The White House is doing damage control with prominent manosphere podcasters amid donald trumpThe consequences of leading right-wing media figures for the Iran war. Joe Rogan It is its main objective.
Rogan was a key supporter of Trump’s 2024 campaign, but as the Iran war became the biggest foreign policy quagmire of the Trump presidency, the podcaster with an audience of more than 11 million listeners became openly critical of the administration. Rogan’s past support for Trump (and his role as connecting tissue between the campaign and the so-called manosphere) was seen as a fundamental pillar of the president’s campaign media apparatus. Rogan, who is also a UFC commentator, said earlier this month that he was “confused” and felt “betrayed” by the administration’s decision to launch a conflict against Iran.
“It seems crazy based on what he did. That’s why a lot of people feel betrayed. He didn’t participate in more wars and those stupid, pointless wars. And then we have one where we can’t even clearly define why we did it,” Rogan said of the war.
When Trump launched a tirade against some of his most prominent supporters turned critics of Iran on April 9, Rogan’s name was not among those the president considered “crazy” and “losers,” such as Tucker Carlson, Alex Jones, Megyn Kelly and Candace Owens.
Instead, the administration is actively and aggressively trying to curry favor with Rogan, according to a Monday. Axios report. Sources tell Axios that the president is “frequently” in contact with Rogan and that Vice President JD Vance paid him a personal visit in Austin last month. Over the weekend, Rogan visited the white house to attend the signing of an executive order that would help facilitate federal approval for the use of psychedelics as a treatment for serious mental illness.
During the ceremony, Rogan told reporters that the executive order had been drawn up after he texted Trump with information about ibogaine, an experimental psychoactive drug that has shown promise as a possible treatment for addiction.
“The text message came through: ‘Sounds great. Do you want FDA approval? Let’s do it.’ It was literally that fast,” Rogan told reporters.
Throwing Rogan a bone to potentially appease his criticism of the administration isn’t just about controlling the tone of podcast clips circulating on social media. Rogan has an active working relationship with the White House and the podcaster has been tapped to provide commentary for the next UFC fight at the White House. As his criticism of the administration grew, Rogan’s disillusionment with the bizarre sporting event (and his potential role in it) became more public.
“I’ll be there, but I’m not excited. It doesn’t seem like a good idea,” Rogan said.after the March interview. “I know there will be a lot of security, a lot of stress, and it will be strange to have a fight in the White House in the middle of a fucking war. I hope the war is resolved in June, but honestly, I’m not sure that’s the case.”
The White House also hopes to resolve the war as soon as possible, but like the global fuel economy, some of the damage Trump has done to his reputation with the right-wing’s formidable media apparatus may be permanent.
