MeidasTouch

Last updated

MeidasTouch
FoundedMarch 2020;4 years ago (2020-03)
FoundersBen Meiselas
Brett Meiselas
Jordan Meiselas [1]
TypeMedia Organization
PurposeU.S. News and Politics
Key people
 Ron Filipkowski
(editor-in-chief) [2]
Website meidastouch.com
YouTube information
Channel
GenreCommentary
Subscribers3.3M [3]
Total views5.0B [3]

MeidasTouch is an American progressive media company. The network describes itself as doing 'pro-democracy' journalism. [4] [5] [6]

Contents

Previously, the MeidasTouch name was used by its founders for a liberal American political action committee formed in March 2020 with the purpose of stopping the reelection of Donald Trump in the 2020 United States presidential election. [7] [8] [9] [10] The SuperPAC aligned with the Democratic Party in the 2020 United States presidential election, the 2020–21 United States Senate election in Georgia, and the 2020–21 United States Senate special election in Georgia. [11] [12] [13]

The PAC changed its name to Democracy Defense Action in 2023. [4] The MeidasTouch name continues to be used by the MeidasTouch Network, the news organization. [2]

History

The committee was founded in March 2020 by three brothers from Long Island while in quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [14] [15] One of the founders, Ben Meiselas, is an attorney who represented former NFL player Colin Kaepernick. [16] [17] [18] Brett Meiselas is an Emmy-winning video editor who worked for The Ellen DeGeneres Show . [19] Jordan Meiselas is a marketing supervisor living in Brooklyn, New York. [19]

The group name and slogan come from their mother and father, combining their father's last name, Meiselas, and their mother's maiden name, Golden, [15] while alluding to the mythological Greek king Midas known for his ability to turn everything he touched into gold.

On July 21, 2023, MeidasTouch filed paperwork to rename itself to Democracy Defense Action, [20] and later that year, news reporting indicated the MeidasTouch name was being used for a news network called MeidasTouch Network. [21] [22] [2]

Notable projects

2020 U.S. presidential election

On April 22, 2020, the committee released their first video, titled "Are You Better Off?", an allusion to Ronald Reagan's famous line in the 1980 general election presidential debate, [23] which criticized Trump's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States; [24] The committee shared the video in a Twitter reply to George Conway, which was then retweeted by him. [15]

On June 6, 2020, another video was released, called "Bye Ivanka"; it took parts out of her commencement speech and focused on her relation with China and criticized Trump's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. [25] Her Wichita State University Tech speech was canceled due to student and teacher pressure. [26] [27]

On June 17, 2020, another video was released, "Gop Cowards", which accused Republican senators of being cowards. Near the end of the video, followers are urged to vote 11 Republican legislators out. [28]

On June 23, the committee released a video called "Trump Kills US". [29] The video focuses on Trump's comment at his Tulsa rally which urged doctors to "slow the testing down". [30] MeidasTouch called it "Mass murder on a national scale". [31]

On July 8, a new video was released called "Creepy Trump". It compiled Kellyanne Conway's comments on Joe Biden and put it together with Trump statements. [32] The ad uses clips of Conway's comments and remarks Trump has presented about women, and was played on Fox News, CNN and MSNBC. [33]

On July 14, another video was released called "#ByeDonJr". It takes Donald Trump Jr.'s comments on Fox News about Biden and applies them against Trump. The video also further criticizes the older Trump's handling of the pandemic. [34] [35]

The group continued its activities after the November 3 elections. On November 27, it claimed credit for making #DiaperDon the top Twitter trending topic in the US, via a tweet that mocked (as summarized by The Independent ) a "press briefing ... which saw [Donald Trump] furiously assail a reporter from behind a surprisingly small desk", and provoked Trump into calling for the immediate abolishing of Section 230 "for purposes of National Security". [36]

2020–2021 Georgia Senate elections

The SuperPAC targeted Republican candidates in the 2020–21 United States Senate election in Georgia and the 2020–21 United States Senate special election in Georgia with several televised attack ads, billboards, direct mailings and door-to-door canvassing efforts. [11] [12] [13]

