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By TOM KRISHER and LINDSEY BAHR Associated Press
Joe Rogan’s mouth has put Spotify in a tough spot, but the streaming giant is apparently not ready to part ways with the popular podcast host despite intense criticism over his anti-coronavirus vaccine comments and racial slurs.
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said in a message to employees released Sunday that the company would not part ways with Rogan.
“While I strongly condemn what Joe has said and I agree with his decision to remove past episodes from our platform, I realize some will want more,” Ek said in the note. “And I want to make one point very clear – I do not believe that silencing Joe is the answer.”
The letter is the clearest indication yet of where Spotify stands on Rogan’s fate with the company. It reportedly paid $100 million to exclusively host the podcast, so dropping Rogan threatens the bottom line but is also a key part of the company’s strategy to be a one-stop shop for audio.
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