Joe Rogan and Elon Musk hit out after ABC boss slams podcaster as ‘deeply repulsive’
Two of the world’s most divisive and powerful public figures have hit out at ABC chairman, Kim Williams, who branded Rogan’s remarkable power over listeners to be “deeply repulsive”.
Williams made the comments at his first Melbourne Press Club Address in over a decade this week, where he also rallied for more public investment in the ABC, saying the broadcaster’s funding had diminished over the past decade.
When asked about Rogan’s outsized appeal with male audiences in the US, Williams took aim.
“I am not a consumer or enthusiast about Mr Rogan and his work,” he said.
“(But) I think that people like Mr Rogan prey on people’s vulnerabilities. They prey on fear.”
“They prey on anxiety. They prey on all of the elements that contribute to uncertainty in society, and they entrepreneur fantasy outcomes and conspiracy outcomes as being a normal part of social narrative.
“I personally find it deeply repulsive to think that someone has such remarkable power.
“I’m also absolutely in dismay that this can be a source of public entertainment, when it’s really treating the public as plunder for entrepreneurs that are really quite malevolent.”
Rogan responded to Williams’ spray, sharing a clip of Williams’ speech with the message: “LOL WUT”.
Musk then retweeted Rogan’s reply, adding, “From the head of Australian government-funded media, their Pravda,” referring to the Russian Communist paper.
From the head of Australian government-funded media, their Pravda https://t.co/T9KCf6oNbk
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 27, 2024
Williams also used the Press Club address to outline his wish for the ABC to reach a younger demographic.
“I admit I am given to saying there is a new 50-year-old and 60-year-old born every minute,” he joked, after pointing out the ABC audience’s age is often a target for Tom Gleeson’s scriptwriters at Hard Quiz.
“However, I want the ABC to go after younger viewers, listeners and readers on every platform as a vital part of our civic duty,” he said. “Not because I don’t appreciate the audiences we already have – we love our audiences – but as a matter of intergenerational equity.
“The ABC is for all our citizens, no matter what their age. And because reconnecting with the young is now an urgent democratic and cultural imperative. It is a core aspect of our being owned by all Australians.”
Kim Williams’ address this week
Williams said he wanted the ABC to “attract and train a new generation of young journalists who understand intuitively how their contemporaries consume and think about the media, and know best how to reach them with appropriate expression and perspective on their favoured and rapidly changing platforms”
“And I would like to help young and old Australians alike to become more media literate and even media savvy, able to better discern truth in a world of lies.
“The long-term survival of the idea of the objective truth, which George Orwell once – maybe prophetically – told us is in danger of fading out of the world, rests in the hands of the young. We can do a great deal with our schools to make this happen.”
Keep up to date with the latest in media and marketing
Got a tip?
Nathan Jolly is the Features Editor at Mumbrella. He joined the team in July, 2023.
Linkedin
Nah sorry bro, too many ‘geniuses’ getting all their news & narratives purely from TikTok & Podcasts.. #dystopia
User ID not verified.
Have your say