Most notably, MeidasTouch aired an advertisement called "The Grinches of Georgia." CNN said of the ads, "Humor is the chosen route for Democrat-backed Meidas Touch. Their television ads show Perdue and Loeffler with green faces and Grinch-like features. A nursery rhyme narration includes the verse, "Their stockings were stuffed from the stocks that were sold, when they heard Covid was coming, before we were told." [37] The Hill credits MeidasTouch as framing the Republican candidates Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue as "Looting Loeffler" and "Chicken Perdue," respectively. "The ad takes aim at the senators—dubbed 'Looting Loeffler and Chicken Perdue'—and highlights the controversies surrounding their stock purchases," The Hill said. [38] The "Grinches" ad campaign also included matching billboards and mailers. [39]

2024 U.S. presidential election

On July 22, 2024, shortly after JD Vance was named Donald Trump's running mate, MeidasTouch editor-in-chief Ron Filipkowski posted a clip from a 2021 Fox News interview in which Vance stated, "we are effectively run in this country via the Democrats, via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too." The resurfaced remarks from Vance sparked viral outrage against the candidate across social media, with many celebrities weighing in, including Jennifer Aniston and Taylor Swift. [40] [41] [42] Swift, referencing Vance's comments, signed off her post endorsing Kamala Harris as a "childless cat lady." [43]

Reception

In April 2021, Seth Hettena of Rolling Stone magazine said their campaign fundraising was "nonsensical and a more effective tool for fundraising than for helping Democrats win elections" and that "MeidasTouch's grandiose self-promotion doesn't match reality". [44]

In February 2022, singer-songwriter India Arie shared a compilation of podcaster Joe Rogan saying the racial slur "nigger" on The Joe Rogan Experience on Instagram. [45] Rogan apologized, calling his past language "regretful and shameful" while also saying that the clips were "taken out of context" and he only quoted the slur to discuss its use by others. [46] [47] [48] The footage in question was first published by the political action committee PatriotTakes, [49] an affiliate of MeidasTouch. [50] This resulted in allegations of a defamation attempt by MeidasTouch, which the founders denied in an interview with Barstool Sports founder David Portnoy, instead attributing the source of the footage to Alex Jones, who was a recurring guest on Rogan's show. [51] Rogan described the video compilation as a "political hit job". [52] [53]

MeidasTouch was described in the Columbia Journalism Review as being made for social media, unlike a lot of more traditional left-leaning media outlets, and does a better job than most of exploiting the perception that the mainstream media was too sympathetic to Trump. [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Club for Growth</span> American political advocacy group

The Club for Growth is a 501(c)(4) political organization active in the United States, with a fiscally conservative agenda focused on tax cuts and other economic policy issues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Rogan</span> American podcaster and comedian (born 1967)

Joseph James Rogan is an American podcaster, UFC color commentator, comedian, actor, and former television host. He hosts The Joe Rogan Experience, a podcast in which he discusses current events, comedy, politics, aliens, religion, philosophy, science, martial arts, and hobbies with celebrity guests. His podcast is one of the most influential and most watched podcasts in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elon Musk</span> Businessman and political figure (born 1971)

Elon Reeve Musk is a businessman and political figure known for his key roles in the automotive company Tesla, Inc. and the space company SpaceX. Since January 2025, he is serving as Administrator of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), under the second Donald Trump presidential administration of the United States. He is also known for his ownership of X Corp., and his role in the founding of the Boring Company, xAI, Neuralink, and OpenAI. Musk is the wealthiest individual in the world; as of January 2025, Forbes estimates his net worth to be US$427 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kellyanne Conway</span> American political consultant and pollster (born 1967)

Kellyanne Elizabeth Conway is an American political consultant and pollster who served as Senior Counselor to the President in the first administration of Donald Trump from 2017 to 2020. She was previously Trump's campaign manager, having been appointed in August 2016; Conway is the first woman to have run a successful U.S. presidential campaign. She has previously held roles as campaign manager and strategist in the Republican Party and was formerly president and CEO of the Polling Company/WomanTrend.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Senior Advisor to the President of the United States</span>

Senior Advisor to the President is a title used by high-ranking political advisors to the president of the United States. White House senior advisors are senior members of the White House Office. The title has been formally used since 1993.

