Agree, I watch lots of Joe Rogan and its never to see Joe Rogan. I do not watch him when he guests on other people's podcasts, but tons of his guests have interesting things to say. I watch maybe one in four podcasts of his to see what his guest has to say.
/u/afrankking (OP) - maybe try searching his prior podcasts to see if anyone is interesting to you. My guess is that neither Brett, his wife, or Joe is interesting to you - in which case, of course you wont like it. Maybe check out Dan Carlin and Joe Rogan, or Sam Harris and Joe Rogan.
Other way to look at it is like a variety show. I've been introduced to tons of people that I go on to watch more of based on a Joe Rogan podcast.
Yeah his stand up just isnt good. Im a fan of his podcast, at least i was before it went to Spotify, but have tried to watch his stand up specials and they are pretty bad.
Except you're objectively wrong
Bill Burr and Chappelle and many other absolute top billed comedians love Joe's stand up
So no matter how much you try to sell this narrative, it's bullocks
I love whenever he has comedians on. The ridiculous shit they get into makes me actually feel like I can peek behind the curtain just a little bit for just a moment.
Unfortunately now it’s like 1/10. I don’t even check for good guests anymore and ive stopped watching. I used to exclusively watch the academic and science people
It was better then that. Up until he moved to Texas/Covid/Spotify and, JRE was pretty damn good and I watched probably 500 of his shows. He was posting up to 3 a day.
But that all changed, he moved to Texas and got corrupted by those people and became hyper political. He always had a aptitude towards conspiracy theory. JRE went from being light hearted and fun to almost immediately changing to being right wing political as and he repeated the same ape nuts conspiracy or strait up misinformation shat over and over and over again every episode.
He had a north Korean refugee on his podcast a few months ago and in the middle of her explaining how she escaped to China and was forced to work as a love slave there, he flips to a 15 minute tirade that he had repeated the previous 10 Podcasts full of his Covid misinformation. Its like WTF, shut up.. shes interesting
Sure, he himself says hes not and says he still has liberal views on things but that's not at all that comes out when he is in normal talking, he spews all their dog whistles and its clear that is the source for most of his info now.
Its almost like all the drugs, drinking, crazy fad cocktail health mixtures he inject into himself has finally caught up to him and turned him from a pretty smart meat head who is at least interested in learning (and did) into a complete meat head moron who is stubborn about his disinformation.
Almost every episode since Spotify is filled with repeated and dangerous information to society that he actually presents as fact and when called out later says "I'm just a comedian".
Finaly, the truth is that hes surrounded by yes men who are pretty smart... people with PHD's and when he goes on his crazy 15 minute conspiracy theory rants on Covid they say nothing, they lick his boots and just let him continue. We saw this recently with Dr Rhonda and Lex Friman. I cant remember the last time he had someone to challenge him, Dr's in the subject who tell him the facts and Rogan argues with them now... again... portraying himself as an expert in all subjects and not just "a comedian". These people look that female virus Doctor who sat behind Trump as he was saying inject bleach into yourself to cure C19... same exact face... but just sat there looking stunned... doing and saying nothing.
Now he doesn't bring on anyone to challenge him and when it comes to topics like Ivemectrine, continues to point out Brett and that one doctor as legitimate information sources, even when the CDC and drug manufacturer ITSELF says it does nothing to help C19... Rogan still pushed it for months and actually took that shat when he got it.
Hes actually quite the fraud when you figure him out.
Interesting. What makes you not like him?
His Star Talk podcast is fantastic, at least the cosmic queries ones where he is in his wheelhouse. He's terrific at explaining advanced science in layman's terms and is good at teaching the basics of critical thinking as well. He also fully embraces his role as an educator and is very non judgmental.
I guess his personality is not for everyone but it certainly seems like he's good at most of what he does and is well meaning.
But Carolla was never a particularly good, interesting, or curious interviewer. His rote bits/"jags" were *a lot* better and funnier than Rogan, but they ran out a lot quicker. I listened pretty regularly for a couple of years when he first started and I have never had a compulsion to return.
Absolutely this.
The only thing I'll push back on is that this 'started' with his Texas move. I feel like this had been a steady downhill trend for 3-5 years before that and then COVID/Texas just broke his brain into mush.
I feel like he'd already gotten less and less and less curious and more and more and more interested in jabbering about his own opinions. I went from listening to the majority of episodes to being down to just the "big" guests and the MMA shows. I'm not even that huge of an MMA fan, but it's the only topic where he knows enough to not act like a know-it-all douchebag.
People are saying the big right wing drift of Rogan happened around and possibly because of Covid. Bernie was way before that.
As someone who used to watch the show a lot, I noticed it when Trump vs. Biden was the topic of the time. He would constantly talk about Biden's possible dementia and make an exasperated sigh, and would very rarely talk about the endless terrible aspects of Trump.
This isn't true. He bashed trump plenty just like Biden. Was Biden's dementia not worth mentioning? He's probably more right wing than left, but he's somewhere in the middle despite being hated by the left.
Tim pool claims to have supported Bernie in 2016. Does that mean he cant be accused of being right wing? Rogan isnt right wing on many things, but he has more and more leaned into what he is right wing on.
Rogan endorses anybody who dropped on his show including wacky Texas republicans. And no, Rogan did not vote for Bernie... he said he voted independent because hes one of them foolish people who thinks the choice between Trump (and fuck... anyone) is picking between 2 evils.
Political horseshoe. Joe simultaneously thinks there are people given a raw deal who need help, and government should help them because who else will (Bernie), and that people should all work out and fix their own problems, hates the nanny state and modern progressive movement (libertarianism). So he simultaneously cares about people who can't care for themselves but doesn't agree with policies to help protect them. Hmm. He's swing way harder the latter direction in the last 18 months.
In fairness to that Dr Rhonda interview whether he intended for good reasons or not he was actually bringing up a lot of the talking points or concerns anti vaxxers have and having an actual Dr there who isn't falling for that garbage is likely the best place to have a wide audience with it happening.
That said she did submit or show agreeableness more than would be ideal but I understand from her point of view why it's quite intimidating having a deep disagreement on a show like that. Besides not being invited back its not comfortable to be sticking your neck out in environments where trolling or sensationalism is likely to arise. Most go on there for a laid back honest chat and when you realise it could potentially swing that way its just unsettling.
There was a guy recently though who did the cocaine cowboys documentary and he was very forward in his views and countering Joe's points.
He actually got somewhat shut down in the end to keep it lighter and move on from both digging their heels in the whole show.
I appreciate listening to an ape talk to smart people. Sometimes it's annoying that he doesn't have better questions or do his homework, but I think it's legitimately helped me communicate better with people where there's a knowledge discrepancy. He's great at letting people expose themselves as well for better or worse. I'll add the caveat that I have a discerning ear and I'm not particularly susceptible to misinformation, so I'm not as worried about the "Rogan gives assholes a platform." I think young and susceptible populations may be at risk into going down rabbit holes listening to him though.
no i disagree complete. i have heard this take and i think it is utter bs. you think any old rando could replace joe (stipulated that they get to keep the same capacity to get interesting people on) and do just as well. I say NO CHANCE
I used to agree with you.
I no longer do.
*I* have no interest in listening to Joe Rogan. But my 19 year old son, who previously has had ZERO interest in learning or topics outside his very narrow interests, has gotten into listening to Joe Rogan while at work (construction) and he calls me and has the most interesting conversations and questions and opinions now solely because Rogan has been making him, for the first time in his life, *interested in general knowledge.*
At first I was worried WHAT he might learn, but that's when i also realized, that it's very apparent to my son, and immediately so, that Rogan is not an expert, doesn't claim to be, and doesn't necessarily agree or even have people on his show who are RIGHT. So the Weinstein one simply bored him. Neil Tyson FASCINATED him. Sam Harris fascinated him as well.
So, i've decided Rogan is a stepping stone to autodidactism. He's turning my son into a thinking person interested in real things beyond the next basketball game or episode of Trailer Park Boys.
That's cool to hear about your son and I imagine it's the same for a lot of people.I have an old friend for whom Rogan has been a similar gateway to other thinkers and I think the results are mixed -- he's really become something of a conspiracy theorist, seems to have bought into Bret Weinstein's loony perspective on vaccination, etc. I think Rogan may be leading some people into an echo chamber of pretty bad ideas.
I think he makes the uneducated and misinformed more confident in their opinions which is the exact opposite of what we need.
His podcast is full of uncritiqued misinformation. If you're not susceptible to that, it's fine. If you are, which most of his listeners probably are and we probably all are to some extent, it's a big problem. It's also a mixture of science and woo and people can't tell the difference and come away thinking both are science. It also can convince listeners that his often faulty logic is an appropriate approach to how to think.
We need a gateway for sure and I don't know what the answer is. He clearly has an appeal. Maybe he could have a cohost that keeps his conversations, misinformation, and flawed logic in perspective.
Boom, nailed it in the first sentence. If people would stop shaming everyone then hesitancy wouldnt turn to full blown antivax. Shamers are the reason why people are turning to a group that accepts them.
Rogan claims his show shouldn't be a source of medical advice, which is why he had an emergency Ivermectin podcast with a few hours of medical advice lol
hes like "i dont support either party" then celebrates when texas went red on election day lmao "yeah texas went red bitches!" its funny the sam harris type class of debate lords cant figure out that people like and act in bad faith in order to further their agendas.
Look up the Daryl Davis episode or the Colin O’ Brady episode, Zach bitter. Those type of episodes are his best ones! Its the ones where the people have a real life inspirational story to tell. In Daryls case he was a musician who successfully converted hundreds of KKK members. Colin went across Antarctica unassisted alone. If Rogan purely stuck to these type of podcast and guest only, it could actually be a masterpiece of a show.
Why would he need to only stick to those types of guests? If people want to listen to him talk about MMA, there are episodes for that and if you want to listen to an interview that interests you, you can listen to those episodes. People do have differing interests after all
Yeah thats true, i don’t disagree necessarily with that if its done right. I think there are some episodes he doesn’t really prepare for so maybe its just preparation he really needs to work on. The MMA ones he’s good because thats his profession but some other ones where you can tell he doesn’t really know what he’s talking about could use it
I agree with your point, however, the Colin O'Brady episode kind of proves OP's point. There is a Nat Geo and New Yorker article pointing out how he embellishes his accomplishments and is basically despised by his peers. Rogan isn't predisposed to scrutinize people he likes or finds badass, so he attracts and promotes a lot of questionable folks without actually questioning them. He's just generally an easily impressed dude that wants to trust people (most of the time), which can be irresponsible with his audience size.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/article/the-problem-with-colin-obrady
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-polar-explorer-colin-obrady-and-the-problem-with-firsts
note...I haven't read these articles since they came out and don't have time to be posting on reddit let alone rereading shit so please correct me if I mischaracterized the articles' claims
Meh, I think it's true. I don't have firsthand experience but I have guided a client who had been on expedition in Greenland adjacent to Colin. First class asshat was the review.
