A recent English assignment at Wisconsin Heights High School in Mazomanie, Wis. is raising eyebrows as parents contend it forces students to list all of the reasons that Spotify should cancel "The Joe Rogan Experience" podcast.
In it, 12th grade students were asked to read and analyze the NPR article "What the Joe Rogan Podcast Controversy Says About the Online Misinformation Ecosystem." The article contends that Rogan, who apologized Monday amid a musical artist boycott of Spotify (which hosts his podcast), has a "track record of airing false claims about the coronavirus pandemic, vaccines and unproven treatments" and quotes scientists who call the show "a sociological issue of devastating proportions."
Students are then asked to "highlight important information" in the article and "annotate it for...misinformation (false facts) and who is disseminating it" as well as "the role of Spotify in the controversy."
"This is just a list of reasons to cancel Joe Rogan," said one parent. "It's propaganda disguised as homework."
The Wisconsin Heights School District has not yet responded to a request for comment.