<i>The Joe Rogan Experience</i> American podcast

The Joe Rogan Experience is a podcast hosted by American comedian, presenter, and UFC color commentator Joe Rogan. It was initiated on December 24, 2009, on YouTube by Rogan and comedian Brian Redban, who was its sole co-host and producer until 2012 when Jamie Vernon, who would eventually take over production, was hired to co-produce. By 2015, it was one of the world's most popular podcasts, regularly receiving millions of views per episode, also including a wide array of guests, including business magnate Elon Musk, whistleblower Edward Snowden, Senator Bernie Sanders, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and President Donald Trump. From December 2020 to February 2024, the podcast was exclusively available on Spotify, with highlights uploaded onto the main Joe Rogan Experience YouTube channel. The podcast was originally recorded at Rogan's home in California, before moving to a private studio in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles. Production was relocated to Austin, Texas after the podcast was licensed exclusively on Spotify in 2020.

Robert Leroy Mercer is an American hedge fund manager, computer scientist, and political donor. Mercer was an early artificial intelligence researcher and developer and is the former co-CEO of the hedge fund company Renaissance Technologies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Perdue</span> American politician & businessman (born 1949)

David Alfred Perdue Jr. is an American politician and businessman who served as a United States senator for Georgia from 2015 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Perdue was an unsuccessful candidate for governor of Georgia in 2022.

<i>Your Moms House</i> Comedy podcast

Your Mom's House is a comedy podcast hosted by married comedians Tom Segura and Christina Pazsitzky. The podcast was started in 2010 and covers a wide range of topics such as ongoing events, comedy, and the daily life of the two co-hosts—interspersed with toilet humor, running jokes, and commentary on unusual or shocking internet videos. This includes creating "YMH Celebrities" by repeatedly playing videos of nicknamed, socially-untypical members of the public, in "a modern variation of the regular callers into The Howard Stern Show." The comedians typically stay away from political discussions, and the majority of their guests are fellow comedians. Additionally YMH Studios produces a number of podcasts on their network, including "2 Bears 1 Cave,""Dr. Drew After Dark," and "The Danny Brown Show." Starting in 2020, YMH studios began producing live pay-per-view events that can be rented on their website.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020–21 United States Senate election in Georgia</span>

The 2020–21 United States Senate election in Georgia was held on November 3, 2020, and on January 5, 2021, to elect the Class II member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Georgia. Democrat Jon Ossoff defeated incumbent Republican Senator David Perdue in the runoff election. The general election was held concurrently with the 2020 presidential election, as well as with other elections to the Senate, elections to the U.S. House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JD Vance</span> Vice President of the United States since 2025

James David Vance is an American politician, author, attorney, and Marine Corps veteran who has served as the 50th vice president of the United States since 2025 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Ohio in the U.S. Senate from 2023 until he resigned in order to assume the vice presidency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democratic Majority for Israel</span> Lobbying group advocating pro-Israel policies in the United States

Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI) is an American advocacy group that supports pro-Israel policies within the United States Democratic Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020–21 United States Senate special election in Georgia</span>

The 2020–21 United States Senate special election in Georgia was held on November 3, 2020, and on January 5, 2021, to elect the Class III member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Georgia. Democrat Raphael Warnock defeated appointed incumbent Republican Kelly Loeffler. The first round of the election was held on November 3, 2020; however, no candidate received a majority of the vote, so the top two candidates—Warnock and Loeffler—advanced to a runoff on January 5, 2021, which Warnock won narrowly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Georgia gubernatorial election</span>