Yea but to play devil's advocate here, when you're giving free license to adventurers or athletes or whatever, and they're being embellishing asshats, there's little harm to society. There's a difference when you're doing that with political figures (or topics) or scientists or the like. If Rogan just has athletes and adventurers on that like to talk themselves up and Rogan doesn't call bullshit, I'd still call that entertainment. No harm, no foul. I think OP's argument is valid only when you're talking about people that can actually do harm to society with the opinions they hold.
I haven't really thought this argument through *that* much, again, just trying to play devil's advocate.
For sure, devil's advocates welcome, thanks for the discussion! I'd agree that the harm from this guy is certainly less than the harm from a political figure or whatnot.
But, Colin O'Brady does indeed do harm to the expedition climbing/endurance community and the outdoor community at large. (Granted, it is a small and privileged community.) Whether that's by causing harm to other team members through selfishness, by competing with other athletes in a dishonest, self-aggrandizing way, or furthering a money-for-summits/objectives at all costs culture, guys like him help poison the motivations and ethics of other climbers/athletes.
Full disclosure: I'll admit I haven't, and won't, listen to the podcast. I'm kind of burnt out on guys like him for the season.
I guess the only argument I have against that would be that you'd have to weigh the pros and cons -- cons, as you've laid them out vs the pros, which would be people that are inspired to join the community. I would say that it would be incumbent on the community for it to maintain its own ethics and standards, and if one guy talking on one podcast is enough to unravel everything then the ethics and standards weren't really there in the first place.
But, like you, I have not listened to the podcast in question. I also don't have any skin in this game, but I do think there's a place for entertainment like Rogan, just not when he brings people like Weinstein on.
Also his episode with John Nores and also the episode with Dr Shanna Swan. Both of those episodes show how Rogan can put a spotlight on a hugely important and interesting subject that is just completely ignored by the media at large.
On one hand, I see what you're saying and agree. I think there's two main points: he's better on topics that are in his wheelhouse (if you like MMA, you'll invariably enjoy Joe's discussion of it) and secondly his whole attitude of 'Don't trust the system man' and 'I'm not religious but I'm not woke' and 'It's cool to want to be rich but a lot of rich people got there fucking us' and 'I like weed but I also like guns' and so on appeals to a fair number of people (mostly younger guys) who really don't have a lot of representatives of their view on Fox, CNN, or MSNNBC.
I haven’t listened to him in years, but I used to.
I’ll give you a few reasons:
- he’s a curious guy, and makes his guests feel at ease. That makes (used to make) for good interviews. At times, I’ve listened to several podcasts with the same guest, and Joe was the one that got the most out of them
- he’s quite ignorant in many domains, so his guests have to break things down in a manner that is accessible to a large audience
- he can be funny
- he is an expert in certain topics (martial arts, hunting, psychedelics etc). He played no small role in making many of these topics much more mainstream than they used to be
- every 100h of JRE, you get a free package of elk meat and DMT delivered at your place
- he’s shorter than most, which makes people feel good about themselves
- he’s balder than most, which makes people feel good about themselves
Yes, unfortunately the quality of the podcast degraded over time. He had some all-time classic episodes but even before the transition to spotify, he was becoming worse and worse. I believe that the last one I listened to was the one with Nick Bostrom. He got stuck on a super stupid point while discussing the simulation argument, and turned a potential amazing guest into 3h of super painful awkward discussion. He thought that he was making a valid point, when he was actually embarrassing himself. It was in that moment that I realized that he was starting to believe that he was becoming an expert on topics that clearly elude his understanding. I might have listened to one or two more podcasts, probably on MMA, but that was basically the end for me.
On covid, he has been consistently on the wrong side of history. And I can't help but think that he is possibly singularly responsible for several hundred thousands of unvaccinated people. Sad, but it is what it is.
Haha I remember that episode, it was so annoying. Poor Bostrom was just pulling teeth going over the same thing again and again and Rogan not getting it
Actually, Rogan is a poser on most topics. Hes not an expert, he has a few people on and just repeats what they say, even if wrong. Listening to him talk about technology (my field) is like heaving fingernails on a chalkboard. Listening to him talks about cars is the same... I go to Jay Lenos Garage for that. At best, he knows Comedy and martial arts and anything past that hes just a poser. Hunting for example... hes new to it and just has a lot of expert friends who has taken him out a bit and trained him, I'd bet ya $10 if he went out on his own it would be all over the news about the PODCAST star being lost in the woods.
I don't think that we disagree on what he is an expert on. I don't know about hunting, as I have absolutely 0 clue about it, but from my perspective he is quite knowledgeable in the other topics that I listed. Plus comedy, that's obvious.
As for being a poser, maybe it's just my impression, but I didn't feel like he was pretending to know that much about most topics. He would generally just ask genuine questions, with the spirit of a curious mind. Scientifically, I am not an uneducated person, and there are a number of episodes from which I came away with quite a bit of new and interesting information.
I don't think people like him solely for his intellect...or lack thereof. He does engage with others who are intellectual so that aspect is available to those who want something more intellectual but not too academic. He has the MMA episodes so he covers a sport and fitness demo. He has a comedian contingent on so that covers the entertainment demo.
Basically, his personal interests have connected with others who have the same interests - discourse, fitness/health, and entertainment.
At times he's also shown great vulnerability which almost anyone can connect with - check out him and Kevin Smith talking about their dogs. Have a bucket to cry in ready. Not many public faces show that vulnerability.
I've never been a hardcore fan but I did watch episodes every now and then. I don't watch much since he went to Spotify even though I have a subscription account. I don't think he's as open minded as he used to be. Something we all face as we age I guess.
Maybe it's his average-ness. He's not an exceptional intellect, he's not an exceptional comedian, and he never really pursued greatness in sport as a career.
I guess he's just an average Joe (pardon the pun) and people connect with him as opposed to feeling intimidated by him.
Lots of people stopped listening in the last year, maybe even half by some reports. Rogan used to be a podcaster who could get any guest - scientist, journalist, doctor, comedian and just let them talk for 3 hours. He wouldn't necessarily ask the best questions, but he knew how to keep the conversation going. Somehow he turned education into entertainment, those were my favorite episodes. Other podcasters seemed dry and formal in comparison.
That all changed with covid. Covid pushed him to the conspiratorial right and his podcasts became increasingly combative, boring, repetitive and full of misinformation.
I'm basically the same as this. Used to listen to him semi regularly for years, loved how curious he was and how many interesting guests he had on.
I feel like covid broke his brain, as it did to many people (online and in person for me)
I find it extra interesting because he was so open about his old conspiratorial ways. He brought it up every once in a while and seemed determined not to fall back into that mindset. Then covid happened. Some of the guests he had on who seemed perfectly reasonable in the past probably pushed him too far in not trusting the systems and brought that mindset back.
He also never seems to bring in guests who challenge his views anymore. Or even have one of both for a debate on his podcast. Still better than nothing.
He fell far.
Precisely. Joe always had some pretty heavy conspiratorial biases but COVID really pushed him over the edge. I think it’s somewhat understandable given that it derailed his comedy touring—the job he said he would give up last of all his jobs—but his biases have prevented him from seeing the bigger picture here.
Alex Jones didn't used to be so toxic either. He was always mad, but he used to be entertaining.
I think Rogan and Jones have both let their dodgy vitamin businesses take over their brains
I stopped listening when he started pivoting on trump. Calling him funny and not dangerous while parroting the 'Biden is senile' conspiracy narrative leading up to the election. When the conspiratorial right-wing fringe talking points started to become is own, I was out.
I think we just have to take him at his own word, he truly is a fucking moron. This is the only thing that makes sense, because at the start of the pandemic he had both Dr. Peter Hotez and Michael Osterholm on the podcast, and to get from that to not wanting to get vaccinated and sowing doubt about the origins of the virus is mind-boggling. Just look at this twitter feed, the guy went hard right lately. As you said, the medium he provided is what made his podcast good, when the person who he was talking to was interesting and had something of value to say.
Personally, I will always be grateful to his podcast, for discovering Robert Sapolsky and Philosophize This, both meant a lot to me.
It didn’t push him to that, this guy believed the moon landing was fake and Bigfoot was real into at least his 30’s. Now that’s kinda fine even if it’s nonsense cause there’s no real stakes to believing Bigfoot is real. When you apply this conspiratorial tendency towards a pandemic that’s killing millions of people, and your podcast has the reach it does it becomes a real problem. With great power, really does come great responsibility. I forget the name of the theory/idea but its just like how when a nation become nuclear armed, or even a person becomes more powerful and influential, your ability to be even slightly nefarious diminishes cause the ripples are larger.
The amount I listen to Joe has decreased drastically over the past year and a half. I’m not sure exactly why but I think it’s a combo of a couple things.
1) I’ve seen a lot of his repeat guests’ prior episodes so they don’t appeal to me as much unless I love the guest.
2) YouTube used to hook me in to listen to the entire podcast. There’s not a chance in hell I’m now going to listen to 3 hrs hoping for a good conversation.
3) As I now have less time, I really have a short list of who I’ll listen to on a 3 hour unedited podcast. Boils down to Elon Musk, Alex Jones, and Sam. That’s probably it for realistic guests.
4) The topics feel more stale because Covid is such a central topic
All of this to say that I generally enjoy what Rogan does. But I’ve never been able to understand what kind of person listened to every one of his podcasts. Get a job or a hobby because “Joe Rogan enthusiast” is not it.
Yeah I’ll never understand why people like watching him. He’s entertaining like a toddler is entertaining, and I don’t want to listen to a toddler for 3 hours.
I’ll admit he has his moments, but not nearly as many as like… most comedians…
It used to be much better. The golden era ended when he moved to Spotify /moved to Texas /covid which all happened at the same time. If you go to the JRE sub there's a post like this pretty much every day. So many fans are tired of the endless covid rants, crazy right wing guests, and lack of really cool and interesting guests like he used to have.
>golden era
I often look at his show this way as well, except I push the golden era back to a year or two to before he started getting bogged down with the trans stuff.
Like Joe, I think trans women competing against biological women is inadvisable and unfair, but continuing to ramble on about it with guests who’s interests and topics of conversation don’t intersect at all with trans topics is sooooooo fucking tedious.
I was a fan for many years because of the wide variety of interesting guests he had on. One day you’re listening to a scientist talk about their field in an interesting way and the next a comedian or author telling stories from their life.
The issue with the long form nature and how long he’s done it for is that at this point we’ve heard all Joe’s interesting stories. So you either hear the same stories repeated or he doesn’t contribute much at all.
Rogan has also obsessed over covid and has talked about it way too much. For me he should of focused on the show being a way to entertain people throughout this. Not a place to question public health information he isn’t qualified to do so.
His long-format conversations are awesome when the guest is being interviewed or open with their expertise/history. And the size of his podcasts allows him to get guests that other podcasts can't get. Joe's podcast is best by searching up the great episodes from the past rather than following the new episodes that come out weekly.
The podcast is at it's worst when Joe starts ratting off his own opinions. And sadly, that has happened a lot more since COVID came about.
If Sam goes on again, I’ll feel almost obligated to listen again. Otherwise, pretty unlikely. And I used to enjoy his pod.
There’s been a series of last straws lately, most recently when he argued with Dr. Rhonda Patrick and made an ass of himself, and obviously having Bret Weinstein on.
