During a recent episode of the Joe Rogan Experience with Khalil Rountree, the longtime UFC commentator spoke about a motivational video where Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov can be heard speaking about the importance of being addicted to discipline.
The problem? The motivational speech from Nurmagomedov was AI-generated.
While in the past, Rogan has quickly been called out by his on-site producer Jamie Vernon when discussing fake content, that wasn’t the case on Jul. 24.
Instead, Rogan and Rountree both praised the clip, with the longtime commentator saying that he’s going to watch it as part of his morning routine.
You can see the situation unfold beginning at the 1:36:47 mark of the video below.
Note: Video is timestamped to begin play at the start of the segment.
While in the past Rogan has landed in hot water for unintentionally platforming misinformation based on content he’s seen online, this is different.
This time, there’s no need for Rogan to apologize for spreading harmful misinformation, there’s only a stark reminder that AI-generated content is spreading at an astronomical rate and flooding social media feeds en masse, blurring the lines for many between what’s real, and what’s fake.
While in this case the creator made a motivational video using Nurmagomedov’s voice, they just as easily could have created something controversial that found its way into Rogan’s feed and onto his show, landing Nurmagomedov in hot water for words he never spoke.
Looking Back at Previous Examples of Joe Rogan Falling for Misinformation
As previously mentioned, Joe Rogan has spread misinformation in the past, on several occasions, without even realizing it.
Back in 2022, during the May 12 episode of The Joe Rogan Experience with guest Bryan Sharpe, Rogan spoke about a bill in Australia that would ban people from growing their own food.
At the time, Rogan admitted that he, quote, “briefly” read about the situation, however, he then connected it to the COVID-19 pandemic at the time, alleging that a ban on home-grown food was the next step in population control.
Vernon, Rogan’s on-site producer mentioned earlier, was unable to find anything about the situation.
You can watch the situation unfold at the 2:26:00 mark in the video below.
Note: Video is timestamped to begin play at the start of the segment.
Just several months later, while speaking with guest Dr. Phil on Ep. 1,889 of the Joe Rogan Experience, Rogan spoke about Halloween candy being laced with fentanyl.
In this instance, Rogan’s on-site producer quickly stepped in, pulling up an NPR article debunking the claim, as seen in the video below.
You can watch the situation unfold at the 10:51 mark of the video below.
Note: Video is timestamped to begin play at the start of the segment.
Rogan and Recent Guest Go Viral for Criticizing Former Guest’s Handling of Epstein Files
While Joe Rogan and Khalil Rountree talking about an AI-generated Khabib Nurmagomedov video have been making the rounds, the longtime UFC commentator is also going viral for his recent conversation with former CIA officer Mike Baker on Ep. 2,355 of The Joe Rogan Experience.
During the episode, the two spoke at length about the way the FBI and the US Justice Department have handled the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, or rather, the lack thereof.
After metadata from the surveillance video of Epstein’s cell showed the footage was doctored, FBI director Kash Patel, who Rogan had on as a guest last month, backed the report indicating there was no list of Jeffrey Epstein’s clients, Rogan didn’t hold back while speaking about the situation with Baker,
“Then he’s like, ‘Well, we have a film, we’re gonna release that film,’ and the film has a f****** minute missing from it. Like, do you think we’re babies? Like, what is this?”
As he went on to say, the Epstein case seems to be the “line in the sand” for him and many others, however, so far, Patel has yet to respond.
Additionally, it’s unclear whether Rogan will look to invite him back on to discuss the situation further.
Joe Rogan Falls for AI-Generated Khabib Nurmagomedov Video