Latest news with #JoeRogan
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Joe Rogan's dystopian theory about why Mark Zuckerburg could transform America into 'dictatorship'
Joe Rogan laid out a nightmare scenario where social media giants turn the US into an oppressive dictatorship, and warned that the first steps have already taken place. During an interview on his podcast with professional mixed martial artist Cory Sandhagen, Rogan steered the conversation towards social media and his fears, triggered by recent attempts to censor speech in America. The host of the Joe Rogan Experience singled out Mark Zuckerberg 's Facebook as one of the platforms silencing people he said were posting 'factual information' during the COVID-19 pandemic. 'That was scary to me. Because that's very, very un-American,' Rogan declared. The podcaster revealed that his friend and new owner of X, Elon Musk, told him about the social media platform allowing the US government to censor posts from private citizens. He then unveiled his vision of a 'dangerous' future where platforms like Facebook work together with the government to eliminate all forms of protesting online. Rogan claimed that the entire tech world leans toward a 'very progressive left-wing ideology,' and feared that if the same thing happened during a conservative right-wing presidency, democracy would be lost forever. 'The problem is then what if the f****** right gets in place and they use the same rules that you used on them. Now we don't have a country anymore. I know now we're f*****. Now we're just like every other dictatorship,' Rogan exclaimed. Rogan has previously revealed how the US government, scientists, and social media critics allegedly attempted to 'cancel' him over his support for controversial COVID medicines like ivermectin. He also claimed that CNN edited a video to make his face look green after taking ivermectin, something the podcast host said made him consider suing the media outlet in 2021. 'Because I'm friends with Elon, I knew what was going on at Twitter behind the scenes. I knew how the government was stepping in and silencing posts,' Rogan said during the interview released on Thursday. In March, House Republicans issued subpoenas to officials at Google, demanding the tech giant turn over company information tied to the censorship of Americans during the Biden presidency. Republicans have long accused the Biden Administration of pressuring major companies into censoring free speech during and after the coronavirus pandemic. Republicans launched an investigation into government censorship after reclaiming the House majority in early 2023. Before Biden left office in January, Zuckerberg publicly confessed that both Meta and Facebook censored conservative opinions on an industrial scale during this time. Zuckerberg said the Biden Administration 'repeatedly pressured' the company to remove posts government officials claimed were 'COVID misinformation,' even if the posts were just humor or satire. Rogan compared the shocking levels of censorship in the US during the pandemic to other countries, which have been accused by nonprofit watchdogs of suppressing free expression. According to the political advocacy group Freedom House, 45 countries arrested their citizens for their COVID-related speech online. Twenty-eight countries were found to have censored websites or social media posts during the pandemic, a list that has now been confirmed to include the US. Other nations confirmed to have silenced public discourse included China, India, Turkey, Egypt, and Thailand. Countries in the European Union, like Germany and the UK, have also been accused of censoring online speech through regulations like the EU Digital Services Act. 'This is f****** dangerous man,' Rogan said Thursday. 'If they get a real grip on social media... you no longer can protest about things and express yourself about things, including a lot of things that happened to be true,' he added. That's when the podcast host, who publicly endorsed President Trump in 2024, focused his argument on the progressive left. 'All tech is primarily left and they have a very strong ideology,' Rogan claimed. He alleged that Democrats in the Biden White House and tech giants justified their actions by claiming that anyone who disagreed with the administration's COVID policies was not just wrong, but also attacking democracy. 'When they were in control and they were silencing things, I think the attitude was this is good because we're right and we need to stop these fascists or whatever we want to call them,' Rogan explained. At this point, President Trump and Republicans have not made any public statements that support the censorship of Americans on social media. Musk added in 2024 that he wanted X to 'maximize free speech' and opposed any form of content suppression unless the comments were explicitly illegal. Since Zuckerberg's admission about Facebook, the social media platform has officially shut down its third-party fact-checking program in the US on April 7. Meta also adopted Community Notes, a crowdsourced content moderation feature that allows users to add context, corrections, or clarifications to posts online, just like X does. Zuckerberg also promised to move the social media platform's content moderation teams from California to Texas to address perceptions of bias. However, former Facebook employees told The Guardian their teams were already in Texas before January 2025 and the promise was made to win over President Trump.
