Spotify Introduces New Policy In Response To Joe Rogan Controversy

Spotify is introducing a new policy in response to the Joe Rogan controversy.

The podcaster has been under fire for spreading 'Covid-19 and vaccine misinformation' during discussions with his guests.

It's led to musicians like Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and Bruce Springsteen guitarist Nils Lofgren asking the streaming service to remove their albums and tracks.

In a blog post, Spotify admitted that it should be more upfront about the type of content it hosts.

As a result, they will be slapping a content advisory for any podcast that talks about the coronavirus or vaccines.

CEO Daniel Ek wrote: "You've had a lot of questions over the last few days about our platform policies and the lines we have drawn between what is acceptable and what is not.

"We have had rules in place for many years but admittedly, we haven't been transparent around the policies that guide our content more broadly.

"This, in turn, led to questions around their application to serious issues including COVID-19."

The content advisory will 'direct listeners to our dedicated COVID-19 Hub', which is the company's resource 'that provides easy access to 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'.

They hope this will 'combat misinformation' and it will be rolled out across the globe over the next few days.

Spotify boasts that it's the 'first of its kind by a major podcast platform'.

The company will also be making sure that content creators are aware of this advisory as well as help them 'understand their accountability for the content they post on our platform'.

The CEO added: "I want you to know that from the very first days of the pandemic, Spotify has been biased toward action.

"We launched a variety of educational resources and campaigns to raise awareness and we developed and promoted a global COVID-19 Information Hub.

"We donated ad inventory to various organizations for vaccine awareness, funds to the World Health Organization and COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) to increase vaccine equity and supported the Go Give One fundraising campaign.

"And we established a music relief project to support the creative community. While this is not a complete list, I hope it gives you a sense of how seriously we've approached the pandemic as a company."