Joe Rogan has taken to his podcast to criticize Bill Gates over COVID, claiming the billionaire is "responsible" for causing widespread harm during the pandemic.
The podcast host has previously taken to The Joe Rogan Experience to spread misinformation about the infectious disease, lockdowns and vaccines. He once claimed that the Pfizer and Moderna COVID vaccines were gene therapy, he's said lockdowns perpetuate the spread of the virus and suggested that young, healthy men do not need to get vaccinated.
Gates has often found himself in the firing line where COVID is concerned. When the vaccine emerged, anti-vaxxers spread claims that the former Microsoft CEO had placed microchips in the vaccine to track or influence people's behavior. It goes without saying that none of these conspiracy theories have been proven.
Now during Wednesday's episode of Rogan's podcast, he has said Gates—and other influential figures—are "responsible for a bunch of people taking a medication that was unproven."
Newsweek emailed spokespeople for Rogan and Gates for comment on Thursday outside of normal business hours.
"Bill Gates, who's on television telling everybody, 'Get the vaccine, you won't get COVID. And then afterward, that didn't work after he had unloaded all of his stock, it wasn't effective" Rogan said, before claiming: "It turns out COVID wasn't as bad as we thought it was. Well, you guys are really responsible for a bunch of people taking a medication that was unproven."
According to Yale Medicine, Moderna's initial Phase 3 clinical data in December 2020 was similar to Pfizer-BioNTech's, with both vaccines demonstrating approximately 95 percent efficacy for the prevention of COVID.
Per the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, those who received the improved COVID vaccine were 54 percent less likely to contract the disease across a four-month period from mid-September 2023 to January 2024.
Rogan said: "You're responsible for all the side effects. You're responsible for all these, and you're responsible for fearmongering, lying, closing down businesses, ruining economies, changing the political structure of the country."
Gates lambasted U.S. authorities in March 2020, accusing them of putting economic recovery ahead of saving lives during the coronavirus outbreak. He also previously urged lawmakers to prioritize virus containment before reopening businesses to protect people's health.
Since January of that year, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation—a philanthropic organization run by the billionaire—says it has allocated more than $770 million in funding to fight the virus. According to figures from the World Health Organization, in 2020-21, the foundation contributed more to the UN body than the U.S. government. Part of its COVID package included $264 million toward vaccine development.
"They need to be held to account," podcast guest Jimmy Corsetti said. "I'm not going to forget this and a lot of other people want—people's lives were destroyed."
This isn't the first time that Rogan has criticized Gates, as he previously aimed his ire at his foundation's immunization program, saying he will not take health advice from the Microsoft co-founder because he is "fat."
While discussing vaccines during the July 10 episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, the UFC commentator discussed the backlash he faced during the COVID pandemic with his guest, mixed martial artist Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. During the interview, Jackson said he chose not to get vaccinated against the virus after watching an interview with Gates and his now ex-wife, Melinda French Gates.
"Them saying they got to give it to Blacks and Latinos first, I was like 'Oh f*** that, I'm not taking it," Jackson said.
"I see Fauci is getting in trouble," he continued, referencing the House investigation of the scientist's handling of virus research. "But how come nobody saying anything about Bill Gates? Why would we listen to him about medicine anyway?"
Anthony Fauci was the chief medical adviser to the president at the height of the pandemic.
In response, Rogan called Gates "Fat."
"He's got a big pot belly," Rogan said. "Not only that, he's got no medical degree, I mean, I don't even think he had a college degree. He looks like s***, why are you taking health advice from a guy that looks like s*** just 'cause he invested a bunch of money in a company?"
Rogan has also previously claimed that the anti-parasitic drug Ivermectin cured the disease. The medication is normally used to treat intestinal strongyloidiasis and onchocerciasis, illnesses caused by parasitic worms. According to the Food and Drug Administration, available clinical data has not shown Ivermectin to be effective against COVID.
Rogan said he was prescribed the drug by a doctor to combat the illness, and claims he reiterated during the July 10 episode.
"They could have saved a lot of lives and they still to this day ridicule it," Rogan said. "They tried to do everything they could to make [people] take the vaccine because that's what was profitable. They only started attacking me because people could say, 'Oh Joe Rogan got better, yeah he's healthy.'"
He continued: "They exaggerated how many people died. The whole thing was f*****."
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