CBC Attacks Joe Rogan, Wishes He'd "Go away"
CBC Arts's end-of-year article attacked several topics that it wished would "go away" for 2022 reserved its top spot for the world's largest podcaster.
The article, titled, "7 things about 2021 that we hope go away and never come back," lists off Margaret Atwood's "transphobia," NFTs, and the billionaire space race all as trends that should be left in the past - it also included Joe Rogan's podcast.
"Joe Rogan has been a problem for some time. He insists that he's "just asking questions" and that he's "not a respected source of information" while platforming the likes of Alex Jones and Gavin McInnes and building a business model on people — overwhelmingly young men — listening to him as a respected source of information. But this year, he managed to turn himself from a vague danger into an immediate, obvious danger. A recap of the year in Rogan," wrote Chris Dart, producer.
He attacked Rogan for the following:
In April, he strongly suggested that healthy young people don't need the COVID-19 vaccine. (He later walked that statement back, reminding people that while he's "not a doctor," he is "a fucking moron." His words, not mine.)
In August, he suggested that vaccine passports were the first step in turning the United States into a dictatorship.
In September, while on tour in Florida — a state experiencing a massive spike in cases at the time — he somewhat predictably contracted COVID. He described his treatment plan as "I threw the kitchen sink at it." The sink included prednisone and monoclonal antibodies, both of which have a solid track record of aiding COVID recovery, and Ivermectin, which does not.
CNN implied he was taking horse medicine, at which point he forcefully clarified that he took Ivermectin for humans.
Rogan's kitchen sink-aided recovery turned him into something of a resource for celebrities who are not full-blown "Plandemic" types, but not quite not that either. NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers talked to Rogan when creating his health protocol, which apparently did not include vaccination. Rogan's sometimes-boss and UFC president Dana White thanked "Dr. Joe Rogan" for recommending the kitchen sink approach when he caught the virus, and claiming that at least 40 other people have tried it, too.
In October, Rogan suggested that people should get vaccinated, then actively try to get a breakthrough infection for "extra protection."
Dart went on. "Look, I can't prove this, but it's overwhelmingly likely that Rogan's Ivermectin endorsement contributed to a rash of human use of veterinary Ivermectin, because if people will spend $200 USD on a Darth Vader-shaped kettlebell on your say-so, they will definitely eat a couple tablespoons of sheep dip. And this is the thing. Joe preaches "keeping an open mind," but many, many young dudes are out here taking everything he says as gospel. He's not just some wacky comedian with a podcast — he is someone that his audience turns to for guidance."
He continues: " That's why MeUndies and Onnit supplements and those mushroom coffee people pay big bucks to sponsor his show. And he is not being responsible with that power. He never has been. He's a gateway drug to some really dangerous conspiratorial thinking, his open-mindedness is pointedly one-sided, and MeUndies are both overrated and overpriced. But now he's encouraging young men to eat horse medicine (even though, again, he says he himself did not), fear public health measures, and actively chase COVID. That's a new level of danger."
He concluded with the phrase: Please let him, and his whole Experience, stay in 2021.
