“I don’t need to be balanced with equal time,” said late radio giant Rush Limbaugh in 1992.
“I am equal time.”
Limbaugh explained, referencing the TV program he was doing at the time, “Twenty-three hours and 30 minutes of the broadcast day comes from the left. Here’s this little old show, 30 minutes of right-thinking criticism.”
While things have changed in 30 years — censorship efforts have intensified — the propaganda is the same. Just consider that while responding to the Joe Rogan controversy, Spotify CEO and co-founder Daniel Ek said Sunday, “It’s become clear to me that we have an obligation to do more to provide balance and access to widely-accepted information.” (Emphasis added.)
Accepted by whom, he didn’t say.
As many know, immensely popular podcaster Joe Rogan has been under fire for having the temerity to conduct COVID-19-oriented interviews with experts such as doctors Robert Malone and Peter McCullough, who dispute the Establishment coronavirus narrative. Rogan has been accused of peddling “misinformation,” and there have been calls to remove him from the Spotify streaming service, with which he has a $100 million contract. The controversy heated up further when aging folk rocker Neil Young and other artists pulled their music from Spotify.
The pressure finally prompted a response yesterday from the streaming service. As Breitbart reports, Spotify’s Ek “said that the company will do more to ‘provide balance and access to widely-accepted information’ for the coronavirus. Sources confirmed to CNN that the company will now be ‘adding a content advisory to any podcast episode that includes discussion about Covid-19’ by directing listeners to a ‘hub that will include links to trusted sources.’”
Trusted by whom? This language itself reflects dishonesty. In our highly divided country, it’s hard thinking of a source that’s “trusted” by a vast majority of the population. Spotify is merely doing what Facebook has done: paying homage to the mainstream media outlets parroting the government narrative.
In reality, Rogan is guilty only of giving a high-profile platform to some alternative expert opinions — and of being humble enough to admit he can be wrong. (Sooner or later you must pay for every good deed?) CNN, for example, doesn’t do this, even when caught purposely peddling fake news.
The point is, however, that the Establishment China virus narrative is the default; it’s everywhere. The notion that Spotify or any other entity would have to provide a link for people to hear it is fanciful.
Moreover, Rogan himself has interviewed Establishment “experts” as well, such as CNN medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta.
So what’s the problem?
Answer: that contrary voices are being heard at all.
The powers-that-be target Rogan because, with his 11 million listeners, he can provide anti-Establishment voices a larger audience than almost anyone else can. But project the lines and you’ll realize that all government-disfavored commentary will eventually be snuffed out unless the tide is turned, because the goal is to crush all dissent.
Remember that these anti-Establishment COVID experts are never heard in mainstream media; there’s no “balance” there. And who is spreading misinformation, anyway?
After all, “Leftists claimed that COVID couldn’t possibly have been a man-made virus from the Wuhan Institute of Virology,” writes commentator Andrea Widburg. “Not only was that misinformation, we now know Fauci and the feds lied about it from the start.” Widburg then provides a number of other examples of “official” falsehoods, writing:
- Leftists claimed that the lockdown would slow the spread. That was misinformation.
- Leftists insisted on a six-foot distance rule. That was misinformation.
- Leftists claimed cloth masks provided protection from COVID. That was misinformation.
- Leftists insist that children must be masked. This is a continuing lie that is destroying children.
- Leftists claimed the vaccine would protect people from catching or spreading COVID. That was misinformation.
- Leftists claim that more shots make people safer. Israel’s experience shows that this is completely wrong.
- Leftists insisted that ivermectin is deadly and doesn’t stop COVID. That was misinformation. This stance probably has killed several hundred thousand Americans.
- Leftists insisted that a hydroxychloroquine cocktail (with zinc and an antibiotic, among other things) wouldn’t stop COVID. That was misinformation and that’s been known for 18 months now.
- Leftists insist that children must be vaccinated. That is misinformation and exposes children to a dangerous risk.
To be clear, the government itself has tacitly acknowledged it has spread misinformation — by contradicting its previous COVID pronouncements on matters such as the efficacy of cloth masks and “vaccines.” Yet those who were right on these matters before the authorities and who contradicted their misinformation at the time were censored.
The irony is that apologists justify the authorities’ ever-morphing China virus tune by insisting that “the science is always changing.” But if you really believed this, that it’s all a learning process, wouldn’t you insist on robust debate involving all expert voices?
Instead, though, back in early 2020 when the line was that we were confronting a “novel” virus about which we knew little, Big Tech was already busy airbrushing highly credentialed experts such as Dr. Knut Wittkowski from its platforms.
So the message is clear: What’s true or not isn’t the issue.
Misinformation is whatever the government says it is — at the moment.
For Rogan’s part, he issued a video statement (below) that amounted to a partial capitulation.
As for Neil Young, it’s ironic, but he’s gone from “Rockin’ in the Free World” to knockin’ free speech. And that’s what you call stickin’ it to the little man.
