An expert told members of Parliament (MPs) in Westminster that the censorship of podcast host Joe Rogan and other "maverick" voices challenging the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) narrative didn't work.
Tracey Brown, director of the charity Sense about Science (SAS), made these remarks during a Jan. 10 hearing convened by the Subcommittee on Online Harms and Disinformation under the House of Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee. She was one of three experts questioned by the committee, which sought lessons about the dissemination of factual information – especially about COVID-19.
"Rogan and 'The Joe Rogan Experience' podcast – who got 12.8 million subscribers [and] 200 million listeners – had a lot of guests who … were a bit maverick in their thinking," Brown told MPs in the subcommittee.
"He was taking an audience of people who were beginning to ask questions about how reliable was the vaccine information. It wasn't just about saying vaccines are rubbish, it wasn't just a campaign. He was actually asking a lot of questions that were on a lot of people's minds."
The SAS director pointed out that a group of American epidemiologists "wrote to Spotify trying to get [Rogan] banned." She continued: "Of course, that fed a huge load of conspiracy that was so much harder for us to follow, to get our hands on and to deal with. I think it really backfires when people in authority try to do that."
While Brown mentioned that there could have been a conversation with Rogan about the "caliber" of some of his guests, it was undeniable that his podcast ultimately created an "opportunity" to reach an audience of 200 million people. (Related: Joe Rogan is being attacked for having people who TELL THE TRUTH about COVID-19 on his show.)
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Rogan's podcast did not sit well with American country musician Neil Young, who removed his extensive discography from the audio streaming platform. The singer of "Heart of Gold" fame cited Spotify's continued hosting of Rogan, urging other artists to "stop supporting Spotify's deadly misinformation" about COVID-19."
Social media, internet hand a megaphone to anybody
University of Cambridge virologist Dr. Chris Smith explained to the subcommittee how social media algorithms work.
"The way these algorithms are created on things like Twitter is they will find people who agree with you. If you say something, it will go and find a bunch of people who say the same thing as you and it makes you friends with them" he said. "So even if you previously had nobody listening to a thing you said and no one would have believed you, suddenly you're introduced to enormous loads of people who appear to share your opinion – which reinforces your self-belief."
Smith continued: "Social media and the internet [have] been amazing, and [they have] transformed the world. But what [they have] also done is break all of the existing models that [would have] meant there was good, curated information of responsible reporting and there were editorial practices. It basically hands a megaphone to anybody."
Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment (GRI) Policy and Communications Director Bob Ward also testified during the Jan. 10 hearing. He told MPs in the subcommittee that there was a need for more scientific experts to "engage with the skeptics."
"That's where we really need to focus, because our current setup – where we're relying on too many gatekeepers who are making bad decisions or the wrong decision – isn't serving our purposes," Ward said. "Better that we learn from the dangers than others have experienced and act preemptively, rather than wait until they get as bad there and then go, 'Oh dear, we should have done something.'"
The GRI communications director also outlined the difference between misinformation and disinformation.
"Misinformation is inaccurate or misleading information. Disinformation is misleading and inaccurate information which is spread specifically to deceive."
Follow Censorship.news for more news related to censorships by the government, mainstream media and Big Tech.
Watch former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul (R-KY) discuss U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy's call for Spotify to ban Joe Rogan on the "Ron Paul Liberty Report."
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