The outrage and opposition to Joe Rogan is all smoke, barely hiding the press’ smoldering jealousy.

In a recent edition of the “Reliable Sources” newsletter, CNN’s entertainment writer, Brian Lowry weighed in with his opinion on the ever-developing controversy over Spotify and Joe Rogan’s podcast. While stopping just shy of announcing Rogan needs to be removed, Lowry still delivered the justification for such action.

In his summation of the issue, he states that because of Rogan’s level of success, he is now duty-bound to alter his format and take on a more responsible approach – one that comports to the approved narrative, from media outlets like CNN. This is hilariously oblivious because what is essentially being said here is that Joe Rogan has to deliver only approved talking points, all while moving away from the very elements that have made him so wildly successful. 

Call me hesitant to follow @blowryontv on the advice that the best thing that @JoeRogan can do is to stop doing all those methods that brought him unforeseen success. pic.twitter.com/F5rWVjqFyb

— Brad Slager – Aluminum Medalist 12oz Curling Team (@MartiniShark) February 2, 2022

In an easily dismissed episode this week, we were granted an amusingly inept dose of contradiction. That it was seen on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” is all the reason to explain why it was lightly regarded – or more accurately, barely watched. On the episode, hostess Mika Brzezinski was dismayed at the punishment ABC delivered to Whoopi Goldberg over her controversial remarks on the air about “Jewish” not being a race. Mika was perturbed about the effort to silence anyone.

MSNBC’s @morningmika Brzezinksi: “Everyone knows Whoopi Goldberg. She’s been on TV for decades … If you don’t know her heart, then you haven’t been watching … This cancel culture is getting so out of hand!” pic.twitter.com/lFaNt87xHP

— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) February 2, 2022

Unsurprisingly, Mika runs face-first with a dissenting voice on this matter – herself. How can the star of a talk show be completely oblivious to something they had promoted on the very same program, less than a week earlier? Here is a 10-minute segment from the show, where they discuss the need to have Joe Rogan removed from Spotify, with three guests, all to discuss the dangers posed by this podcaster.

Mika even comments once she will cancel the service…um, where their show is played.

This follows suit with much of the press’ imbalanced coverage of Rogan. There has been a concerted effort from journalists lobbying to have Rogan silenced, and his show removed from the Spotify platform. Consider the ramifications here: members of the media who subsist on free expression are working to silence a voice they find to be unacceptable. It is something most would not have even considered realistic just a few years ago.

CNN has been especially notable in the way it, as a network, has targeted the podcaster. Rogan had on CNN medical expert Dr. Sanjay Gupta, and he had to admit that his network had delivered false reports about Rogan and his medical treatment when he tested positive for COVID. Repeatedly, CNN personalities claimed that Rogan had taken horse deworming medication. And now their personalities are the ones pushing for him to be removed over alleged medical misinformation. 

That is, half a dozen examples, from the same news source. Let’s add to that Don Lemon, who declared flatly of Rogan, “he says he is taking several medications including a drug meant for deworming livestock.” When he was called out on this blatant lie – or, at best, his stunted ignorance on the medication – Lemon doubled down. When Dr. Gupta was on Lemon’s show, post-Rogan, they both attempted to clean up his, and the network’s statements. 

“Ivermectin is a drug that is commonly used as a horse dewormer. So it is not a lie to say that the drug is used as a horse dewormer. I think that’s important- and it’s not approved for COVID, correct?”

Lemon’s desperation, and that of the collective media, is a direct result of two realities. First, Joe Rogan is able to go off the narrative reservation and does so successfully. He has discussions, explores issues, and asks people questions that the press does not want to be asked. The issue is that the same press that professes we should only listen to doctors are the ones demanding we listen to their untrained voices on who is an acceptable source. Follow the science, and listen to medical professionals, they say, and then turn around and declare Big Bird is a valid source of vaccine information. 

The second reason the press battles Rogan is the primary reason – he is winning. Joe Rogan pulls in about 10-11 million listeners to his podcasts. That is an audience all of these reporters and pundits dream about drawing. As I noted last week while covering CNN’s failed, Jim Acosta experiment in Chris Cuomo’s old timeslot, Don Lemon has anemic ratings. He fares so poorly that it is very easy to see where the anger towards a podcast that should be beneath him and network comes from.

Don Lemon drew just barely over 500,000 viewers in the latest ratings. This means that in order to hit Rogan’s number, you need to total his nightly numbers, five days a week, and it would take a month before he would reach the amount of a single episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience.” And there we see every reason we have journalists pushing to remove this threat to their narratives — and livelihoods.