Forbes
10 hours ago
- Business
- Forbes
How Creators Turned Political Campaigns Into The Ultimate Battleground
The 2024 U.S. Presidential election, apart from being a seismic result in favor of former and current President Trump, marked a major change in the business of campaigns. The first time utilization and mobilization of major content creators by both party machines was immortalized at Trump's election victory party at Mar a-Lago by the UFC Founder Dana White in his deep praise of the prominent Podcasters instrumental in tipping the scales and delivering the winning campaign when she stated: 'I want to thank the NELK Boys, Adin Ross, Theo Von, Bussin' With The Boys. And last but not least, the mighty and powerful Joe Rogan'. The business of politics and campaigns - like a number of legacy industries, is now played out on the distribution platform that is relevant: social media. People under 40 years of age rush away from linear television, newspapers and radio airwaves that once defined media consumption. Online streaming grew to account for 40% of U.S. TV usage – in comparison to cable television sitting at an anemic 27%. Newspaper circulation dropped by 12.7% in 2024 Audio numbers have grown with the rise of Spotify and Apple Music and those consuming podcasts through video (like on Youtube). Seventy percent of Americans above the age of 12 have listened to a podcast, and 73% above the age of12 have consumed a podcast in audio form or video — underscoring the growth of the medium as a means of messaging and entertainment. The relatively nascent Twitter app was used during Obama's first run for the presidency to acquire new audiences and disseminate new messaging. Now, it's owned by the world's wealthiest man: Elon Musk. His change of heart around President Trump aside, the election result remains the same. and now along with Truth Social are the preeminent presidential mouthpieces and appear set to be the main standards of announcement around the office of the White House throughout this presidential term. While so many people became obsessed over the first presidential race to be set in the heart of the AI revolution – it was audio and YouTube that created the intimate bond to voters. Over the course of 2024, both Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris traded podcast and YouTube appearances on the aforementioned NELK Boys, Adin Ross, Theo Von and perhaps most prominently the world's biggest podcaster Joe Rogan where he preferred a more 'unscripted' style approach to win voters. Harris, on the other hand, sat down with Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper and reportedly turned down an appearance on Rogan wanting the Texas based podcaster to come to Washington. She also appeared on 'All the Smoke' with former NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson while completing interviews with Howard Stern and Charlamagne tha God. The contrasting publicity choices seems to tell a very clear story. The Joe Rogan and Trump podcast amassed 59 million views on YouTube and his sit-down with Theo Von amassed another 16 million views. By comparison, Kamala Harris's effort with Cooper contrastingly didn't crack 1 million views and sits, at the time of publication, at a comparatively meagre 992,000. These YouTube view counts don't even factor in the many 'cut downs' versions of the films that were distributed as bite sized pieces on platforms like Tik Tok, Instagram and YouTube shorts. Beyond the presidential race, the hotly contested New York democratic primary race between former governor Andrew Cuomo and the fast-rising underdog Assembly member Zohran Mamdani has seen one candidate embrace both Instagram and Tik Tok for his campaign messaging. Delivering made-for-platform short form clips of the 33-year-old interviewing regular people on the street and speaking in Hindi with smash cuts of Bollywood films as well as collaborations with pages like the Gaydar Show humorously talking about LGBTQI specific issues and popular creators like Hasan Piker to illustrate relatability and authenticity over more scripted and polished fair which traditional politicians tend to embrace. Mamdani counts over 600,000 followers on Instagram and 275,000 on Tik Tok whilst his chief opposition Cuomo held a relatively meagre 196,000 on Instagram and 2600 on Tik Tok, With a victory in the democratic primary, Mamdani's embracing of social, short form and creators surged past the more well established and better funded Cuomo. The unapologetic embracing of social platforms and creators has also resulted in a record $8 Million raised from donors to help continue the slick social messaging push to November's General Mayoral election. The US election cycle is now fully embracing this new standard of message distribution as each Party battles to get its propaganda in front of new and ever evolving audiences. Mark my words, as more and more content creators develop into the podcast world, YouTube and Live Streaming – it's clear that they hold more sway than ever before. Multiple talent managers who represent talent that have completed content partnerships with both sides of the political aisle reinforced the sentiment that the growth of political spending on creators represents the most tangible way to access younger voters who have long since tuned out of legacy media. As you would expect, campaign finances are also being distributed very differently today as well. $5.5 