately decided against paying the $500 entry fee.
"A lot of people say, ‘Why wasn’t Joe Rogan nominated for the Golden Globes? Why did Amy Poehler win?’ I didn’t submit," he explained on a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience.
"They asked me to submit to be nominated for the Golden Globes, and you had to pay $500. And the $500 is like for paperwork or whatever.
"I said no."
A $500 (£363) entrance fee may not seem like much to Rogan, who's estimated to be worth somewhere between a whopping $200 million (£145 million) and $250 million (£181 million), but maybe it was the principle.
Rogan also went on to comment on Poehler scooping up the award, more specifically, the backlash over the Parks and Recreation star winning.
"I’m sure it’s good. It won," he said. "I’m sure someone must love it.
"If it sucked, they would give it to someone else, right?"
He continued: "I just know that Amy Poehler won, and a lot of people are upset.
"She’s had a podcast for six months, and she won. Great, you gave it to a famous person.' Which, you know, in that world that’s what they do."
Poehler launched Good Hang back in March 2025, making her podcast the youngest of the six up for an award. Dax Shepard and Alex Cooper both launched their respective podcasts in 2018, while SmartLess came onto the scene in 2020. The oldest in the group was NPR's Up First, which launched in 2017.
Meanwhile, Rogan has been running his podcast since 2009, making it somewhat of a dinosaur in the podcasting world.
However, as the saying goes, you have to be in it to win it, so maybe Rogan will cough up a spare $500 next year.
How does Golden Globes voting actually work?
Voting at the Golden Globes is very different to other big awards such as the Oscars. It also underwent a major overhaul after a 2021 investigation triggered widespread backlash in the industry. Here's how it all works:
Who chooses the Golden Globes winners?
Voting for the Golden Globes is made up of a group of around 300 entertainment journalists from around the world, who decide the winners of each category.
This is different to awards like the Oscars, which are voted on by industry peers such as fellow actors, directors and writers.
How can you become a Golden Globes voter?
According to the Golden Globes website, to apply to become a voter, you must ‘be an experienced international entertainment journalist working for a recognised media organisation’.
Strict policies for voters
There are strict policies that come along with being a Golden Globes voter, which include adhering to a 'code of conduct, a conflict of interest policy, and a gift ban policy prohibiting the acceptance of any gifts or promotional items from any studio, network, streamer, agency, or publicist’.
Previous controversy
Voting for the Golden Globes used to be governed by the now-defunct Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), but reforms were made after a 2021 investigation highlighted allegations of financial corruption, voting integrity and a lack of diversity, specifically that there were no Black members within the HFPA.
Topics: Joe Rogan, Entertainment, Podcast
Brenna Cooper