The 2022 Georgia gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2022, to elect the governor of Georgia. Incumbent Republican Governor Brian Kemp won re-election to a second term, defeating Democratic nominee Stacey Abrams in a rematch. Abrams conceded on election night. The primary occurred on May 24, 2022. Kemp was sworn in for a second term on January 9, 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly Loeffler</span> American businesswoman and politician (born 1970)

Kelly Lynn Loeffler is an American businesswoman and politician who served as a United States senator from Georgia from 2020 to 2021. Loeffler was announced as the presumptive nominee for the Administrator of the Small Business Administration on December 5, 2024 by President-elect Trump.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Lincoln Project</span> American political action committee

The Lincoln Project is an American political action committee (PAC) founded in December 2019 by moderate conservatives and former Republican Party members who oppose U.S. President Donald Trump and Trumpism. During the 2020 presidential election, it aimed to prevent the re-election of President Trump, and to defeat incumbent Republican candidates running for re-election who had been loyalists to Trump. In April 2020, the committee endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. From 2022 to 2024, the committee focused on preventing the re-election of Trump in the 2024 presidential election, endorsing Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.

Tim J. Dillon is an American stand-up comedian. He is host of the Tim Dillon Show podcast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign</span> American political campaign

Donald Trump, who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021, announced his campaign for the 2024 U.S. presidential election on November 15, 2022. After he won a landslide victory in the 2024 Iowa Republican presidential caucuses, Trump was generally described as being the Republican Party's presumptive nominee. He was officially nominated on July 15, 2024, at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, when he also announced JD Vance, a junior U.S. Senator from Ohio, as the nominee for vice president. The two initially faced off against the presumptive Democraic Party ticket of incumbent President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. However, on July 21, 2024, Biden withdrew from the race, and Harris became the Democratic presidential nominee, choosing Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate.

Rumble is an online video platform, web hosting, and cloud services business headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with its U.S. headquarters in Longboat Key, Florida, United States. It was founded in 2013 by Chris Pavlovski, a Macedonian Canadian technology entrepreneur. Rumble's cloud services business hosts Truth Social, and the video platform is popular among American conservative and far-right users. Rumble has been described as "alt-tech".

Ron Filipkowski is an American criminal defense attorney and former state and federal prosecutor who is known for sharing political clips and commentary on social media. He is the editor-in-chief of MeidasTouch Network, a liberal news website.