billion was spent on the Presidential campaign in 2024 and that number trebled to $15.9 billion with congressional races factored in too. Daniel Bee, a Publicist and Communications expert in Los Angeles said: 'It's pretty safe to say we should anticipate continued growth in political spending in the USA and that a huge chunk of that money will be spent working closer with content creators and their huge and growing audiences. You have to meet the audiences where they are'. The mass spending begs the question where future campaign dollars will be funneled off the back of the growth of Podcast and social media appearances for candidates. Paid ads on social media are nothing new but it opens up the high likelihood of more and more money being spent on Podcast appearances, sponsored creator content, political rallies featuring more creators and livestreams are set to become part of the fabric of campaigning for years to come. Will 2028 bring the first Presidential Mr. Beast games…only time will tell
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Social media influencer ‘Liver King' released from jail — and is still seemingly challenging Joe Rogan to fight
Social media influencer Brian Johnson — also known as "Liver King" — has been released from jail in Austin, Texas, after seemingly challenging Joe Rogan to fight him in a series of Instagram videos. In a new video posted to his 2.9 million Instagram followers on June 25, Johnson, 47, does not address Rogan by name but refers to the podcast host's Comedy Mothership club because he does not 'want to give any details, nor names.' 'Some guy, he thought if you just put him in jail … have the Violent Crimes Division, have them come arrest him for a terroristic threat, and the whole time that terroristic threat you thought was a bomb or something, inside that box, is actually a present back for you and your Mothership colleagues for having my wife and me at the Mothership,' said Johnson, before claiming the terroristic threat charge has since been reduced. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Liver King (@liverking) In a separate video, Johnson shows off his ankle monitor and reveals that Rogan took out a restraining order against him, which prevents him from coming within 200 yards of the podcaster. Johnson, at times calling Rogan by name, said he has a 9 p.m. curfew and is not allowed out of 'that space,' presumably his Austin hotel room, until 6 a.m. the following day. 'Rogan vs. Liver King,' Johnson added, is still happening. Johnson, in another video, said that he's been ordered to get a psychiatric evaluation this week and then once a month 'for a while.' He reiterated, however, that the videos aren't going to stop. He also repeatedly calls out actor Seth Rogen instead of Rogan himself. 'How do you train for a Seth Rogen kind of fight? He's a very qualified filmmaker, I think,' said Johnson. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Liver King (@liverking) Johnson was booked around 5:30 p.m. local time on June 24 by the Austin Police Department. He was charged with terroristic threat, a Class B misdemeanor, according to police records. Johnson, in a series of videos posted to his 2.9 million Instagram followers between June 23 and 24, expressed interest in wanting to fight Rogan, with whom he's been beefing with online for several years. Johnson chronicled his journey to Austin, where Rogan lives. 'Detectives reviewed the posts and observed that Johnson was traveling to Austin while continuing to make threatening statements,' the police said in a statement obtained by the Hollywood Reporter. 'Detectives contacted Mr. Rogan, who stated he had never had any interaction with Johnson and considered the posts to be threatening. Based on this information, detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Johnson on a charge of terroristic threat.' In a video posted by Johnson on June 23, the social media influencer, shirtless and with a wolf head hat on, challenges Rogan to a battle, as meditation music plays in the background. 'Joe Rogan, I'm calling you out,' said Johnson. 'My name's Liver King. Man to man, I'm picking a fight with you. Yeah. I have no training in jiu-jitsu. You're a black belt. You should dismantle me. But I'm picking a fight with you. Your rules. … I'll cut weight. I'll come to you. Whenever you're ready. Whenever you're ready to go.' Johnson continued to document his journey to Rogan in a series of rambling videos, often addressing the podcaster directly. In one video shared on June 24, Johnson tells Rogan, 'We have real tension.' 'Joe Rogan, we don't have to make videos to pretend anymore. All of this is happening. We're coming to you,' said Johnson. 'I've challenged you, man to man, to a fight. Honorable. … You can hold the hand of somebody that you love, because what happens next to you, you're going to need to remember that feeling. You're going to need something more than what you did to give you something to fight for, because I have my family to fight for and that I'll die for them. 