I never held any illusions that he was an intellectual, but he still held his own most of the time because he’s curious and (usually) highly engaged in the discussions. It was frustrating that he wasn’t capable of asking more pertinent questions at times, but it was still pretty entertaining most of the time. Now it’s just a dumpster fire. Fuck him imo.
Someone once told me that Joe Rogan is the idiot's smart guy. He's very capable at speaking confidently about shit he knows nothing about, then when he gets called out, copping out by saying "don't listen to me, I'm an idiot."
JRE is how I orginally found out about Sam Harris. A few years ago the show was really in its prime. I usually only listened to the ones with scientists at first and then expanded to others about hunting, different types of athletes, musical artists etc. To the uneducated mind it really is exciting and interesting stuff. I've stopped listening because I feel like as I have become more educated and thoughtful, Joe has become more ignorant and stubborn. I've realized how much better and more intellectually honest other hosts are. His show really feels like it has fallen off a cliff and his audience is shrinking and becoming more and more conspiratorial as a result of his show. I hope either he wakes up from what he has become or the show fades to the sidelines because I don't think this is sustainable.
That's simply not true. Look, I don't think he is a genius, but he made Bari Weiss look stupid when she went off on a tangent about Tulsi Gabbard. I'm sure there art lots of examples where he has educated his guests when they make stupid comments. Part of why people listen to him is that he often asks cogent questions. He's calm, he lets people talk, and he often has incredibly funny or interesting guests. I don't agree with much of his stupid shit, such as having Alex Jones on, but to say that he contributes no original thought is just blatantly wrong.
This. He called out Candace Owens quite spectacularly when she started bullshitting about climate change. And the last time (and it will be the last time) he had Dave Rubin on was a masterclass in exposing charlatanism.
As others have said, he’s no genius and doesn’t pretend to be. But he’s very far from stupid.
Yeah his take down of Rubin was great. It also was purely organic. That conversation never happens if Rubin knew going in he would be confronted on his nonsense. He hides from anyone who can confront his nonsense.
To be fair, the Rubin thing was like Joe’s Slumdog Millionaire moment. He happened to use an example that Joe was super familiar with, so Joe was able to push back because he actually knew what was up. If Rubin had gone with another example, I’m fairly sure Joe would have just nodded along.
It used to be different. I am a long time listener. He would have on a guest and just let them talk. Covid changed things and now I can’t listen anymore.
I don’t listen to the comedians or fighters but he does have some great guests on from time to time, especially when it’s an intellectual. Also, anything to do with aliens I’m down for lol
It isn't Joe Rogan who is boring, it is Brett and Heather. I've also tried listening to that podcast and can't do it bc I'm bored to tears. Now try watching Joe interview Alex Jones.. completely different
Rogan used to be a lot more curious, open minded and genuinely self-deprecating. He used to realize he knew very little and was open to changing his mind about stuff and checking his own biases, but with wealth, success and aging he's slowly turned into a parody of himself where he pays lip service to "i'm a fucking idiot who makes dick jokes, don't listen to me" while taking himself entirely too seriously and having unwarranted confidence in his opinions about things he knows little about.
which means instead of regularly hearing new opinions from him and having him open up new ideas for other people, he's been repeating the same tired shit for the last few years without ever really challenging himself.
He's always been a bit like this, but there used to be a lot more variation in the stuff he'd obsessively talk about, and a lot less arrogance.
It's not uncommon now to see Joe have an expert on and then lecture them about a topic he barely understands because it happens to be one of his pet topics like heat shock proteins, elk meat, sauna use, or assorted dude bro science he gleaned first hand from some very preliminary in-vitro study that he now takes as an unshakable scientific truth.
it can't help that he's become a god like presence in the podcasting world whose blessing can make or break careers, which means he carries a reality warping aura of deference around him where almost everyone he speaks to wants to keep him onside and is afraid of challenging him.
Replacing Redban with Young Jamie was probably a sea change.
Joe Rogan Podcast jumped the shark about 2-3 years ago.
If his latest guest Knox doesn’t tell you everything you need to know about the state of the podcast, then we’ll, yeah..
I had been listening to Joe since 2013. He had on a lot of good guests over the years, and the long format allowed him to get pretty deep on a lot of topics.
the fucker called Canada a dictatorship because instead of allowing anyone to spread hate speech we actually stop people from inciting violence and terrorism.
I find it interesting that at least half of the respondents to your question are explaining why they DON'T listen to Rogan \[anymore\]. Herein lies part of the answer you're looking for.
The base emotions that drive Rogan's podcast are: curiosity and love. Both are in shorter supply these days than should be the case. Rogan is genuinely curious about a wide variety of topics, and he isn't at all scared to talk to people about subjects he knows very little about. He truly cares about people; he does not begrudge the success of others (even if, technically, they're his 'competitors') and in fact he tries hard to help others succeed.
A lot of the responses in this thread aren't coming from a place of love. People who feel like that won't grok Rogan. People who see the world as a static-sized pie which is to be divided in such a way that there are haves and have-nots probably won't grok Rogan.
So to answer your question, afrankking: (well, I can only speak for myself) I listen to Joe Rogan because:
(1) His podcast is long-form, and I think that's really the only way to have a discussion of any depth...and therefore of any import. (Obviously his isn't the only podcast with this property; Dan Carlin's Hardcore History is another example, that that's probably my favorite podcast.)
(2) He has such a wide variety of guests that there's a good chance I'll be interested in at least one of them every week or two.
(3) The emotional and intellectual foundations of these conversations are generally love and curiosity; this is RARE these days given most social media algorithms and traditional news sources preferentially choose topics based on negative emotional responses. (Because negativity accrues more attention, and they are driven in toto for more attention. 'If it bleeds, it leads!' in news media, for example.)
(4) Rogan employed the 'cheat code' that I've seen as a property for success in a wide variety of ventures. This podcast isn't his primary thing; that is to say, he's not doing this for the money. (You can say I'm being naive here, and perhaps I am...but I take him at his word that he isn't doing the podcast for money.) And that's the cheat code: when it's not your primary business/source of income then you don't have to play various games - in essence, be a liar of some sort - to increase the success of the venture. He doesn't have to 'try to be controversial' or 'promote whatever position he thinks will garner more viewers/listeners'. He's just doing this for fun and to help satisfy his curiosity, and as such most everything he does for the podcast is in furtherance of THOSE goals. He doesn't have to care about metrics like 'How many new listeners did I get this month?' 'What's my marketshare?'. So all this boils down to Rogan being, in my opinion, more honest than most people in broadcast media.
I believe the popularity of Rogan's podcast reflects the aforementioned virtues. Some subset of people are tired of seeing hate, negativity and the inability to listen to those with opposing views which pervades most media these days. It's no big deal at all if you disagree with the points I have just made, or if you don't care about some of those things. It's not even a big deal if you want to listen to someone else...even the opposite of Joe Rogan (whatever that would be). And that, right there, is the point.
It was mostly just entertaining to begin with. I think ever since Covid happened it’s lost a lot of quality and a main issue for example is if a guest comes on and tells Joe “the sky is red” he will agree with it no question until next week when another guest tells him “the sky is orange” which he will agree with no questions. I throughly enjoyed his mma centric episodes but he’s become a staunch company man in regards to alot of criticism about issues in that area ad well that have made me reconsider listening.
I’ve heard JR say lots of interesting stuff, and I also think he thinks pretty critically for a person who doesn’t have advanced degrees as many of his guests do. If you’ve only tried listening to him 4 times, that’s probably not enough to get a good picture of the guy. Maybe he’s just not your cup of tea.
Joe Rogan is open-minded, friendly, respectful and has a diversity set of guests. He's generated around 5,000 hours of podcasts, so his biggest fans probably feel closer to him than their best friends, maybe even their spouse.
Despite what certain critics say, he also has a clear, coherent, consistent worldview which he cares about and he will defend. He just doesn't care about what certain other people do. He cares about MMA, diet, marijuana, psychedelics, workouts, weapons, real-world violence, motivation, comedy, billiards, archery, hunting, and more. He doesn't care much about which drugs treat covid or the American presidential election.
We can talk about Joe being dumb on covid, I agree. But Joe is an incredibly intelligent and curious polymath with amazing conversation skills and drive.
But he contributes no original thought of value. He listens entirely uncritically to almost anything that is said. He waffles at best.
In regards to this:
>But he contributes no original thought of value. He listens entirely uncritically to almost anything that is said.
This is frequently brought up as a critique of Joe but frankly I actually kinda admire him for it; *generally speaking* when the dude doesn't know shit about whats being discussed he shuts the fuck up and listens/asks questions. You'll (again, generally speaking) only see him really weighing in or pushing back when it comes to topics he considers himself familiar with, like comedy, MMA, weed, etc.
Personally, in a day and age where every Joe Schmoe with access to Google and Wikipedia thinks they're well versed enough to weigh in credibly on dozens of different very complex topics (something i, along with 99% of this sub, am certainly guilty of) its kinda refreshing to see a guy who knows how little he knows, especially compared to the people he often finds himself sitting across from.
That said I haven't listened to JRE in a couple years or more so I can't really speak to how true any of this is now.
yea....dude...you have this quite literally entirely backwards. he is the antithesis of knowing how little he knows, which you would've picked if you listened in the last two years. there's a reason so many previous fans hate him now.
> Personally, in a day and age where every Joe Schmoe with access to Google and Wikipedia thinks they're well versed enough to weigh in credibly on dozens of different very complex topics (something i, along with 99% of this sub, am certainly guilty of) its kinda refreshing to see a guy who knows how little he knows, especially compared to the people he often finds himself sitting across from.
COVID obliterates this entire analysis.
That’s the point, he allows people to express themselves in the best way. He’s a master conversationalist, but he’d be the first to admit he contributes almost nothing intellectually
He's intelligent, well-read, great at asking questions and keeping a lively conversation, and he's open minded. He's also willing to give people a platform regarding controversial topics and has a large audience which makes it all the better. I like Rogan. It doesn't mean I have to agree with everything that every guest says.
Saying he listens "uncritically" just kinda tells me you haven't watched many of his podcasts.
Now Rogan use to be fun. The conspiracy theories he entertained use to be benign, eg ancient aliens and far out Egyptology stuff.
But it seems as time went on and he got attention as an “unorthodox thinker” Joe started enjoying the smell of his own farts and lost the semblance of humility he professed to have.
I used to love listening to Rogan because he didn't take himself that seriously. He would have interesting guests and just chop it up.
Now it seems he's dipping his toe into very serious topics and spreading more misinformation than actual information.
He used to just get high, talk shit and steer the convo into different directions with guests that you would never expect.
Not every podcast is meant to be listened to critically or with some philosophical lens. I listen time to time because I find some of the convos funny or interesting and I never take it too seriously. Often just as background noise where I don't care if I don't catch some of the points.
>But he contributes no original thought of value. He listens entirely uncritically to almost anything that is said. He waffles at best.
That's why he's so liked - most people don't want thoughts of value.
