You Can Almost Hear Spotify CEO Daniel Ek Sweating In New Q&A Session Quotes

It’s been a tough week for Spotify CEO Daniel Ek. Since folk singer Neil Young sparked a movement of artists taking their music off the streaming service rather than share a platform with podcaster Joe Rogan’s COVID misinformation, the company’s market value has plummeted significantly. Capitalization losses were reported between $2 billion and $4 billion, all while #CancelSpotify trended online. Recently, Ek took a moment to speak to investors and reporters about the controversy — and his quotes feel firm with a side of panic.

Here’s what Ek said, via Variety:

“Obviously, it’s been a few notable days here at Spotify. When we entered into the podcast space in 2019 with the intent to help modernize and grow the space for all types of creators, we assumed they will test and challenge our teams in new ways. And there’s no doubt that the last several weeks have presented a number of learning opportunities.

“I hope you had a chance to read our response that address many of the questions received from creators and partners and employees and the medical and science communities. There’s still work to be done, but I’m pleased that Spotify is already implementing several first of its kind measure to help combat misinformation and provide greater transparency.”

That response, for the record, is that Spotify will add a ‘content advisory’ to material regarding COVID-19. However, the company’s transparent new guidelines also leave the possibility of broad censorship open.

When asked about Rogan, Ek replied with the following:

“I know this issue has been top of mind this week, but I think it’s important to take a step back. We’re trying to balance creator expression with the safety of our users.

“Of course this is a very complicated issue, as I noted in my opening. But I’m really proud of the steps we took following the concerns raised by the medical and scientific communities. And it’s worth noting that both the content advisories on our platform, [combined with] content from physician and health experts which I talked about in my posts as well, push policies for creators that are already [beginning] to roll out.

“So I think the important part here is that we don’t change our policies based on one creator, nor do we change it based on any media cycle or call from anyone else. Our policies have been carefully written with the input from numbers of internal and external experts in this space. And I do believe they’re right for our platform. And while Joe [Rogan] has a massive audience, and is actually the No. 1 podcast in more than 90 markets, he also has to abide by those policies. So I think when you think about that and you think about the ad business, I have a tremendous amount of confidence.”

There’s a lot to unpack here, but here are a couple of quick thoughts:

• “One creator” is kind of desperate. At this point, the Neil Young-inspired movement is snowballing, and acting like this is the work of just one man is simply a quote that will later make you feel really fucking silly for saying it.
• BUT! Ek has a point. What else are they supposed to do? The truth is that if you use Joe Rogan and his podcast as your medical or philosophical advisor, then you’re a dumbass. Adding a note saying, Hey, this is probably wrong, don’t buy into it, dumbass is sort of all Spotify can do.
• Ek trying to act like Joe Rogan works for him is bullshit. They just paid that dude, what, $100 million? If Rogan says jump, Ek and his crew take some DMT and start jumping.
• How many times can you say ‘policies’ before you actually SAY ANYTHING?

Anyway, we’ll see where this goes, but honestly, this poor guy has a rough couple of months ahead of him.