At the top of the American podcasting pyramid sits Joe Rogan, a media personality known for hardball humor, Fight Club commentating, and backing politicians across the political spectrum, from leftist Bernie Sanders to President Donald Trump. “The Joe Rogan Experience” has been one of Spotify’s most popular podcasts for five consecutive years and features long-form, in-person interviews between Rogan and one of the hundreds of political, academic and cultural figures he’s had on as guests, from Elon Musk and rising democratic star James Talarico to Neil deGrasse Tyson and Quentin Tarantino. i
Rogan’s podcasts, which also post in video form on YouTube, reach tens of millions of people – an audience that’s more than 20 times larger than primetime cable news. His conversations often span hours and enable him to showcase a charm and humor that often comforts guests, creating an environment where no topic — or opinion — is off-limits.
Behind the jokes and sound bites, however, Rogan leans into complex and controversial themes of conspiracy, race, sexuality and gender. Rogan casts himself as a curious mind and promotes skepticism of the establishment across most disciplines. Where that lands him politically is mixed. Rogan officially endorsed Trump just before the election last year, but has since blasted the president’s immigration tactics and handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. He’s been criticized himself for spreading anti-vax conspiracy theories that nearly ended his Spotify contract, but has also gone on the record to support liberal ideas cast as “liberal” such as same-sex marriage, pro-choice reproductive rights, an end to the drug war, more humane deportation, cooperation with allies like Canada and even universal healthcare.
Rogan has been criticized for preaching traditional and outdated definitions of masculinity, romanticizing aggressive behavior, and mocking the new millennium’s embrace of emotional vulnerability or perceived weakness in men.
In 2022, he called himself a “bleeding-heart liberal” when it comes to social issues. In fact, Rogan’s position as a fringe independent transcends typical party lines and also attracts young male independents — 35% of his listeners self-identify as independent voters. Perhaps, then, it’s not so much his political alignment that is alluring to many young men, but instead his confident, self-assured messaging in a society where many have felt vulnerable and left behind.
Gender roles have shifted considerably over the past decades, but maybe not as much as we think. A 2017 Pew survey found that 71% of Americans believe a man must be financially able to support his family to be a good spouse. In 2024, Pew found that about 60% believe Americans don’t give enough respect to men who show emotions. In the same survey, only 57% of Americans said it was extremely or very acceptable for men to stay at home and take care of children while women work.
Young men identifying with those traditional cultures may feel isolated as young women gain autonomy and power. Young Americans are getting married later and later, or never at all. If getting married and having a wife and family is another box on society’s checklist for American men, a decline in marriage — “a marriage crisis” — paves the way for new voices to reshape masculinity. Alongside broader societal dissatisfaction and financial insecurity, the formula is potent.
Though Rogan has hosted Democratic political figures on his show, including Bernie Sanders and Andrew Yang, his pushback is inconsistent. In one interview, Canadian psychologist and right-wing academic figure Jordan Peterson, who regularly criticizes feminism, emphasized such values while Rogan sat across from him, nodding along and agreeing. Then, when Rogan interviewed Trump, he was accused of ultimately going easy on him, with Trump indulging his own “greatest hits.” An interview with Kamala Harris never materialized, as Rogan accused her campaign of trying to ban certain topics ahead of time. He maintained she had an “open invitation.”
That image of political ambiguity only goes so far, and his fans seem to prefer it that way. Whether he actually is a vagabond or just mainstream, Rogan’s fans continue to lean right, and self-report consuming his content alongside Fox News, Newsmax, The Daily Wire, the Tucker Carlson Network and Breitbart. For many young men, Rogan and his podcast act as a beacon of reassurance, encouraging them to fully express identities in a world that, they feel, puts them down.
Figures like Rogan embrace this disillusionment, masked by seemingly tangible promises of power, wealth and the value of skepticism. It is not so much his political beliefs or values that make him popular with fans — it is the blamelessness he promises them.