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Mary Trump removes podcast from Spotify in protest at Joe Rogan's Covid misinformation

‘The Mary Trump Show’, previously available on Spotify, has now been removed at her request – alongside the music of Neil Young and Joni Mitchell

Tom Fenton
Wednesday 02 February 2022 13:52 GMT
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Video mash-up compares Joe Rogan’s apology to what he says on podcast

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Mary Trump, the niece of former President Donald Trump, has announced that she has removed her podcast from Spotify, amid the platform’s ongoing and controversial platforming of Joe Rogan – who has been accused of spreading Covid misinformation.

Just last week, legendary musicians Neil Young and Joni Mitchell both requested that Spotify remove their catalogue of tracks from the platform, in what was a direct protest against Mr Rogan, who has spread numerous Cvoid-19 falsehoods on his show – The Joe Rogan Experience.

The Mary Trump Show, hosted by the famed psychologist, was previously available to listen to on Spotify. However, in a now-viral tweet, put out Tuesday night, she explained why she has taken to decision to remove it from the streaming service.

“I’m removing my podcast from @Spotify. I know it’s not a big deal but hope it will be part of a growing avalanche. Thank you to #NeilYoung, @jonimitchell, and @nilslofgren for your courage in leading the way,” Ms Trump wrote.

Mr Rogan, whose show garners a reported 11 million listeners per episode, has since pledged to change his content moving forwards, chiefly by having on a wider range of guests and doing “his best” to research topic matters more extensively.

Spotify has also reacted to the media storm that was first unleashed by Mr Young’s protest, with the company announcing that it will attach labelled disclaimers to certain podcast episodes, especially those that feature controversial topics such as Covid.

Ms Trump has been a vocal critic of individuals spreading harmful misinformation about Covid-19 – which at times has included her own uncle.

Last year, in the wake of the US Capitol attack, she stated that Mr Trump should be “barred from ever running for public office again”, although she has since predicted that he will do exactly that in 2024.

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