PASADENA, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 07: Comedian Joe Rogan performs during his appearance at The Ice House ... [+]
Musicians Neil Young and Joni Mitchell may have each penned a few "protest songs" in their long and impressive careers – but their protests against online music service Spotify has been seen as largely unsuccessful. Ending the war in Vietnam may have been an easier fight than getting the streaming platform to pull The Joe Rogan Experience.
That doesn't mean changes aren't coming.
Spotify subscribers will notice a new content warning airing ahead of any podcast episodes discussing Covid-19, CEO Daniel Ek announced on Sunday.
However, The Joe Rogan Experience will continue.
Rogan's Response
The podcast, which is hosted by comedian Joe Rogan, had been accused by medical professionals of spreading Covid misinformation, and as a result, both Neil Young and Joni Mitchell had pulled their respective libraries of songs from Spotify.
After last week's negative backlash, Joe Rogan also took to social media platform Instagram on Sunday, where in a nearly 10-minute long video he explained that he is open to changes in the show, and will work to book more mainstream health experts.
That video has been seen more than five million times.
Rogan also apologized to both Young and Mitchell, and further praised Spotify for its decision to add content advisories to any material that mentions Covid-19.
"I want to thank Spotify for being so supportive during this time and I'm very sorry that this is happening to them and that they're taking so much heat from it," said Rogan.
"I'm not trying to promote misinformation, I'm not trying to be controversial," added Rogan. "I've never tried to do anything with this podcast other than to just talk to people."
Success Or Failure?
Exactly how much Neil Young played a role in Spotify's decision to add the content warning remains unclear, especially given the mockery the singer received last week on social media from some users.
"If you not of a certain age, Neil Young is something you might not know," explained John Simson, professor and the Program Director for the Business and Entertainment Program in American University's Kogod School of Business.
"But in the music industry, Young is someone who has long been seen as authentic and has been known for standing up for causes he believes in," Simson added. "He has that reputation and there are only a handful of people who are really like that."
As for the changes coming to Spotify, it could find itself in a difficult position. It may be unable to satisfy everyone - especially where Americans can rarely see to eye-to-eye on anything. However, the disclaimers could be a first step.
"It is still the early days, and Spotify is trying its best to squeeze through this one," said Simson. "We heard a similar argument from Facebook and YouTube when it came to dealing with controversial content."
The Bottom Line
Last week, many other musical artists showed their support for Neil Young – but apart from Mitchell and a few others, most didn't pull their music from the streaming service. Even if they did, it isn't apparent that Spotify would pick the artists over the podcasts, which can tend to be bigger money makers – especially for the more popular podcasts.
"Spotify has a lot invested in their podcasts," Simson noted. "They are really a technology distribution company, not a music company, and Joe Rogan has a larger audience. That is why the company might issue a content warning, but pulling his show wasn't going to happen. Now, if someone like Taylor Swift were to join such a protest that would be a different story entirely."
Tweeting As A Protest
The other big takeaway from all this is how many who praised Neil Young's call to have his music removed from the streaming service did little more than tweet.
"There are certainly people today who think, 'if I weigh in that something happens.' On occasion, something does happen and it can go viral, as the people weighing in add to those numbers," said Simson. "But just as often it doesn't add up to much. Even if it is in the tens or even hundreds of thousands, those numbers are still rather small in the grand scheme of things. And likely not enough to make a service like Spotify even notice. However, if those users actually start to cancel their subscription, then that would be a much bigger deal."