References

  1. ↑ "About Us". MeidasTouch. Archived from the original on October 12, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 Jacobson, Louis; Putterman, Samantha; Sherman, Amy (October 26, 2023). "Did Donald Trump make these 27 campaign promises? Fact-checking this viral list". PolitiFact . Archived from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  3. 1 2 "About MeidasTouch". YouTube.
  4. 1 2 3 Crowell, Maddy (June 10, 2024). "A Little to the Left". Columbia Journalism Review . Archived from the original on August 22, 2024. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  5. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on October 7, 2024. Retrieved October 6, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 7, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ↑ "Supercut Exposes The Ugly Truth Of Trump's Rhetoric On Protests". HuffPost Canada. June 12, 2020. Archived from the original on March 26, 2021. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  8. ↑ "PAC releases scathing video against Ivanka Trump using her dropped commencement speech" . The Independent. June 8, 2020. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  9. ↑ Langlois, Shawn. "Lindsey Graham, Mitch McConnell and other GOP officials slammed as 'cowards' in new viral clip". MarketWatch. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
  10. ↑ Katz, AJ (June 7, 2021). "Fox News Decides Not to Air Ad Submitted by Liberal PAC MeidasTouch". Ad Week . Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  11. 1 2 Joyner, Chris (December 18, 2020). "Georgia's Senate runoffs: Special interest PACs flood the zone". Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  12. 1 2 Williams, Jordan (December 5, 2020). "Liberal group running Grinch-themed ads targeting Loeffler, Perdue". The Hill . Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  13. 1 2 Cullins, Ashley (November 27, 2020). "Brothers Behind MeidasTouch SuperPAC Talk "Audacious" Post-Trump Plans". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on October 21, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  14. ↑ Johnson, Ted (June 12, 2020). "The Race To Go Viral: Three Brothers' Anti-Donald Trump Videos Draw Millions Of Views". Deadline. Archived from the original on September 24, 2021. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  15. 1 2 3 "The Story Behind MeidasTouch, Whose Ads Are Roasting Trump". www.adweek.com. June 2020. Archived from the original on December 7, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  16. ↑ Aswad, Jem (April 10, 2019). "Attorney Ben Meiselas on Repping Colin Kaepernick, Interning for Diddy and Hillary Clinton They have become the go to "axe men" for the Democratic Party". Variety. Archived from the original on September 20, 2021. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  17. ↑ "Kap works out at new site without NFL's blessing". ESPN.com. November 16, 2019. Archived from the original on January 7, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Colin Kaepernick workout moved to new location without NFL affiliation". ABC7 San Francisco. November 17, 2019. Archived from the original on November 6, 2021. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  19. 1 2 "Meet MeidasTouch, the Super PAC That's Gotten Hollywood's Attention (and Millions of Views) With Their Anti-Trump Videos". The Hollywood Reporter. October 6, 2020. Archived from the original on February 8, 2022. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
  20. ↑ Caiola, Alexandra (July 21, 2023). "Form 1 for Democracy Defense Action". Federal Election Commission . Archived from the original on October 25, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2024.
  21. ↑ "Social Security: Where Newly Elected Speaker of the House Stands on Program Cuts, Retirement Age and COLA". Yahoo Finance. October 26, 2023. Archived from the original on October 26, 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
  22. ↑ "Judge fines Trump $5,000 after threatening prison for gag order violation - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. October 20, 2023. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
  23. ↑ "Are You Better off Than You Were 4 Years Ago?". Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  24. ↑ "Are You Better Off Than You Were Four Years Ago?". MeidasTouch. April 22, 2020. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  25. ↑ Papenfuss, Mary (June 8, 2020). "Supercut Mixes Ivanka Trump's Clueless Speech With Attacks On Protesters". HuffPost. Archived from the original on July 5, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  26. ↑ Rogers, Katie (June 7, 2020). "Ivanka Trump Blames 'Cancel Culture' for Pulled Speech. College Says It Took a Stand". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on October 22, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  27. ↑ Kristen Holmes; Jason Hoffman; Veronica Stracqualursi (June 6, 2020). "University cancels Ivanka Trump's commencement address over backlash to President Trump's response to George Floyd's death". CNN. Archived from the original on May 1, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
