Joe Rogan, host of The Joe Rogan Experience, criticized establishment media for engaging in what he described as a “psy-op” to distort public perception of President-elect Donald Trump.

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Rogan, whose podcast is among the most widely listened to globally, has become a significant figure in the 2024 election, notably after interviewing Trump and endorsing his candidacy late in the race.

On Thursday’s episode, Rogan hosted comedians Shane Gillis, Mark Normand, and Ari Shaffir for a wide-ranging discussion that included the media’s evolving portrayal of Trump.

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Rogan contrasted past media treatment of Trump to its current approach, playing clips from Trump’s 2012 appearances on The View and The Oprah Winfrey Show.

“People in entertainment and the media were friendly to Trump back then,” Rogan said, noting the applause he received on The View and Oprah asking him about running for president.

He compared those moments to Oprah’s recent criticisms of Trump while campaigning with Kamala Harris and The View’s increasingly harsh commentary about him.

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“What we saw is the greatest media psy-op in history,” Rogan argued.

Rogan did not hold back in his critique of legacy media, calling its approach to Trump a calculated attempt to shape public opinion.

“What you’re seeing with Trump, regardless of his flaws, is a massive concentrated psy-op,” Rogan said. “They’ve distorted who he is to the point where most people think that way. Most people think that way. They’ve had narratives.”

When Normand asked for clarification on the term “psy-op,” Rogan explained, “Psychological operation. Where they’ve decided to distort people’s perceptions of things.”

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Shaffir added to the discussion by highlighting the disconnect some older liberals experience when learning factual comparisons between Trump and Barack Obama.

“When you tell like a, like an older liberal that, like the Obama deportations were higher than the trumpet deportations, they go, no, what? No. And you go, No, I’ll just, let me just Google deportations, Obama’s Trump. And you go, it’s lower. They go, wait, what? Like, here’s 19 straight articles saying, saying that I’m right, yeah. And they go, that doesn’t make sense. And you go, right,” Shaffir said, pointing out that Obama oversaw more deportations than Trump.

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Rogan suggested that the 2024 election marked a turning point in media influence, asserting that alternative platforms like podcasts and social media have diminished legacy outlets’ control over public opinion.

“They had control of the media up until now. This election was the first time they didn’t really have control of the media anymore,” Rogan stated.

When asked why the shift occurred, Rogan pointed to the rise of new platforms. “Because of us, because of podcasts. Because of social media, because of X [formerly Twitter],” he said.

Rogan’s endorsement of Trump and his sharp critiques of media bias underscore the changing dynamics of political communication in the digital age.

His podcast, with its massive audience, reflects the growing influence of independent voices challenging traditional media narratives.

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