In 2018, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg survived remorse for some of the words he uttered in defense of his platform’s hands-off approach to moderating content.
“All we’re going to do is say, ‘OK, you have a page, and if you don’t plan to harm anyone, or attack anyone, you can put that content on your page, even if people might agree with it.’ Or it may seem offensive, “he said.
Now, here’s Spotify CEO Daniel, publishing a Sunday, responding to criticism of his platform’s hands-off approach to content moderation:
“There are a lot of people and opinions on Spotify that I strongly disagree with. We know we have an important role to play in supporting the Creator’s expression while balancing the security of our users, “he wrote in a blog post published on Spotify’s website. “In that role, it is important to me that we do not accept the position of content censorship as well as make sure that there are rules and consequences for those who violate them.”
As you can see, One and Juke are pretty much saying the same thing: We don’t want our site content to be polished — it will be censorship, and censorship is wrong. Ek believes he can use the Facebook playbook to help Spotify navigate a crisis over Joe Rogan’s star attraction. Ek could end up with the same result Juke found himself, as well as a loser as a winner.
Ek hit hard last week by Neil Young’s ultimatum. He threatened to remove his music from Spotify if the streaming app did not take action against Rogan, who interviewed vaccine skeptics on his show, Joe Rogan experienceIn recent months. Spotify did, and Young is pulling his catalog. In Rogan’s protest, Johnny Mitchell also removed his tracks from Spotify.
The decision to remove the artists’ songs came just weeks after more than 200 professors and healthcare experts called on Spotify to better manage the misinformation. The scientists’ open letter specifically points to an episode with Rogan’s infectious disease specialist, Dr. Robert Malone, that included “several lies about the Covid-19 vaccine.”
Spotify has now found itself in the same place as Facebook a few years ago, and is facing criticism over its content. This is really the first time that Spotify has found itself in the midst of so much scrutiny of the subject, much to the chagrin of the aftermath of the 2016 election that forced Facebook to consider and reconsider exactly what information existed and should exist.
Facebook and Spotify knew the potential risks associated with their actions. In the case of Facebook, it has fully realized the real-world consequences of leaving problematic content on its site – as evidenced by internal company documents published by a whistle-blower last year – but also realized that deleting content would alienate users and greatly reduce it. . What makes the site the most busy. Rogan was offered an exclusive deal by Spotify in May 2020 at the top of the Kovid wave. He was in the campaign for more than 10 years at the time, his persuasive Scottish was not wrong. (Even if Spotify somehow convinced himself that Rogan was someone else, he made it very clear to the company in October when he hosted conspiracy theorist Alex Jones – who was otherwise banned from Spotify.) Quickly became Spotify’s top podcast in 17 markets.
For the longest time since 2016, Facebook hasn’t jumped into its content moderation position: it’s not going to start removing staff. Facebook finally bowed to the claim. Facebook has increased restraint over the years. The most prominent example is the suspension of Donald Trump. Through a fairly concrete measure, Facebook’s crushed defense has worked. Even after the release of Whistle-Blower last year, its stock price remained close to record highs, with a market capitalization of about ট্র 1 trillion. That’s how Zuckerberg won.
Ek seems to be keen to echo Zuckerberg’s sentiments: let the critics shout, but let us focus on our shares. It remains to be seen whether Spotify investors will be as patient as Facebook. Last week, Spotify stock fell 7.3%, a time when Nasdaq rose 2.5%, a sign that Spotify shareholders may not want to pay as much as Facebook investors.
Even if they do, and Ek makes it his company and CEO position intact, it’s not that Zuckerberg has fully emerged from the last few years. He is now facing new regulations and the FTC is interested in filing a no-confidence motion against him.
Probably the biggest proof that Zuckerberg’s play didn’t work out completely: despite all his efforts, we no longer even call his company Facebook, the name Zuckerberg gave to his Harvard dorm room. Last year, he changed the name of Meta Platforms Inc. to avoid a reputation that was tarnished by controversy over what should be on their site. There are several conversations about Rogan’s guests.