Independent journalist Glenn Greenwald defended podcast host Joe Rogan in a lengthy Twitter thread on Tuesday, saying that mainstream media outlets were far more likely than Rogan to spread “misinformation” — and far less likely to admit fault or apologize when they did so.
“The way so many smug media figures are uniting in condescending denunciation of Joe Rogan serves the same purpose as when they do it toward Trump: it’s to whitewashes all the radical flaws in establishment journalism by letting them scorn someone to whom they all feel superior,” Greenwald began, quoting a tweet from Matthew Iglesias.
“My experience as a guest was that he’s not averse to firing off his own very dubious assertions. He’s a charismatic guy, fun personality, easy to see why he’s been a successful host in a variety of mediums — but not a careful journalist or a disciplined thinker,” Iglesias explained.
My experience as a guest was that he’s not averse to firing off his own very dubious assertions.
He’s a charismatic guy, fun personality, easy to see why he’s been a successful host in a variety of mediums — but not a careful journalist or a disciplined thinker. https://t.co/dSk1xCvTlW
— Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) January 31, 2022
Greenwald pointed to CNN’s Allison Morrow, who mocked Rogan in condescending tones, claiming that her network practiced “this thing called journalism,” constantly “vetting sources and speaking to a range of experts before putting their ideas on blast.” She then suggested that Rogan could contact her if he’d like some tips.
“Look at this flamboyantly patronizing mockery of Rogan by @allisondmorrow of CNN: the network which has spread far more disinformation, far more harmfully, than anything Rogan could dream of. Instead of asking why he’s popular and trusted and CNN is hated, this is what they do,” Greenwald added.
Look at this flamboyantly patronizing mockery of Rogan by @allisondmorrow of CNN: the network which has spread far more disinformation, far more harmfully, than anything Rogan could dream of. Instead of asking why he’s popular and trusted and CNN is hated, this is what they do: pic.twitter.com/Q2PL0tNis4
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) February 1, 2022
“The liberal activist group MoveOn (remember them? Google: ‘Clinton impeachment, 1998’) is circulating a petition to demand Rogan be booted. Yes, its real goal is just to collect emails for fundraising scams, but it shows the ethos of liberal culture,” Greenwald continued.
“What is Rogan accused of that corporate media doesn’t do routinely and far more harmfully?” Greenwald asked, noting that mainstream outlets often functioned as echo chambers and rarely admitted it when they were wrong. “Those outlets are dissent-free zones. To work at a large media corporation means rarely talking to anyone who tells you you’re wrong. Rogan constantly airs dissent and acknowledges error.”
Greenwald went on to mention MSNBC host Joy Reid as an example, referencing her ludicrous claim that “hackers” had changed her old blog posts to make them homophobic — and the fact that she’d been promoted by NBC a short time later. “Corporate media has no standards,” he said.
Greenwald then posited that the reason media outlets have been so intent on focusing attention on Rogan’s potential to spread “misinformation” was that they wanted people to forget how often — and how effectively — they do it.
“The reason corporate journalists are so fixated on uniting to accuse Rogan of spreading disinformation is so you forget how often and how destructively they do it — same way neocons and CIA goons united to insist Trump was a unique evil so you forgot about who they are,” he said.
“A big part of the hatred corporate media employees harbor for Rogan is petty professional jealousy: same reason they hate Assange. They hate anyone who succeeds more than they if they see them as lowly outsiders undeserving of success,” Greenwald concluded. “But it’s also to whitewash their own flaws.”