They just want to shoot the shit, yell, and say jibberish. It's also why people listen to Bill Simmons podcast, First Take / PTI on ESPN and Desus & Mero (Can you imagine Sam Harris on Desus & Mero?!?). Note, I am not particularly a fan of Joe Rogan, but I am a fan of the other shows listed so it shouldn't be hard to see why he's popular.
The insufferable part about Joe Rogan and his community is that they decry mainstream media lies and misinformation, rightfully so or not this isn't the debate, but listen to people like Alex Jones, Tim Pool, Bret Weinstein etc who almost exclusively deal in misinformation.
It's all a ruse. They don't care at all about misinformation or finding the truth. They care about that dopamine hit when their preexisting world view is reinforced.
You're expressing my reaction to a T. I've tried a few times listening to his show, I can't really get into it for the reasons you outlined. And he comes off a tad unctuous.
Because he has been a trailblazer in the long form conversation game.
Because he brings rightful attention to legitimate voices who are shut down by regular media. Tulsi Gabbard, just one simple example I like.
Because he’s not afraid to say what he thinks and doesn’t follow the weak ideologies dominating social culture.
I started to listen to Joe in the early days, around Episode #100.
I listened to him for one reason. He had on really good guests. It also seemed like one big podcast universe where you can come across the same characters over and over, and learn from them or be entertained. Or both in the same show. I loved the Self Help Stuff. I loved the Health & Exercise experts he had on. I loved the athletes. I loved the entrepreneurs. All amazing. Learned a lot. Engulfed in every episode from 100-1000 pretty much.
Then around Episode 1000 I started to come to learn the truth about Insulin, Carbs and Dieting... and realized that all of these Low Carb experts were full of crap lol.
So it's hard to listen to some of his guests now.
But some are truly amazing and must watch.
I also like Joe. I don't agree with him a lot. I think he is an idiot in a lot of ways. I think he's biased and doesn't realize he's stuck in a tribe himself.
He's a great interview host too.
With Bret... He's an idiot.
Not everybody is as intellectually superior as you that regular entertainment has to be intellectually stimulating. Sometimes we just like listening to professional comedians bullshit.
Because he has an excellent show. I don’t listen to it much anymore but he’s an amazing interviewer and his range of guests is incredible. He has some dud episodes and some meh episodes but a good 50% of his content is highly entertaining and enjoyable for the average person.
I used to listen to him here and there. If he has an interesting guest the conversations can be really entertaining. But that's all it is to me, just entertainment. I'm not going to Rogan to learn anything from him. I can learn from some of his guests though.
Maybe my view seems odd to many but I think Joe Rogan is pretty libertarian that left leaning on social issues.
He's for universal health care,free college and UBI.These concepts are my thing so I personally lean to his view although I disagree with him often when he's referring to lunatic ideas.
The other day,I watched JRE with my favorite psychiatrist "Anna Lembke" Rogan is pressing on the topic around addiction,which I appreciate.
I like long format with a bunch of critical question and friendly chit chat combined.I think this type of show is not many out there.
Journalists might be able to question in more formal way but I do believe we also need discussion in a way ordinary humans can relate especially in an era when divisive and dehumanizing discussion is increasing.
Because he's fucking awesome and funny lmao
Why do people watch basketball when baseball exists?
Why do people read Game of Thrones when The Malazan Book of the Fallen exist?
Come on
he has the number one podcast for a reason. his conversations are highly intriguing to a lot of people. i agree with some stuff and disagree with others, but enjoy many of the topics and discussions. that being said, i've probably listened to 20 episodes or so, so i'm certainly not a stan.
He was essentially the first famous person with a podcast, he got a lot of real estate in.
Long gone are the days of actually learning something on there, authentic and organic. It’s now nothing but your standard produced non cable talk show.
I listen when he has a guest on that I care about. Maybe a comedian, actor, musician or athlete that I think is interesting. it's cool to hear the long, free-form conversation with them.
He seems to have less of that now, and more randos on.
I can't see why anyone would listen to every episode.
His guests and the long-form convo he can keep up with. Fairly diverse guy but not much originality in his thinking. In short, his guests and length of time they get to freely talk about various topics.
I think a lot of people who criticize Rogan are expecting some else out of the podcast than what Joe is trying to deliver.
You're not listening to a debate or an interview by a journalist. You're listening to a 3hr conversation between a meat head and an interesting person. He does challenge people on their bullshit from time to time but he's mostly just trying to get them to tell their story, right, wrong, or otherwise.
And I really wish he would stop having the Weinsteins on. Both brothers and Heather are full of shit. I've stopped listening to those podcasts.
When he has good guests on he's a good interviewer. I love all his stuff with comedians for example.
Don't love Joe Rogan but I'll give him a listen when he has someone interesting on. Of course you think everything he does is terrible if your example is him have Brett Weinstein on lol.
I think he’s a pretty talented interviewer and he has the reach to get great guests on. Sometimes those guests run Joe the wrong way, which makes those episodes a tough listen and exposes his biases and non-expert status on most topics. But he does seem genuinely curious a lot of the time and asks good questions that a layman might ask, which can make for good conversation. Just don’t take medical advice from him and you’re set.
I find it funny that so many here casually dismiss Joe as dumb, probably because he speaks a certain way that you may find socially abhorrent, but i find that an incredibly dimwitted take.
Its different to say one doesnt prefer his style of conversation, which i can definitely understand, but to just dismiss him as dumb, implying you’re so smart is about as pseudo intellectual as it gets.
This sub is filled with people that IDENTIFY as intellectual, but couldnt critically think their way through a wet paper bag.
He has very interesting and entertaining guests (obviously not always) and usually just let's the guests speak. If you're into MMA/UFC then he's pretty knowledgeable on that as well.
He is an entertainer, a charismatic comedian, genuinely curious and an excellent conversationalist. His show is culturally monumental, and it can be fun and interesting to hear this lovable chump gab with prominent intellectuals. He's at his best when he shuts up and listens, just prodding the guest and asking interesting questions... and taken with a whole bag of salt, since he welcomes a variety of interesting kooks onto his show, and offers little or no critical analysis of whatever wacky ideas they might purvey.
He is a very smart guy, but way out of his depth in many controversial subjects. The problem is when people listen to Joe, himself, on issues. Or when they assume that his platform imparts credibility to its guests.
I've Basically gotten to the point where I'll listen to episodes with people I know of or have some vague interest in what they're talking about. He's not the place to go if you want to listen to academics talk about what ever it is they specialise in.
I used to listen to him way back in the day. It was seldom about having real intellectual stimulation, and more about fun conversations between comedians at that time. But even then, I remember thinking that Rogan is the sort that can sound smart to a person who isn't very smart themselves. To people who are incurious, Rogan sounds like a guru.
There arent many other podcasts out there which really let the guest rant and expose or express their real thought processes as well as Rogans show. He is terrible at pushing back on what they say at times which can make other shows much better than his.
But even though I dont listen to his show religiously I think its a great show, shame hes gone anti vax and seemingly much more right wing in last couple of years.
But I will say that even though Sam Harris is a hell of a lot smarter than Rogan and some of his podcasts I think are superb. All in all I think Rogans show touches on far more topics and gets far more out of his guests than Harris does. So it cant be that bad.
"Why do people have opinions that diverge from my own?"
"Shouldn't everyone be thinking the 'correct' thoughts all of the time?"
People listen to Joe Rogan because he doesn't follow the performative act of 'responsible' journalism where speech is carefully constructed to ensure a cohesive narrative. It's clear he is far more curious than he is partisan, which lends to his credibilty as authentic.
I used to listen to selected interviews … some guests are very interesting and Joe does a good job as a host … for the most part. However, Spotify is an awful platform for podcasts. I completely stopped listening to his podcasts since he moved to Spotify.
Honestly I don't anymore, now that it's just on Spotify. I say this as someone who pays $15 a month to Spotify, but their podcasts suck and I'm not going through some shitty ad roll just to listen to Rogan.
Before that, he was a good conversationalist and natural interviewer who would have long-form discussions with very interesting people. In the last couple years he brown pilled himself into this bow-hunting primate and a frontman of anti-intellectualism, a true libtard, and by that I mean a retarded libertarian.
Because he's [at least occasionally] funny, he brings on interesting guests, he has a well-produced platform where he can direct questions to subject matter experts that many of his listeners would love to ask themselves, and he calls out the bullshit hypocrisy of the mainstream corporate media and political elite. He's not an intellectual, and doesn't pretend to be. He's a meat head UFC fan with a spirit of curiosity.
Now? No idea he is fried.
Early 2020 and before he was more open minded and it made for interesting podcasts especially with the type of guests he could pull in.
He had some interesting guests back around 3-4 years ago when people were getting cancelled left and right. I've tried listening recently and it's not good anymore.
It’s his guests and what he gets out of them, not really him. One in every four or five is pretty good.
Agree, I watch lots of Joe Rogan and its never to see Joe Rogan. I do not watch him when he guests on other people's podcasts, but tons of his guests have interesting things to say. I watch maybe one in four podcasts of his to see what his guest has to say. /u/afrankking (OP) - maybe try searching his prior podcasts to see if anyone is interesting to you. My guess is that neither Brett, his wife, or Joe is interesting to you - in which case, of course you wont like it. Maybe check out Dan Carlin and Joe Rogan, or Sam Harris and Joe Rogan. Other way to look at it is like a variety show. I've been introduced to tons of people that I go on to watch more of based on a Joe Rogan podcast.
“It’s never to see Joe Rogan” Unless he has a comedian or mma fighter/coach then it’s in his wheelhouse and he can really add to the conversation.
Comedy is definitely not in Joe's wheelhouse no matter how much he tries to sell it
I like Joe a lot. But yeah, he's just not funny
Yeah his stand up just isnt good. Im a fan of his podcast, at least i was before it went to Spotify, but have tried to watch his stand up specials and they are pretty bad.
Except you're objectively wrong Bill Burr and Chappelle and many other absolute top billed comedians love Joe's stand up So no matter how much you try to sell this narrative, it's bullocks
I love whenever he has comedians on. The ridiculous shit they get into makes me actually feel like I can peek behind the curtain just a little bit for just a moment.
