By Ian Woolley
The fake news debate continues…
One of the legends of 70’s rock has withdrawn his total back catalogue from the streaming giant Spotify.
It’s sparked a fresh debate whether controversial podcasts and the furor of fake news should stand next to just the music that Spotify originally promoted.
Neil Young accused podcaster Joe Rogan of Covid misinformation. “They can have Rogan or Young. Not both” he said.
“Spreading fake information about vaccines – potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread by them” he added.
The Joe Rogan Experience, which Spotify bought for a reported £75 million pounds in 2020, has bolstered the coffers of the streaming giant during the pandemic. The irony is that it’s now being accused of misinformation about the virus through its most popular client.
Figures show that the podcast is downloaded almost 200 million times a month.
So far Spotify has heeded the calls of several health officials over this issue, but the Canadian-American musician has upped the ante.
Young also thanked his record label, Warner Brothers (owned by Reprise Records) for supporting his decision. He stated, “Thank you Warner Brothers for standing with me and taking the hit – losing 60% of my worldwide streaming income in the name of Truth”.
Spotify said it “regrets” the move and hopes he returns to the platform soon but could he be the first of many who think Spotify has lost its way?
Only the big names in the music world can decide the future that Spotify started out promising.
To many artists, streaming is the only source of revenue and it is unlikely that many will follow the lead of Young to abandon ship as it were. Already news is coming in that Joni Mitchell has asked the platform to remove all her songs and certainly more will follow.
Through the pandemic and into 2022, streaming and podcasts have come to the fore.
Who knows which will be the loser but one thing is for sure, false news can damage even the biggest names out there. Will Spotify be one of them?
Watch this space!