Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have spoken out in a statement to Spotify about the “all too real consequences of Covid-19 misinformation” on its platform.
Concern over the platform’s portrayal of the pandemic has seen Neil Young protest by removing his songs from Spotify following The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, which has aired vaccine-sceptical views in the past.
Harry, 37, and Meghan, 40, reveal in the statement that their co-founders began “expressing concern to Spotify” as far back as April last year.
The statement released by a spokesperson for the couple’s company Archewell said: “Since the inception of Archewell, we have worked to address the real-time global misinformation crisis.
“Hundreds of millions of people are affected by the serious harms of rampant mis- and disinformation every day.
“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.”
OK! has contacted Archwell for further comment.
OK! has also reached out to Spotify for comment.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex signed an exclusive £18 million deal with Spotify with the aim to “uplift audiences around the world” with their venture.
The couple shared the new career move in a statement in 2020, which read: “What we love about podcasting is that it reminds all of us to take a moment and to really listen, to connect to one another without distraction.
“With the challenges of 2020, there has never been a more important time to do so, because when we hear each other, and hear each other’s stories, we are reminded of how interconnected we all are.”
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The podcast debuted with a holiday special. And the couple’s production company said they hoped to provide content that “uplifts and entertains audiences around the world” and features “diverse perspectives and voices” in the podcast.
Meghan and Harry have made just one episode, released in December 2020, and over a year on from the announcement, they are yet to release new content, which fans of the couple hoped would drop last year.
Spotify bought the rights to The Joe Rogan Experience podcast in 2020 for a reported £75 million.
Since the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been accused of fuelling conspiracy and misinformation surrounding the virus and the vaccine.
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