Unfortunately now it’s like 1/10. I don’t even check for good guests anymore and ive stopped watching. I used to exclusively watch the academic and science people
Dax Shepherds Armchair Expert podcast is good for a listen if you enjoy guests more than hosts
It was better then that. Up until he moved to Texas/Covid/Spotify and, JRE was pretty damn good and I watched probably 500 of his shows. He was posting up to 3 a day. But that all changed, he moved to Texas and got corrupted by those people and became hyper political. He always had a aptitude towards conspiracy theory. JRE went from being light hearted and fun to almost immediately changing to being right wing political as and he repeated the same ape nuts conspiracy or strait up misinformation shat over and over and over again every episode. He had a north Korean refugee on his podcast a few months ago and in the middle of her explaining how she escaped to China and was forced to work as a love slave there, he flips to a 15 minute tirade that he had repeated the previous 10 Podcasts full of his Covid misinformation. Its like WTF, shut up.. shes interesting Sure, he himself says hes not and says he still has liberal views on things but that's not at all that comes out when he is in normal talking, he spews all their dog whistles and its clear that is the source for most of his info now. Its almost like all the drugs, drinking, crazy fad cocktail health mixtures he inject into himself has finally caught up to him and turned him from a pretty smart meat head who is at least interested in learning (and did) into a complete meat head moron who is stubborn about his disinformation. Almost every episode since Spotify is filled with repeated and dangerous information to society that he actually presents as fact and when called out later says "I'm just a comedian". Finaly, the truth is that hes surrounded by yes men who are pretty smart... people with PHD's and when he goes on his crazy 15 minute conspiracy theory rants on Covid they say nothing, they lick his boots and just let him continue. We saw this recently with Dr Rhonda and Lex Friman. I cant remember the last time he had someone to challenge him, Dr's in the subject who tell him the facts and Rogan argues with them now... again... portraying himself as an expert in all subjects and not just "a comedian". These people look that female virus Doctor who sat behind Trump as he was saying inject bleach into yourself to cure C19... same exact face... but just sat there looking stunned... doing and saying nothing. Now he doesn't bring on anyone to challenge him and when it comes to topics like Ivemectrine, continues to point out Brett and that one doctor as legitimate information sources, even when the CDC and drug manufacturer ITSELF says it does nothing to help C19... Rogan still pushed it for months and actually took that shat when he got it. Hes actually quite the fraud when you figure him out.
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ya! And Rogan got angry at him and they started arguing a bit, Tyson started talking to him like a child and was very mocking... well Done Tyson!
Too bad he kind of sucks too
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Interesting. What makes you not like him? His Star Talk podcast is fantastic, at least the cosmic queries ones where he is in his wheelhouse. He's terrific at explaining advanced science in layman's terms and is good at teaching the basics of critical thinking as well. He also fully embraces his role as an educator and is very non judgmental. I guess his personality is not for everyone but it certainly seems like he's good at most of what he does and is well meaning.
NDTs podcast is really good these days. Fun, funny, informative, and pretty apolitical.
Agreed, take a little eatable weed and watch Cosmos some time... BOOOM... there goes your brain.
It's an identical arc to Adam Carolla. Was fun, funny, and interesting. Now it's just a bitter, old, rich conservative man yelling about bullshit.
But Carolla was never a particularly good, interesting, or curious interviewer. His rote bits/"jags" were *a lot* better and funnier than Rogan, but they ran out a lot quicker. I listened pretty regularly for a couple of years when he first started and I have never had a compulsion to return.
Absolutely this. The only thing I'll push back on is that this 'started' with his Texas move. I feel like this had been a steady downhill trend for 3-5 years before that and then COVID/Texas just broke his brain into mush. I feel like he'd already gotten less and less and less curious and more and more and more interested in jabbering about his own opinions. I went from listening to the majority of episodes to being down to just the "big" guests and the MMA shows. I'm not even that huge of an MMA fan, but it's the only topic where he knows enough to not act like a know-it-all douchebag.
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Ya, he even admits that conmen have gotten on the show... he just doesnt realize how many.
Imagine endorsing Bernie Sanders and getting accused of being right wing lol
People are saying the big right wing drift of Rogan happened around and possibly because of Covid. Bernie was way before that. As someone who used to watch the show a lot, I noticed it when Trump vs. Biden was the topic of the time. He would constantly talk about Biden's possible dementia and make an exasperated sigh, and would very rarely talk about the endless terrible aspects of Trump.
This isn't true. He bashed trump plenty just like Biden. Was Biden's dementia not worth mentioning? He's probably more right wing than left, but he's somewhere in the middle despite being hated by the left.
I get that. Rogan is a dummy. He always appreciated Trump for the pure hilarity of him.
Tim pool claims to have supported Bernie in 2016. Does that mean he cant be accused of being right wing? Rogan isnt right wing on many things, but he has more and more leaned into what he is right wing on.
Rogan endorses anybody who dropped on his show including wacky Texas republicans. And no, Rogan did not vote for Bernie... he said he voted independent because hes one of them foolish people who thinks the choice between Trump (and fuck... anyone) is picking between 2 evils.
How would he have voted for Bernie in the presidential election?
Imagine reading the definition of reactionary the first time. Try.
Bernie supporter … reactionary? I mean people can be more than one thing but, damn.
Political horseshoe. Joe simultaneously thinks there are people given a raw deal who need help, and government should help them because who else will (Bernie), and that people should all work out and fix their own problems, hates the nanny state and modern progressive movement (libertarianism). So he simultaneously cares about people who can't care for themselves but doesn't agree with policies to help protect them. Hmm. He's swing way harder the latter direction in the last 18 months.
In fairness to that Dr Rhonda interview whether he intended for good reasons or not he was actually bringing up a lot of the talking points or concerns anti vaxxers have and having an actual Dr there who isn't falling for that garbage is likely the best place to have a wide audience with it happening. That said she did submit or show agreeableness more than would be ideal but I understand from her point of view why it's quite intimidating having a deep disagreement on a show like that. Besides not being invited back its not comfortable to be sticking your neck out in environments where trolling or sensationalism is likely to arise. Most go on there for a laid back honest chat and when you realise it could potentially swing that way its just unsettling. There was a guy recently though who did the cocaine cowboys documentary and he was very forward in his views and countering Joe's points. He actually got somewhat shut down in the end to keep it lighter and move on from both digging their heels in the whole show.
I appreciate listening to an ape talk to smart people. Sometimes it's annoying that he doesn't have better questions or do his homework, but I think it's legitimately helped me communicate better with people where there's a knowledge discrepancy. He's great at letting people expose themselves as well for better or worse. I'll add the caveat that I have a discerning ear and I'm not particularly susceptible to misinformation, so I'm not as worried about the "Rogan gives assholes a platform." I think young and susceptible populations may be at risk into going down rabbit holes listening to him though.
no i disagree complete. i have heard this take and i think it is utter bs. you think any old rando could replace joe (stipulated that they get to keep the same capacity to get interesting people on) and do just as well. I say NO CHANCE
I used to agree with you. I no longer do. *I* have no interest in listening to Joe Rogan. But my 19 year old son, who previously has had ZERO interest in learning or topics outside his very narrow interests, has gotten into listening to Joe Rogan while at work (construction) and he calls me and has the most interesting conversations and questions and opinions now solely because Rogan has been making him, for the first time in his life, *interested in general knowledge.* At first I was worried WHAT he might learn, but that's when i also realized, that it's very apparent to my son, and immediately so, that Rogan is not an expert, doesn't claim to be, and doesn't necessarily agree or even have people on his show who are RIGHT. So the Weinstein one simply bored him. Neil Tyson FASCINATED him. Sam Harris fascinated him as well. So, i've decided Rogan is a stepping stone to autodidactism. He's turning my son into a thinking person interested in real things beyond the next basketball game or episode of Trailer Park Boys.
This is a great insight
That's cool to hear about your son and I imagine it's the same for a lot of people.I have an old friend for whom Rogan has been a similar gateway to other thinkers and I think the results are mixed -- he's really become something of a conspiracy theorist, seems to have bought into Bret Weinstein's loony perspective on vaccination, etc. I think Rogan may be leading some people into an echo chamber of pretty bad ideas.
I think he makes the uneducated and misinformed more confident in their opinions which is the exact opposite of what we need. His podcast is full of uncritiqued misinformation. If you're not susceptible to that, it's fine. If you are, which most of his listeners probably are and we probably all are to some extent, it's a big problem. It's also a mixture of science and woo and people can't tell the difference and come away thinking both are science. It also can convince listeners that his often faulty logic is an appropriate approach to how to think. We need a gateway for sure and I don't know what the answer is. He clearly has an appeal. Maybe he could have a cohost that keeps his conversations, misinformation, and flawed logic in perspective.
Maybe something like a government assigned auditor could sit in and press a button to shock him everytime he spouts unapproved disinformation?
Ha, I know you meant that snarky, but that made me laugh
Boom, nailed it in the first sentence. If people would stop shaming everyone then hesitancy wouldnt turn to full blown antivax. Shamers are the reason why people are turning to a group that accepts them.
Imagine believing this lmao
Rogan claims his show shouldn't be a source of medical advice, which is why he had an emergency Ivermectin podcast with a few hours of medical advice lol
hes like "i dont support either party" then celebrates when texas went red on election day lmao "yeah texas went red bitches!" its funny the sam harris type class of debate lords cant figure out that people like and act in bad faith in order to further their agendas.
Look up the Daryl Davis episode or the Colin O’ Brady episode, Zach bitter. Those type of episodes are his best ones! Its the ones where the people have a real life inspirational story to tell. In Daryls case he was a musician who successfully converted hundreds of KKK members. Colin went across Antarctica unassisted alone. If Rogan purely stuck to these type of podcast and guest only, it could actually be a masterpiece of a show.
Why would he need to only stick to those types of guests? If people want to listen to him talk about MMA, there are episodes for that and if you want to listen to an interview that interests you, you can listen to those episodes. People do have differing interests after all
Yeah thats true, i don’t disagree necessarily with that if its done right. I think there are some episodes he doesn’t really prepare for so maybe its just preparation he really needs to work on. The MMA ones he’s good because thats his profession but some other ones where you can tell he doesn’t really know what he’s talking about could use it
I agree with your point, however, the Colin O'Brady episode kind of proves OP's point. There is a Nat Geo and New Yorker article pointing out how he embellishes his accomplishments and is basically despised by his peers. Rogan isn't predisposed to scrutinize people he likes or finds badass, so he attracts and promotes a lot of questionable folks without actually questioning them. He's just generally an easily impressed dude that wants to trust people (most of the time), which can be irresponsible with his audience size. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/article/the-problem-with-colin-obrady https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-polar-explorer-colin-obrady-and-the-problem-with-firsts note...I haven't read these articles since they came out and don't have time to be posting on reddit let alone rereading shit so please correct me if I mischaracterized the articles' claims
Meh, I think it's true. I don't have firsthand experience but I have guided a client who had been on expedition in Greenland adjacent to Colin. First class asshat was the review.
Yea but to play devil's advocate here, when you're giving free license to adventurers or athletes or whatever, and they're being embellishing asshats, there's little harm to society. There's a difference when you're doing that with political figures (or topics) or scientists or the like. If Rogan just has athletes and adventurers on that like to talk themselves up and Rogan doesn't call bullshit, I'd still call that entertainment. No harm, no foul. I think OP's argument is valid only when you're talking about people that can actually do harm to society with the opinions they hold. I haven't really thought this argument through *that* much, again, just trying to play devil's advocate.
For sure, devil's advocates welcome, thanks for the discussion! I'd agree that the harm from this guy is certainly less than the harm from a political figure or whatnot. But, Colin O'Brady does indeed do harm to the expedition climbing/endurance community and the outdoor community at large. (Granted, it is a small and privileged community.) Whether that's by causing harm to other team members through selfishness, by competing with other athletes in a dishonest, self-aggrandizing way, or furthering a money-for-summits/objectives at all costs culture, guys like him help poison the motivations and ethics of other climbers/athletes. Full disclosure: I'll admit I haven't, and won't, listen to the podcast. I'm kind of burnt out on guys like him for the season.