'And you're a black belt, [but] you've never come across something like this,' he continued. '[I'm] willing to die, hoping that you'll choke me out. I pray to God, that's a dream come true because it feels good.' Police located Johnson at his Four Seasons Hotel room in downtown Austin at around 6 p.m. on Tuesday night, according to KXAN Austin. In the moments leading up to his arrest, Johnson, in a video posted to his Instagram, is seen embracing his wife, Barbara, and their two sons, Stryker and Rad, while saying a prayer. Johnson is then shown being handcuffed and escorted into the back of a police vehicle in his most recent video, which was posted on June 24. Johnson rose to internet fame as a controversial social media influencer known for leading what he calls an 'ancestral lifestyle' that is driven largely by his consumption of raw meat. Johnson's rise to notoriety and eventual fall from grace was chronicled in the Netflix documentary, Untold: The Liver King, released on May 13, 2025. The documentary also explores Johnson's contentious history with Rogan, and the moment that ignited it. During a December 2022 episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, Rogan mocked Johnson's assertion that his bulked-out physique was the result of his ancestral diet rather than steroid use. After emails between Johnson and a doctor were leaked in 2022, the fitness influencer was forced to admit that he regularly spent $11,000 per month on performance-enhancing drugs. Johnson was later hit with a $25 million class-action lawsuit, which alleged that the influencer and his company led a 'marketing and advertising scheme,' with his 'dangerous and life-threatening' raw meat diet. The lawsuit was later dismissed.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Liver King Arrested After Calling Out Joe Rogan in Unhinged Videos
Liver King Arrested After Calling Out Joe Rogan in Unhinged Videos originally appeared on Men's Fitness. Brian Johnson—also known as The Liver King online—was arrested in Austin, Texas. He was booked into the Travis County Jail at 8:31 p.m. on Tuesday, June 24, as the New York Post reported. He faces one charge of terroristic threat, a Class B misdemeanor. People began expressing concern about Johnson's mental state after posting a series of bizarre videos on social media. In many of them, he calls out Joe Rogan—challenging him to a fight. "Joe Rogan, I'm calling you out, my name's Liver King. Man to man, I'm picking a fight with you. I have no training in Jiu-jitsu, you're a black belt, you should dismantle me. But I'm picking a fight with you. Your rules, I'll come to you, whenever you're ready," he said in one video, holding what look like gold-plated Instagram users have pointed out that one of his pupils appears enlarged while the other remains normal, speculating it could be a sign of drug use or a manic episode. In one video, he states he and his family are heading to Austin so he can fight Rogan. In another video, Johnson is seen crawling on all fours toward the camera, addressing Rogan. "Joe Rogan, we don't have to make videos to pretend anymore. All of this is happening, we're coming to you. I challenge you, man to man, to a fight," he says. He continues to say he's fighting for his family. Authorities seem to have gotten involved once they reached Austin. The latest video, posted last night and recorded by someone else, shows someone telling Johnson's wife that authorities said he'd be "in and out" of police custody. She and the person recording then walk out of what appears to be a hotel, where Johnson is seen handcuffed and getting into the back of a King Arrested After Calling Out Joe Rogan in Unhinged Videos first appeared on Men's Fitness on Jun 25, 2025 This story was originally reported by Men's Fitness on Jun 25, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Joe Rogan Responds to Liver King's Disturbing Threats With One Blunt Statement
Joe Rogan Responds to Liver King's Disturbing Threats With One Blunt Statement originally appeared on Men's Fitness. Brian Johnson—better known as the Liver King—has been released from jail after making "terroristic threats" to fight Joe Rogan. But now, he's doubling down. Johnson was booked into the Travis County Jail at 8:31 p.m. on Tuesday, June 24, facing one charge of a terroristic threat. It all started earlier this week when Johnson began posting unhinged Instagram Reels, challenging Rogan to a fight. His arrest came shortly after he traveled to Austin, Texas to apparently seek out Rogan to brawl. Johnson didn't spend too much time in police custody. But now that he's out, he's back to posting about his intentions to fight the popular podcast host. "We're going to go somewhere today, here in Austin. If anybody knows where Seth Rogan's—the other version of him, that rhymes with 'blow'—if anyone knows where his family is gonna be today, if you could let my team know so that we can stay within 200 yards, not close to them, to stay away from them," he says in a recent video, implying a restraining also says he's been ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation this week, which will continue on a monthly basis. He also is wearing an ankle monitor. So far, Rogan has kept his distance from the drama and hasn't made any public comments about the one-sided incident. But, according to legal documents obtained by TMZ, Rogan told detectives he wasn't sure why Johnson had targeted him and that he heard the influencer was "significantly unstable and seems like he needs help." Rogan also stated that he'd never had any interaction with Johnson and considered Johnson's posts to be Rogan Responds to Liver King's Disturbing Threats With One Blunt Statement first appeared on Men's Fitness on Jun 26, 2025 This story was originally reported by Men's Fitness on Jun 26, 2025, where it first appeared.
