The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been “expressing concerns” to Spotify about Covid-19 misinformation but say they will continue to work with the platform.
The couple signed a lucrative deal with the streaming giant to host and produce podcasts, estimated to be worth around 25million US dollars (£18m), in late 2020.
In a statement on Sunday, the couple’s charity Archewell said they had been expressing concerns to Spotify about the issue since the charity’s inception, and continue to do so “to ensure changes to its platform are made to help address this public health crisis”.
It comes after a number of artists ditched the platform due to controversial content such as The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, which has been known to air vaccine-sceptical views.
An Archewell spokesperson said the couple are “committed to continuing” their work with the streaming platform.
“Hundreds of millions of people are affected by the serious harms of rampant mis- and disinformation every day,” the spokesperson said.
“Last April, our co-founders began expressing concerns to our partners at Spotify about the all too real consequences of Covid-19 misinformation on its platform.
“We have continued to express our concerns to Spotify to ensure changes to its platform are made to help address this public health crisis.
“We look to Spotify to meet this moment and are committed to continuing our work together as it does.”
It comes after Joni Mitchell announced on Saturday that she would remove her catalogue from Spotify “in solidarity” with Neil Young.
Young’s music is being taken down from the platform after he reportedly offered it an ultimatum to remove either his work or The Joe Rogan Experience podcast.
Following Young’s reported concerns, Spotify said it aimed to balance “both safety for listeners and freedom for creators” and had removed more than 20,000 podcast episodes related to Covid since the start of the pandemic.
It acquired The Joe Rogan Experience podcast in 2020, reportedly for more than 100 million dollars (£77 million).
Stand-up comedian Rogan, 54, has previously attracted controversy for suggesting the young and healthy should not get vaccinated.
Spotify has been contacted for comment.