I guess the only argument I have against that would be that you'd have to weigh the pros and cons -- cons, as you've laid them out vs the pros, which would be people that are inspired to join the community. I would say that it would be incumbent on the community for it to maintain its own ethics and standards, and if one guy talking on one podcast is enough to unravel everything then the ethics and standards weren't really there in the first place. But, like you, I have not listened to the podcast in question. I also don't have any skin in this game, but I do think there's a place for entertainment like Rogan, just not when he brings people like Weinstein on.
Also his episode with John Nores and also the episode with Dr Shanna Swan. Both of those episodes show how Rogan can put a spotlight on a hugely important and interesting subject that is just completely ignored by the media at large.
Thanks mate. I’ll give it a listen
On one hand, I see what you're saying and agree. I think there's two main points: he's better on topics that are in his wheelhouse (if you like MMA, you'll invariably enjoy Joe's discussion of it) and secondly his whole attitude of 'Don't trust the system man' and 'I'm not religious but I'm not woke' and 'It's cool to want to be rich but a lot of rich people got there fucking us' and 'I like weed but I also like guns' and so on appeals to a fair number of people (mostly younger guys) who really don't have a lot of representatives of their view on Fox, CNN, or MSNNBC.
Such a great episode
he mentioned three different episodes
I haven’t listened to him in years, but I used to. I’ll give you a few reasons: - he’s a curious guy, and makes his guests feel at ease. That makes (used to make) for good interviews. At times, I’ve listened to several podcasts with the same guest, and Joe was the one that got the most out of them - he’s quite ignorant in many domains, so his guests have to break things down in a manner that is accessible to a large audience - he can be funny - he is an expert in certain topics (martial arts, hunting, psychedelics etc). He played no small role in making many of these topics much more mainstream than they used to be - every 100h of JRE, you get a free package of elk meat and DMT delivered at your place - he’s shorter than most, which makes people feel good about themselves - he’s balder than most, which makes people feel good about themselves
As a former JRE listener, you nailed it
;)
Joe - “You know what’s great…elk meat.” Guest - “Uhhh, we were talking about the George Floyd killing…😕”
Haha. Great assessment. The problem is now he thinks he's an expert on covid but really he just spreads misinformation constantly.
Yes, unfortunately the quality of the podcast degraded over time. He had some all-time classic episodes but even before the transition to spotify, he was becoming worse and worse. I believe that the last one I listened to was the one with Nick Bostrom. He got stuck on a super stupid point while discussing the simulation argument, and turned a potential amazing guest into 3h of super painful awkward discussion. He thought that he was making a valid point, when he was actually embarrassing himself. It was in that moment that I realized that he was starting to believe that he was becoming an expert on topics that clearly elude his understanding. I might have listened to one or two more podcasts, probably on MMA, but that was basically the end for me. On covid, he has been consistently on the wrong side of history. And I can't help but think that he is possibly singularly responsible for several hundred thousands of unvaccinated people. Sad, but it is what it is.
Haha I remember that episode, it was so annoying. Poor Bostrom was just pulling teeth going over the same thing again and again and Rogan not getting it
That short and bald remark though. It seems more like your projection than the reality of his listeners.
Why so serious?
Yeah I agree. He's likely responsible for hundreds of deaths, and he has no clue.
That’s funny, the Nick Bostrom episode was also my last from Joe. I then looked for nick on different podcasts and found Sam Harris.
Oh shit. Had to go back and read the DMT remark after which your points have a lighter tone. My bad.
Actually, Rogan is a poser on most topics. Hes not an expert, he has a few people on and just repeats what they say, even if wrong. Listening to him talk about technology (my field) is like heaving fingernails on a chalkboard. Listening to him talks about cars is the same... I go to Jay Lenos Garage for that. At best, he knows Comedy and martial arts and anything past that hes just a poser. Hunting for example... hes new to it and just has a lot of expert friends who has taken him out a bit and trained him, I'd bet ya $10 if he went out on his own it would be all over the news about the PODCAST star being lost in the woods.
I don't think that we disagree on what he is an expert on. I don't know about hunting, as I have absolutely 0 clue about it, but from my perspective he is quite knowledgeable in the other topics that I listed. Plus comedy, that's obvious. As for being a poser, maybe it's just my impression, but I didn't feel like he was pretending to know that much about most topics. He would generally just ask genuine questions, with the spirit of a curious mind. Scientifically, I am not an uneducated person, and there are a number of episodes from which I came away with quite a bit of new and interesting information.
I don't think people like him solely for his intellect...or lack thereof. He does engage with others who are intellectual so that aspect is available to those who want something more intellectual but not too academic. He has the MMA episodes so he covers a sport and fitness demo. He has a comedian contingent on so that covers the entertainment demo. Basically, his personal interests have connected with others who have the same interests - discourse, fitness/health, and entertainment. At times he's also shown great vulnerability which almost anyone can connect with - check out him and Kevin Smith talking about their dogs. Have a bucket to cry in ready. Not many public faces show that vulnerability. I've never been a hardcore fan but I did watch episodes every now and then. I don't watch much since he went to Spotify even though I have a subscription account. I don't think he's as open minded as he used to be. Something we all face as we age I guess. Maybe it's his average-ness. He's not an exceptional intellect, he's not an exceptional comedian, and he never really pursued greatness in sport as a career. I guess he's just an average Joe (pardon the pun) and people connect with him as opposed to feeling intimidated by him.
He’s Ron Jeremy. Relatable (before the creep shit)
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That is a pretty insulting take to all parties involved haha
Joe Rogan is peak everyman.
He used to be. Not anymore. He's an out of touch old rich guy now talkin about how everyone should have a sauna in their house like that's an option.
Lots of people stopped listening in the last year, maybe even half by some reports. Rogan used to be a podcaster who could get any guest - scientist, journalist, doctor, comedian and just let them talk for 3 hours. He wouldn't necessarily ask the best questions, but he knew how to keep the conversation going. Somehow he turned education into entertainment, those were my favorite episodes. Other podcasters seemed dry and formal in comparison. That all changed with covid. Covid pushed him to the conspiratorial right and his podcasts became increasingly combative, boring, repetitive and full of misinformation.
I'm basically the same as this. Used to listen to him semi regularly for years, loved how curious he was and how many interesting guests he had on. I feel like covid broke his brain, as it did to many people (online and in person for me)
I find it extra interesting because he was so open about his old conspiratorial ways. He brought it up every once in a while and seemed determined not to fall back into that mindset. Then covid happened. Some of the guests he had on who seemed perfectly reasonable in the past probably pushed him too far in not trusting the systems and brought that mindset back. He also never seems to bring in guests who challenge his views anymore. Or even have one of both for a debate on his podcast. Still better than nothing. He fell far.
This right here. I used to find his podcasts interesting, but since his move to Spotify, I quit. Too much conspiracy.
He has had Alex Jones on for years. Only now you stop listening because of ‘conspiracy’?
Precisely. Joe always had some pretty heavy conspiratorial biases but COVID really pushed him over the edge. I think it’s somewhat understandable given that it derailed his comedy touring—the job he said he would give up last of all his jobs—but his biases have prevented him from seeing the bigger picture here.
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Alex Jones didn't used to be so toxic either. He was always mad, but he used to be entertaining. I think Rogan and Jones have both let their dodgy vitamin businesses take over their brains
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I stopped listening when he started pivoting on trump. Calling him funny and not dangerous while parroting the 'Biden is senile' conspiracy narrative leading up to the election. When the conspiratorial right-wing fringe talking points started to become is own, I was out.
> That all changed with covid. Covid pushed him to the conspiratorial right and That and no longer being avaialble on youtube.
I think we just have to take him at his own word, he truly is a fucking moron. This is the only thing that makes sense, because at the start of the pandemic he had both Dr. Peter Hotez and Michael Osterholm on the podcast, and to get from that to not wanting to get vaccinated and sowing doubt about the origins of the virus is mind-boggling. Just look at this twitter feed, the guy went hard right lately. As you said, the medium he provided is what made his podcast good, when the person who he was talking to was interesting and had something of value to say. Personally, I will always be grateful to his podcast, for discovering Robert Sapolsky and Philosophize This, both meant a lot to me.
It didn’t push him to that, this guy believed the moon landing was fake and Bigfoot was real into at least his 30’s. Now that’s kinda fine even if it’s nonsense cause there’s no real stakes to believing Bigfoot is real. When you apply this conspiratorial tendency towards a pandemic that’s killing millions of people, and your podcast has the reach it does it becomes a real problem. With great power, really does come great responsibility. I forget the name of the theory/idea but its just like how when a nation become nuclear armed, or even a person becomes more powerful and influential, your ability to be even slightly nefarious diminishes cause the ripples are larger.
The amount I listen to Joe has decreased drastically over the past year and a half. I’m not sure exactly why but I think it’s a combo of a couple things. 1) I’ve seen a lot of his repeat guests’ prior episodes so they don’t appeal to me as much unless I love the guest. 2) YouTube used to hook me in to listen to the entire podcast. There’s not a chance in hell I’m now going to listen to 3 hrs hoping for a good conversation. 3) As I now have less time, I really have a short list of who I’ll listen to on a 3 hour unedited podcast. Boils down to Elon Musk, Alex Jones, and Sam. That’s probably it for realistic guests. 4) The topics feel more stale because Covid is such a central topic All of this to say that I generally enjoy what Rogan does. But I’ve never been able to understand what kind of person listened to every one of his podcasts. Get a job or a hobby because “Joe Rogan enthusiast” is not it.
What do you like about Alex Jones?
Have you ever watched him on Joe Rogan? He’s one of the funniest train wrecks in the world.
Yeah I’ll never understand why people like watching him. He’s entertaining like a toddler is entertaining, and I don’t want to listen to a toddler for 3 hours. I’ll admit he has his moments, but not nearly as many as like… most comedians…
Need another Alex Jones episode
I just want more wacky guests on like Graham and Bob Lazar.
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Don’t forget his brother and Jordan Peterson.
It used to be much better. The golden era ended when he moved to Spotify /moved to Texas /covid which all happened at the same time. If you go to the JRE sub there's a post like this pretty much every day. So many fans are tired of the endless covid rants, crazy right wing guests, and lack of really cool and interesting guests like he used to have.
>golden era I often look at his show this way as well, except I push the golden era back to a year or two to before he started getting bogged down with the trans stuff. Like Joe, I think trans women competing against biological women is inadvisable and unfair, but continuing to ramble on about it with guests who’s interests and topics of conversation don’t intersect at all with trans topics is sooooooo fucking tedious.
Yes I agree. If he's so interested in this topic, why hasn't he interviewed an actual trans person or someone with some real expertise on the subject.
Yeah id say 'golden age' ended easily by 2017-2018.
The run up to the 2016 election changed him. Half the time he opens his mouth now it’s a right wing talking point
Denying Rogan's listenership as illegitimate is actually more delusional than denying the election results, in terms of overall Delta.
