Controversial S#!T

Joe Rogan is getting support after saying he can do better on his podcast ... but some celebs still aren't buying it.

The Rock was more than good with Joe's mea culpa, saying, "Great stuff here brother. Perfectly articulated. Look forward to coming on one day and breaking out the tequila with you."

Kelly Slater echoed the sentiment ... "Love to see you offer to bring on Neil Young and/or Joni Mitchell on with whoever they want by their side to refute whatever it is they're so pissed about. If they're for truth it should be an easy convo. I'll be looking forward to their replies if so."

Jewel said, "You're doing a great job. Keep it up."

Jamie Kennedy said, "Tell me 1 person in mainstream media that is this transparent and this open. Go ahead, I'll wait."

And, former Presidential candidate Marianne Williamson said, "I'm triple vaxxed, but (unless they're standing for hate or calling for violence) banning someone's podcast is too much like burning a book to me," adding, "Joe Rogan should talk on his podcast about whatever he damn well pleases."

And, human rights activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali tripled down ... "this is exactly why Joe Rogan's podcast is so popular. He is open to different perspectives and listsens to people without judgment."

R&B singer India Arie, was unmoved by Rogan's apology, declaring she will follow in Neil Young's footsteps and take her music off Spotify, saying her decision is not based on just COVID misinformation ... it's based on race.

Last week philosopher Jordan Peterson jumped on Joe's podcast and the 2 had a talk about what it means to be Black. They're both white, and they made a bizarre point ... that Rogan understands because he's Italian.

Joe Rogan vowed to do better in the wake of criticism his podcast is spreading COVID misinformation ... and he says he knows how to make things better and more responsible.

Rogan broke his silence Sunday ... this after Neil Young and others yanked their music off Spotify in protest.

Rogan said he's down with Spotify's disclaimer when guests go against prevailing science ... a disclaimer urging folks to talk to their physician. The disclaimer will also note the views discussed are contrary to those of experts.

But, Rogan went further, acknowledging he should have done more ... like immediately after saying goodbye to a guest who goes against the grain, he'll bring on someone with mainstream views. He says he will do that from now on.

Rogan was contrite, telling Spotify he was sorry the platform has taken heat over his podcast. Joe also said he's a huge Neil Young fan and has no hard feelings toward him.

That said, Rogan began by saying the term "misinformation" is relative ... he says some of what was considered irresponsible to say early on in the pandemic has become a conventional point of view.

Neil Young has more company in his Spotify bailout campaign ... this time the likes of the guitarist for none other than The Boss himself.

Nils Lofgren is 86'ing his music from Spotify ... to protest the vaccine misinformation on Joe Rogan's podcast.

Nils said, "A few days ago, my wife Amy and I became aware of Neil and Daryl [Hannah] standing with hundreds of health care professionals, scientists, doctors and nurses in calling out Spotify for promoting lies and misinformation that are hurting and killing people."

He went on ... "When these heroic women and men, who’ve spent their lives healing and saving ours, cry out for help you don’t turn your back on them for money and power. You listen and stand with them."

Nils is a major musician ... a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, longtime Crazy Horse and E Street Band member ... but he's not one of the younger musicians who might make this a horse race for Spotify.

As we reported, Neil Young gave his ultimatum before yanking his music off the platform, and Joni Mitchell followed.

Nils is now asking other musicians to follow his lead.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have jumped into the Spotify/Joe Rogan fracas ... urging the platform to blunt "serious harms" over COVID misinformation.

As you know, the couple has a lucrative deal with Spotify -- $30 mil -- but they've come out swinging, with their rep saying, "Since the inception of Archewell, we have worked to address the real-time global misinformation crisis. Hundreds of millions of people are affected by the serious harms of rampant mis- and disinformation every day."

The rep went on ...  "Last April, our co-founders began expressing concerns to our partners at Spotify about the all-too-real consequences of COVID-19 misinformation on its platform. We have continued to express our concerns to Spotify to ensure changes to its platform are made to help address this public health crisis. We look to Spotify to meet this moment and are committed to continuing our work together as it does.”

As we reported, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and now Nils Lofgren have yanked their music off Spotify, in protest of Rogan. Meghan and Harry have not pulled the plug ... instead, they're just asking.

Britney Spears is outraged at her sister for hawking her book on TV ... a book she says became a best-seller off her back.

Britney said this of Jamie Lynn Spears ... "You are scum" -- posting video of conversations surrounding her sister's new book "Things I Should Have Said" on "The Talk" and "The Real."

