Rogan, who’s spent most of his career as a stand-up comedian and broadcaster, has millions of followers on social media. The podcast’s YouTube page has more than 17.5 million subscribers. According to YouTube statistics, the podcast’s videos have been viewed more than 5.5 billion times since they debuted on the site in 2013.
The podcast was the most-listened-to in the United States among weekly listeners older than 13 in the fourth quarter of 2023, Edison Research said in a February statement.
According to Rogan’s official website, the podcast debuted in December 2009 and has more than 2,200 episodes. Typically, Rogan’s interviews with guests last between two and three hours.
It is unclear how soon the Trump interview may be published. The latest episode he released about midday on Oct. 25 was an interview with fellow comedian Sam Tripoli.
“The show has become a destination for open dialogue with a wide variety of guests and perspectives, including standup comedians, athletes, authors, artists, prolific thinkers, and scientists,” his website says.
In October alone, Rogan interviewed a comedian, a filmmaker, a particle physicist, top country music artists Luke Bryan and Jelly Roll, multiple current and former journalists, a wildlife biologist, doctors, and the former UFC champion Israel Adesanya.
“The Joe Rogan Experience” was formerly exclusively distributed by streaming service Spotify. However, it is now available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and other services. In February, Rogan reportedly signed a multiyear, $250 million contract with Spotify.
The popular podcast also became a magnet for controversy.
In 2022, Spotify was pressured to drop Rogan over his past use of racial slurs on the program and his criticism of the COVID-19 vaccine. That same year, Spotify co-founder and CEO said he agreed with Rogan’s decision to take down past episodes of his podcast but that he “did not believe that silencing Joe [Rogan] is the answer.”
Rogan is also a key figure in the world of mixed martial arts and has worked as a commentator for the UFC for over two decades.
Like Rogan, Trump is a fan of promoting mixed martial arts. During the Republican Party’s presidential primaries, he attended the UFC 299 event in Miami on March 9, sitting at ringside.
As a standup comedian, Rogan has recorded multiple albums and specials since 2000. His most recent special, “Joe Rogan: Burn the Boats,” was released in August on Netflix. In the special, Rogan was critical of the COVID-19 vaccine, said he believes various conspiracy theories, and made jokes about the transgender movement.
During his third presidential campaign, Trump appeared on many podcasts and online video series aimed at young men.
For her part, Vice President Kamala Harris has also hit the podcast and radio circuit in the closing weeks of the 2024 campaign season.
On Oct. 6, Harris, the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee, appeared on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast hosted by Alex Cooper. On Oct. 15, Harris appeared on “The Breakfast Club” radio program anchored by Lenard “Charlamagne tha God” McKelvey. The shows are aimed at young women and black Americans, respectively.
On Oct. 24, Harris campaign spokesman Ian Sams said in an interview with MSNBC that the vice president received an invitation to appear on Rogan’s show but said that “it isn’t going to work out right now because of the scheduling of this period of the campaign.”