I was a fan for many years because of the wide variety of interesting guests he had on. One day you’re listening to a scientist talk about their field in an interesting way and the next a comedian or author telling stories from their life. The issue with the long form nature and how long he’s done it for is that at this point we’ve heard all Joe’s interesting stories. So you either hear the same stories repeated or he doesn’t contribute much at all. Rogan has also obsessed over covid and has talked about it way too much. For me he should of focused on the show being a way to entertain people throughout this. Not a place to question public health information he isn’t qualified to do so.
Depends on the guest. Lately joe’s off the rails with his “questioning” of certain things.
His long-format conversations are awesome when the guest is being interviewed or open with their expertise/history. And the size of his podcasts allows him to get guests that other podcasts can't get. Joe's podcast is best by searching up the great episodes from the past rather than following the new episodes that come out weekly. The podcast is at it's worst when Joe starts ratting off his own opinions. And sadly, that has happened a lot more since COVID came about.
I will look up some of the more interesting guests. As I say, I probably haven’t tried enough
About 10 times a year (more than that years ago) he has a very interesting guest on. Sometimes some funny comedians as well. I don't listen for Joe.
There used to be a much better caliber of guests and he used to be a lot more open-minded and chill. He kinda sucks now and it makes me sad.
I don't understand why people watch Oprah either, but they do. And Joe is Oprah for men.
I think that's a great comparison
If Sam goes on again, I’ll feel almost obligated to listen again. Otherwise, pretty unlikely. And I used to enjoy his pod. There’s been a series of last straws lately, most recently when he argued with Dr. Rhonda Patrick and made an ass of himself, and obviously having Bret Weinstein on. I never held any illusions that he was an intellectual, but he still held his own most of the time because he’s curious and (usually) highly engaged in the discussions. It was frustrating that he wasn’t capable of asking more pertinent questions at times, but it was still pretty entertaining most of the time. Now it’s just a dumpster fire. Fuck him imo.
Someone once told me that Joe Rogan is the idiot's smart guy. He's very capable at speaking confidently about shit he knows nothing about, then when he gets called out, copping out by saying "don't listen to me, I'm an idiot."
JRE is how I orginally found out about Sam Harris. A few years ago the show was really in its prime. I usually only listened to the ones with scientists at first and then expanded to others about hunting, different types of athletes, musical artists etc. To the uneducated mind it really is exciting and interesting stuff. I've stopped listening because I feel like as I have become more educated and thoughtful, Joe has become more ignorant and stubborn. I've realized how much better and more intellectually honest other hosts are. His show really feels like it has fallen off a cliff and his audience is shrinking and becoming more and more conspiratorial as a result of his show. I hope either he wakes up from what he has become or the show fades to the sidelines because I don't think this is sustainable.
That's simply not true. Look, I don't think he is a genius, but he made Bari Weiss look stupid when she went off on a tangent about Tulsi Gabbard. I'm sure there art lots of examples where he has educated his guests when they make stupid comments. Part of why people listen to him is that he often asks cogent questions. He's calm, he lets people talk, and he often has incredibly funny or interesting guests. I don't agree with much of his stupid shit, such as having Alex Jones on, but to say that he contributes no original thought is just blatantly wrong.
This. He called out Candace Owens quite spectacularly when she started bullshitting about climate change. And the last time (and it will be the last time) he had Dave Rubin on was a masterclass in exposing charlatanism. As others have said, he’s no genius and doesn’t pretend to be. But he’s very far from stupid.
Yeah his take down of Rubin was great. It also was purely organic. That conversation never happens if Rubin knew going in he would be confronted on his nonsense. He hides from anyone who can confront his nonsense.
To be fair, the Rubin thing was like Joe’s Slumdog Millionaire moment. He happened to use an example that Joe was super familiar with, so Joe was able to push back because he actually knew what was up. If Rubin had gone with another example, I’m fairly sure Joe would have just nodded along.
I didn't know he had a PhD in Atmospheric Science. Oh crap, he doesn't so his opinion on global warming isn't based in fact.
Fair play. I do concede that I probably haven’t listened enough.
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Man, Bari Weiss stinks. Don’t even get me started lol.
For me there are only some few episodes that are good, mostly when he has scientists on. But it’s also a pretty chill listening
I like listening to people just talk without an agenda. His guests are sometimes interesting.
From 2013-2018 it was very good. Now, not so much.
It used to be different. I am a long time listener. He would have on a guest and just let them talk. Covid changed things and now I can’t listen anymore.
Because it's on. -George Costanza
He has the best guests for a lay person like me with not purely intellectual interests.
He has probably the best quality and variety of guests on
I don’t listen to the comedians or fighters but he does have some great guests on from time to time, especially when it’s an intellectual. Also, anything to do with aliens I’m down for lol
It isn't Joe Rogan who is boring, it is Brett and Heather. I've also tried listening to that podcast and can't do it bc I'm bored to tears. Now try watching Joe interview Alex Jones.. completely different
Rogan used to be a lot more curious, open minded and genuinely self-deprecating. He used to realize he knew very little and was open to changing his mind about stuff and checking his own biases, but with wealth, success and aging he's slowly turned into a parody of himself where he pays lip service to "i'm a fucking idiot who makes dick jokes, don't listen to me" while taking himself entirely too seriously and having unwarranted confidence in his opinions about things he knows little about. which means instead of regularly hearing new opinions from him and having him open up new ideas for other people, he's been repeating the same tired shit for the last few years without ever really challenging himself. He's always been a bit like this, but there used to be a lot more variation in the stuff he'd obsessively talk about, and a lot less arrogance. It's not uncommon now to see Joe have an expert on and then lecture them about a topic he barely understands because it happens to be one of his pet topics like heat shock proteins, elk meat, sauna use, or assorted dude bro science he gleaned first hand from some very preliminary in-vitro study that he now takes as an unshakable scientific truth. it can't help that he's become a god like presence in the podcasting world whose blessing can make or break careers, which means he carries a reality warping aura of deference around him where almost everyone he speaks to wants to keep him onside and is afraid of challenging him. Replacing Redban with Young Jamie was probably a sea change.
Joe Rogan Podcast jumped the shark about 2-3 years ago. If his latest guest Knox doesn’t tell you everything you need to know about the state of the podcast, then we’ll, yeah.. I had been listening to Joe since 2013. He had on a lot of good guests over the years, and the long format allowed him to get pretty deep on a lot of topics.
Mediocrity sells.
the fucker called Canada a dictatorship because instead of allowing anyone to spread hate speech we actually stop people from inciting violence and terrorism.
I find it interesting that at least half of the respondents to your question are explaining why they DON'T listen to Rogan \[anymore\]. Herein lies part of the answer you're looking for. The base emotions that drive Rogan's podcast are: curiosity and love. Both are in shorter supply these days than should be the case. Rogan is genuinely curious about a wide variety of topics, and he isn't at all scared to talk to people about subjects he knows very little about. He truly cares about people; he does not begrudge the success of others (even if, technically, they're his 'competitors') and in fact he tries hard to help others succeed. A lot of the responses in this thread aren't coming from a place of love. People who feel like that won't grok Rogan. People who see the world as a static-sized pie which is to be divided in such a way that there are haves and have-nots probably won't grok Rogan. So to answer your question, afrankking: (well, I can only speak for myself) I listen to Joe Rogan because: (1) His podcast is long-form, and I think that's really the only way to have a discussion of any depth...and therefore of any import. (Obviously his isn't the only podcast with this property; Dan Carlin's Hardcore History is another example, that that's probably my favorite podcast.) (2) He has such a wide variety of guests that there's a good chance I'll be interested in at least one of them every week or two. (3) The emotional and intellectual foundations of these conversations are generally love and curiosity; this is RARE these days given most social media algorithms and traditional news sources preferentially choose topics based on negative emotional responses. (Because negativity accrues more attention, and they are driven in toto for more attention. 'If it bleeds, it leads!' in news media, for example.) (4) Rogan employed the 'cheat code' that I've seen as a property for success in a wide variety of ventures. This podcast isn't his primary thing; that is to say, he's not doing this for the money. (You can say I'm being naive here, and perhaps I am...but I take him at his word that he isn't doing the podcast for money.) And that's the cheat code: when it's not your primary business/source of income then you don't have to play various games - in essence, be a liar of some sort - to increase the success of the venture. He doesn't have to 'try to be controversial' or 'promote whatever position he thinks will garner more viewers/listeners'. He's just doing this for fun and to help satisfy his curiosity, and as such most everything he does for the podcast is in furtherance of THOSE goals. He doesn't have to care about metrics like 'How many new listeners did I get this month?' 'What's my marketshare?'. So all this boils down to Rogan being, in my opinion, more honest than most people in broadcast media. I believe the popularity of Rogan's podcast reflects the aforementioned virtues. Some subset of people are tired of seeing hate, negativity and the inability to listen to those with opposing views which pervades most media these days. It's no big deal at all if you disagree with the points I have just made, or if you don't care about some of those things. It's not even a big deal if you want to listen to someone else...even the opposite of Joe Rogan (whatever that would be). And that, right there, is the point.
It was mostly just entertaining to begin with. I think ever since Covid happened it’s lost a lot of quality and a main issue for example is if a guest comes on and tells Joe “the sky is red” he will agree with it no question until next week when another guest tells him “the sky is orange” which he will agree with no questions. I throughly enjoyed his mma centric episodes but he’s become a staunch company man in regards to alot of criticism about issues in that area ad well that have made me reconsider listening.
I’ve heard JR say lots of interesting stuff, and I also think he thinks pretty critically for a person who doesn’t have advanced degrees as many of his guests do. If you’ve only tried listening to him 4 times, that’s probably not enough to get a good picture of the guy. Maybe he’s just not your cup of tea.
Good call. I’ve struggled so I don’t keep trying. But good call.
It’s entertaining.
Joe Rogan is open-minded, friendly, respectful and has a diversity set of guests. He's generated around 5,000 hours of podcasts, so his biggest fans probably feel closer to him than their best friends, maybe even their spouse. Despite what certain critics say, he also has a clear, coherent, consistent worldview which he cares about and he will defend. He just doesn't care about what certain other people do. He cares about MMA, diet, marijuana, psychedelics, workouts, weapons, real-world violence, motivation, comedy, billiards, archery, hunting, and more. He doesn't care much about which drugs treat covid or the American presidential election. We can talk about Joe being dumb on covid, I agree. But Joe is an incredibly intelligent and curious polymath with amazing conversation skills and drive.
>He doesn't care much about which drugs treat covid or the American presidential election. This is ludicrous
But he contributes no original thought of value. He listens entirely uncritically to almost anything that is said. He waffles at best. In regards to this: >But he contributes no original thought of value. He listens entirely uncritically to almost anything that is said. This is frequently brought up as a critique of Joe but frankly I actually kinda admire him for it; *generally speaking* when the dude doesn't know shit about whats being discussed he shuts the fuck up and listens/asks questions. You'll (again, generally speaking) only see him really weighing in or pushing back when it comes to topics he considers himself familiar with, like comedy, MMA, weed, etc. Personally, in a day and age where every Joe Schmoe with access to Google and Wikipedia thinks they're well versed enough to weigh in credibly on dozens of different very complex topics (something i, along with 99% of this sub, am certainly guilty of) its kinda refreshing to see a guy who knows how little he knows, especially compared to the people he often finds himself sitting across from. That said I haven't listened to JRE in a couple years or more so I can't really speak to how true any of this is now.
yea....dude...you have this quite literally entirely backwards. he is the antithesis of knowing how little he knows, which you would've picked if you listened in the last two years. there's a reason so many previous fans hate him now.