  28. ↑ Moran, Lee (June 17, 2020). "GOP Cowardice On Trump Takes Center Stage In Scathing New Supercut". HuffPost. Archived from the original on May 1, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  29. ↑ Mazza, Ed (June 24, 2020). "'Mass Murder': Trump's Coronavirus Confession Is Already Being Used In Attack Ads". HuffPost. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  30. ↑ "'Slow the testing down, please': Trump tells Tulsa audience he recommended fewer coronavirus tests". MarketWatch. Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  31. ↑ "New advert calls Trump's comments on testing 'mass murder'" . The Independent. June 24, 2020. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  32. ↑ Mazza, Ed (July 9, 2020). "Kellyanne Conway's 'Creepy' Comments Get Turned Against Trump In Biting New Ad". HuffPost. Archived from the original on May 14, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  33. ↑ Klar, Rebecca (July 14, 2020). "Democratic super PAC to launch 'Creepy Trump' TV ad". TheHill. Archived from the original on May 20, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  34. ↑ "Brutal new attack ad turns Donald Trump Jr's comments against the president" . The Independent. July 14, 2020. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  35. ↑ Mazza, Ed (July 15, 2020). "'Bye Don Jr': New Attack Ad Turns Trump Son's Words Against The President". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on December 24, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  36. ↑ Embury-Dennis, Tom (November 27, 2020). "Trump declares Twitter national security threat after #DiaperDon trends following meltdown". The Independent. Archived from the original on October 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  37. ↑ Berryman, Kim; Lah, Kyung (December 21, 2020). "Pop-up super PACs flood Georgia runoff: 'It's about the big message'". CNN. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  38. ↑ Williams, Jordan (December 5, 2020). "Liberal group running Grinch-themed ads targeting Loeffler, Perdue". The Hill. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  39. ↑ "Georgians get Scrooged by campaign ads". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 22, 2020. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  40. ↑ Alund, Natalie Neysa. "Vance's 'childless cat ladies' comment sparks uproar from Swift fans: 'Armageddon is coming'". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on August 18, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
  41. ↑ Samuels, Brett (July 26, 2024). "JD Vance defends 'childless cat lady' remarks". The Hill. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
  42. ↑ Robinson, KiMi. "Jennifer Aniston hits back at JD Vance's viral 'childless cat ladies' comments". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
  43. ↑ Bink, Addy (September 11, 2024). "Why did Taylor Swift sign Kamala Harris endorsement 'childless cat lady'?". The Hill. Archived from the original on September 17, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
  44. ↑ Hettena, Seth (April 8, 2021). "The Trouble with Meidas Touch". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 7, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  45. ↑ Paul, Larisha (February 1, 2022). "India Arie to Pull Music From Spotify Due to Joe Rogan's Comments on Race". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  46. ↑ Aratani, Lauren (February 5, 2022). "Joe Rogan apologises for repeated use of N-word after footage emerges". The Guardian . Archived from the original on March 27, 2022. Retrieved February 6, 2022. The podcast host Joe Rogan has offered "sincere and humble apologies" after footage emerged of him repeatedly using the N-word on his hit show. The comedian, 54, who has a lucrative deal with the streaming giant Spotify, said it was the "most regretful and shameful thing" he has ever had to speak about, but stressed the clips were "taken out of context". Rogan has come under fire recently for sharing coronavirus misinformation on his hugely popular podcast The Joe Rogan Experience. Prominent musicians including Neil Young and Joni Mitchell have withdrawn their music from the service over its decision to continue hosting the show, which was reportedly acquired for more than $100m (£77m) in 2020.
  47. ↑ Maruf, Ramishah; Stelter, Brian (February 5, 2022). "Joe Rogan apologizes for using racial slurs". CNN. Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved February 6, 2022.
  48. ↑ Stolworthy, Jacob (February 5, 2022). "India Arie shares resurfaced clips of Joe Rogan using N-word 22 times" . The Independent . Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved February 6, 2022. Resurfaced Joe Rogan footage, shared by musician India Arie, shows the podcaster using the N-word multiple times. On Tuesday (1 February), the Grammy-winning singer said she was removing her music from Spotify because of Rogan's "language around race". She branded the podcaster "problematic", saying that she came to her decision as she felt she should "walk" through a door "opened" by Neil Young. The week before, Young asked that his music be removed from the platform due to its affiliation with Rogan, whom he said had spread "false information" regarding Covid-19 vaccines.
  49. ↑ TheGrio Staff (February 5, 2021). "Joe Rogan says repeated N-word use was 'taken out of context' in resurfaced video clips". Yahoo! News . Archived from the original on November 2, 2023. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  50. ↑ Tiffany, Kaitlyn (August 3, 2021). "Left-Wing Activists Are Bringing Back MAGA Twitter". The Atlantic . Archived from the original on September 3, 2021. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  51. ↑ Westwood, Sarah (February 8, 2022). "Joe Rogan takedown bid seen as coordinated attack". gazette.com. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  52. ↑ "Joe Rogan says he's a victim, slams clip of him using racial slur as a 'political hit job'". NBC News. Variety. February 9, 2022. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  53. ↑ "'Political hit job': Joe Rogan's claim over Spotify saga". NZ Herald. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.