Harry and Meghan wade into Spotify anti-vax dispute
Sussexes warn of ‘serious harms’ of disinformation
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have raised concerns with Spotify amid an ongoing dispute over anti-vax material on the platform.
Spotify, which signed a $30.75-million deal to work with the couple’s Archewell media company last year, has come under fire over the alleged spread of COVID-19 misinformation by other podcasters on its streaming service.
Prince Harry and Meghan have been “expressing concerns” to Spotify behind the scenes, it has emerged, with the couple warning of the “serious harms” of false information.
The revelation comes as the dispute continues over the platform’s marquee podcast — The Joe Rogan Experience — which has faced criticism due to the host’s alleged airing of vaccine-skeptical views and debunked claims regarding the treatment of COVID-19.
Harry and Meghan have waded into the dispute, with an Archewell spokesman stating: “Since the inception of Archewell, we have worked to address the real-time global misinformation crisis.
“Hundreds of millions of people are affected by the serious harms of rampant misand disinformation every day.
“Last April, our co-founders began expressing concerns to our partners at Spotify about the all-too-real consequences of COVID-19 misinformation on its platform.
“We have continued to express our concerns to Spotify to ensure changes to its platform are made to help address this public health crisis.
“We look to Spotify to meet this moment and are committed to continuing our work together as it does.”
The comments from Archewell come after musicians Neil Young and Joni Mitchell demanded their music be pulled from the platform unless Joe Rogan’s podcast was removed.
Rock musician Nils Lofgren, best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band as well as Crazy Horse, on Saturday became the latest artist to join a protest kicked off by his bandmate Young, saying in a statement that he, too, would “cut ties with Spotify” and urged “all musicians, artists and music lovers everywhere” to do the same.
Separately, Brené Brown, a research professor at the University of Houston who hosts the popular podcasts “Unlocking Us” and “Dare to Lead” on Spotify, tweeted Saturday that she “will not be releasing any podcasts until further notice” but did not list a specific reason or whether the announcement was linked to the broader protest. Spotify removed Young’s music from the platform and retained The Joe Rogan Experience, which signed an exclusive deal with Spotify worth over US$100 million in 2020, and is now one of the world’s most-listened-to podcasts.
And competitors appear to be seeking an advantage amid the controversy: Apple Music on Friday called itself the “the home of Neil Young” in a tweet promoting his catalogue.
Lofgren and Mitchell in their statements said they stood in solidarity with Young, who collaborated with Crazy Horse to produce many well-known albums. Young had demanded that his music be taken off the streaming platform in response to the presence of “fake information about vaccines” in some of the content it hosts.
The letter, which was posted to his website and has since been removed, cited Rogan as part of Young’s issue with Spotify. “They can have Rogan or Young,” the legendary musician reportedly wrote. “Not both.”
Spotify soon began removing Young’s music from its catalogue, including his bestknown hits such as Heart of Gold, Harvest Moon and Rockin’ in the Free World.
Mitchell, whose renowned album Blue just turned 50, wrote in a statement on her website on Friday that she “decided to remove all of” her music from Spotify because “irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives.”
Spotify, in a statement previously provided to The Washington Post, acknowledged the balancing act. “We want all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users. With that comes great responsibility in balancing both safety for listeners and freedom for creators,” a Spotify spokesperson said.
“We have detailed content policies in place and we’ve removed over 20,000 podcast episodes related to COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic,” the statement continued. “We regret Neil’s decision to remove his music from Spotify, but hope to welcome him back soon.”
Rogan’s podcast has faced criticism during the COVID-19 pandemic for allegedly providing a platform for fringe views, including an episode with vaccine scientist Dr. Robert Malone, who made claims about the dangers of the COVID-19 vaccine.
WE HAVE CONTINUED TO EXPRESS OUR CONCERNS TO SPOTIFY.