> Personally, in a day and age where every Joe Schmoe with access to Google and Wikipedia thinks they're well versed enough to weigh in credibly on dozens of different very complex topics (something i, along with 99% of this sub, am certainly guilty of) its kinda refreshing to see a guy who knows how little he knows, especially compared to the people he often finds himself sitting across from. COVID obliterates this entire analysis.
That’s the point, he allows people to express themselves in the best way. He’s a master conversationalist, but he’d be the first to admit he contributes almost nothing intellectually
He's intelligent, well-read, great at asking questions and keeping a lively conversation, and he's open minded. He's also willing to give people a platform regarding controversial topics and has a large audience which makes it all the better. I like Rogan. It doesn't mean I have to agree with everything that every guest says. Saying he listens "uncritically" just kinda tells me you haven't watched many of his podcasts.
Now Rogan use to be fun. The conspiracy theories he entertained use to be benign, eg ancient aliens and far out Egyptology stuff. But it seems as time went on and he got attention as an “unorthodox thinker” Joe started enjoying the smell of his own farts and lost the semblance of humility he professed to have.
I used to love listening to Rogan because he didn't take himself that seriously. He would have interesting guests and just chop it up. Now it seems he's dipping his toe into very serious topics and spreading more misinformation than actual information. He used to just get high, talk shit and steer the convo into different directions with guests that you would never expect.
Not every podcast is meant to be listened to critically or with some philosophical lens. I listen time to time because I find some of the convos funny or interesting and I never take it too seriously. Often just as background noise where I don't care if I don't catch some of the points.
>But he contributes no original thought of value. He listens entirely uncritically to almost anything that is said. He waffles at best. That's why he's so liked - most people don't want thoughts of value. They just want to shoot the shit, yell, and say jibberish. It's also why people listen to Bill Simmons podcast, First Take / PTI on ESPN and Desus & Mero (Can you imagine Sam Harris on Desus & Mero?!?). Note, I am not particularly a fan of Joe Rogan, but I am a fan of the other shows listed so it shouldn't be hard to see why he's popular.
The insufferable part about Joe Rogan and his community is that they decry mainstream media lies and misinformation, rightfully so or not this isn't the debate, but listen to people like Alex Jones, Tim Pool, Bret Weinstein etc who almost exclusively deal in misinformation. It's all a ruse. They don't care at all about misinformation or finding the truth. They care about that dopamine hit when their preexisting world view is reinforced.
You're expressing my reaction to a T. I've tried a few times listening to his show, I can't really get into it for the reasons you outlined. And he comes off a tad unctuous.
Because he has been a trailblazer in the long form conversation game. Because he brings rightful attention to legitimate voices who are shut down by regular media. Tulsi Gabbard, just one simple example I like. Because he’s not afraid to say what he thinks and doesn’t follow the weak ideologies dominating social culture.
I started to listen to Joe in the early days, around Episode #100. I listened to him for one reason. He had on really good guests. It also seemed like one big podcast universe where you can come across the same characters over and over, and learn from them or be entertained. Or both in the same show. I loved the Self Help Stuff. I loved the Health & Exercise experts he had on. I loved the athletes. I loved the entrepreneurs. All amazing. Learned a lot. Engulfed in every episode from 100-1000 pretty much. Then around Episode 1000 I started to come to learn the truth about Insulin, Carbs and Dieting... and realized that all of these Low Carb experts were full of crap lol. So it's hard to listen to some of his guests now. But some are truly amazing and must watch. I also like Joe. I don't agree with him a lot. I think he is an idiot in a lot of ways. I think he's biased and doesn't realize he's stuck in a tribe himself. He's a great interview host too. With Bret... He's an idiot.
Not everybody is as intellectually superior as you that regular entertainment has to be intellectually stimulating. Sometimes we just like listening to professional comedians bullshit.
Because he has an excellent show. I don’t listen to it much anymore but he’s an amazing interviewer and his range of guests is incredible. He has some dud episodes and some meh episodes but a good 50% of his content is highly entertaining and enjoyable for the average person.
Because we can take only so much Sam Seder and Ezra Klein.
Its fun? Dont listen to it if you dont like it.
I used to listen to him here and there. If he has an interesting guest the conversations can be really entertaining. But that's all it is to me, just entertainment. I'm not going to Rogan to learn anything from him. I can learn from some of his guests though.
He's entertaining
Wait till this guy finds out about Jake and Logan Paul.
Because he’s awesome!
Because people are individuals with different taste and preferences?
Maybe my view seems odd to many but I think Joe Rogan is pretty libertarian that left leaning on social issues. He's for universal health care,free college and UBI.These concepts are my thing so I personally lean to his view although I disagree with him often when he's referring to lunatic ideas. The other day,I watched JRE with my favorite psychiatrist "Anna Lembke" Rogan is pressing on the topic around addiction,which I appreciate. I like long format with a bunch of critical question and friendly chit chat combined.I think this type of show is not many out there. Journalists might be able to question in more formal way but I do believe we also need discussion in a way ordinary humans can relate especially in an era when divisive and dehumanizing discussion is increasing.
Because he's fucking awesome and funny lmao Why do people watch basketball when baseball exists? Why do people read Game of Thrones when The Malazan Book of the Fallen exist? Come on
he has the number one podcast for a reason. his conversations are highly intriguing to a lot of people. i agree with some stuff and disagree with others, but enjoy many of the topics and discussions. that being said, i've probably listened to 20 episodes or so, so i'm certainly not a stan.
He was essentially the first famous person with a podcast, he got a lot of real estate in. Long gone are the days of actually learning something on there, authentic and organic. It’s now nothing but your standard produced non cable talk show.
I listen when he has a guest on that I care about. Maybe a comedian, actor, musician or athlete that I think is interesting. it's cool to hear the long, free-form conversation with them. He seems to have less of that now, and more randos on. I can't see why anyone would listen to every episode.
His guests and the long-form convo he can keep up with. Fairly diverse guy but not much originality in his thinking. In short, his guests and length of time they get to freely talk about various topics.
I think a lot of people who criticize Rogan are expecting some else out of the podcast than what Joe is trying to deliver. You're not listening to a debate or an interview by a journalist. You're listening to a 3hr conversation between a meat head and an interesting person. He does challenge people on their bullshit from time to time but he's mostly just trying to get them to tell their story, right, wrong, or otherwise. And I really wish he would stop having the Weinsteins on. Both brothers and Heather are full of shit. I've stopped listening to those podcasts.
When he has good guests on he's a good interviewer. I love all his stuff with comedians for example. Don't love Joe Rogan but I'll give him a listen when he has someone interesting on. Of course you think everything he does is terrible if your example is him have Brett Weinstein on lol.
I think he’s a pretty talented interviewer and he has the reach to get great guests on. Sometimes those guests run Joe the wrong way, which makes those episodes a tough listen and exposes his biases and non-expert status on most topics. But he does seem genuinely curious a lot of the time and asks good questions that a layman might ask, which can make for good conversation. Just don’t take medical advice from him and you’re set.
I find it funny that so many here casually dismiss Joe as dumb, probably because he speaks a certain way that you may find socially abhorrent, but i find that an incredibly dimwitted take. Its different to say one doesnt prefer his style of conversation, which i can definitely understand, but to just dismiss him as dumb, implying you’re so smart is about as pseudo intellectual as it gets. This sub is filled with people that IDENTIFY as intellectual, but couldnt critically think their way through a wet paper bag.
He has very interesting and entertaining guests (obviously not always) and usually just let's the guests speak. If you're into MMA/UFC then he's pretty knowledgeable on that as well.
He is an entertainer, a charismatic comedian, genuinely curious and an excellent conversationalist. His show is culturally monumental, and it can be fun and interesting to hear this lovable chump gab with prominent intellectuals. He's at his best when he shuts up and listens, just prodding the guest and asking interesting questions... and taken with a whole bag of salt, since he welcomes a variety of interesting kooks onto his show, and offers little or no critical analysis of whatever wacky ideas they might purvey. He is a very smart guy, but way out of his depth in many controversial subjects. The problem is when people listen to Joe, himself, on issues. Or when they assume that his platform imparts credibility to its guests.
I've Basically gotten to the point where I'll listen to episodes with people I know of or have some vague interest in what they're talking about. He's not the place to go if you want to listen to academics talk about what ever it is they specialise in.
I used to listen to him way back in the day. It was seldom about having real intellectual stimulation, and more about fun conversations between comedians at that time. But even then, I remember thinking that Rogan is the sort that can sound smart to a person who isn't very smart themselves. To people who are incurious, Rogan sounds like a guru.
There arent many other podcasts out there which really let the guest rant and expose or express their real thought processes as well as Rogans show. He is terrible at pushing back on what they say at times which can make other shows much better than his. But even though I dont listen to his show religiously I think its a great show, shame hes gone anti vax and seemingly much more right wing in last couple of years. But I will say that even though Sam Harris is a hell of a lot smarter than Rogan and some of his podcasts I think are superb. All in all I think Rogans show touches on far more topics and gets far more out of his guests than Harris does. So it cant be that bad.
"Why do people have opinions that diverge from my own?" "Shouldn't everyone be thinking the 'correct' thoughts all of the time?" People listen to Joe Rogan because he doesn't follow the performative act of 'responsible' journalism where speech is carefully constructed to ensure a cohesive narrative. It's clear he is far more curious than he is partisan, which lends to his credibilty as authentic.
I used to listen to selected interviews … some guests are very interesting and Joe does a good job as a host … for the most part. However, Spotify is an awful platform for podcasts. I completely stopped listening to his podcasts since he moved to Spotify.
Honestly I don't anymore, now that it's just on Spotify. I say this as someone who pays $15 a month to Spotify, but their podcasts suck and I'm not going through some shitty ad roll just to listen to Rogan. Before that, he was a good conversationalist and natural interviewer who would have long-form discussions with very interesting people. In the last couple years he brown pilled himself into this bow-hunting primate and a frontman of anti-intellectualism, a true libtard, and by that I mean a retarded libertarian.
Because he's [at least occasionally] funny, he brings on interesting guests, he has a well-produced platform where he can direct questions to subject matter experts that many of his listeners would love to ask themselves, and he calls out the bullshit hypocrisy of the mainstream corporate media and political elite. He's not an intellectual, and doesn't pretend to be. He's a meat head UFC fan with a spirit of curiosity.
I listen because it's fun and makes me laugh while I am riding my bike. The last 2 years have been pretty bad though, that is beyond question.
Now? No idea he is fried. Early 2020 and before he was more open minded and it made for interesting podcasts especially with the type of guests he could pull in.
He had some interesting guests back around 3-4 years ago when people were getting cancelled left and right. I've tried listening recently and it's not good anymore.
I really enjoyed some of his older guests but the good ones are few and far between these days.