Britney posted clips from the shows, where several hosts challenged Jamie Lynn for writing a book rather than talking it out with Britney privately. Britney wrote, "What these women are saying here is pretty clear!!! I'm just kinda shocked that more people like these real soul sisters aren't telling it like it is."

Britney went on ... "The nerve of you to sell a book now and talk s*** but your f***ing lying just like you lied about Alexa Nikolas !!!!"

And, Jamie Lynn's older sis challenged her to take a polygraph test.

Bill Maher says he's finding himself in a weird position these days ... a hero on the right and a villain on the left.

Maher, a libertarian who has been a reliable Democrat, skewered the Dems Friday night on "Real Time" for what he called "goofy s***," but he says it's not about embracing Republicans ... he says it's about teaching Democrats how to effectively fight them.

He seems amused members of George W. Bush's Administration -- which helped get him fired back in the day -- are now suggesting he run for President.

The message was laced with hilarity ... "I am still the same unmarried, childless, pot-smoking libertine I always was. Let's get this straight. It's not me who's changed, it's the left who is now made up of a small contingent who've gone mental and a large contingent who refuse to call them out for it, but I will."

And, then he did ... "People sometimes say to me, 'You know, you didn't use to make fun of the left as much.' Yeah, because they didn't give me so much to work with. The oath of office I took was to comedy. And if you do goofy s***, wherever you are in the spectrum, I'm going to make fun of you because that's where the gold is. And the fact that they are laughing at it should tell you something. It rings true."

Maher made his case by calling San Francisco "a shoplifter's paradise." He called out members of Congress who have advocated canceling rent and mortgages ... members who believe "capitalism is slavery."

Bill didn't mince words ..."It's not my fault that the party of FDR and JFK is turning into the party of LOL and WTF."

Joe Rogan has triggered another Spotify exit ... this time Joni Mitchell.

The 78-year-old singer said, "I've decided to remove my music from Spotify. Irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives."

The issue, of course, is Rogan's conversations about COVID ... which critics say contain false information about the virus and the vaccine ... information they say is dangerous and even deadly.

As you know, Rogan's the king of the hill over at Spotify with a reported $100 million deal. His podcast is also the most popular around. Neil Young took a stand earlier in the week, essentially saying, "him or me" ... knowing Spotify would not 86 Rogan. Young asked that his music be removed.

Young and Mitchell are both legendary musicians.  She won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and a Kennedy Center honor as well.

So far Spotify hasn't budged, in part because both Young and Mitchell are in their 70's and are not nearly the subscription drivers Rogan is ... it'll be interesting to see if younger singers jump on board, and if they do ... what will Spotify do?

Rob Riggle claims his estranged wife kept a watchful eye on him during their divorce, by secretly recording him with a hidden camera planted in his home ... and now he's suing.

According to a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Rob says he started to feel as if he was being watched shortly before his wife, Tiffany, filed for divorce.

In the docs, Rob claims the couple was trying to save their marriage by "nesting" -- staying in separate homes and taking turns living with the kids in the family home -- and he got the sense Tiffany was surveilling him because she seemed to have info about his whereabouts and private messages.

Rob claims he discovered a substantial amount of money missing from a lockbox in his home office shortly after Tiffany filed for divorce ... and he says he confronted her about it because she had access to the home, but claims she denied knowing anything about the missing cash.

Not long after, Rob claims Tiffany hacked into his Apple account and downloaded his texts, contacts, photos and emails ... and then he says things got even more disturbing.

Rob claims Tiffany somehow had knowledge of private conversations he'd had in his home with his girlfriend and assistant, and Tiffany -- or other anonymous sources -- would email or text them referencing the private convos.

As a result of the alleged leaks, Rob claims he and his GF devised a misinformation scheme, planting false info to test whether any of it would leak out ... and he claims his suspicions were confirmed.

According to the suit, Rob had his home electronically swept for devices ... and he claims a hidden spy camera was discovered in a smoke detector above his desk in his home office.

Rob says the device had a memory card with over 10,000 videos with sound on it, and the device appeared to be installed in August 2020 and was transmitting or recording all video and voice activity in the home for at least 7 months.

What's more, Rob claims there is an image on the device showing Tiffany standing on a ladder and installing the spy camera, plus another showing her sitting on the floor of his home office counting cash, which he thinks is the missing money from the lockbox.

Rob's going after Tiffany for damages ... and he wants an injunction barring her from recording him and forcing her to turn over all recordings and copies.

Sean Penn says men in America are becoming "quite feminized" ... and he has a not-so woke or PC idea of why it's happening.

The Oscar-winning actor just doubled down on comments he made to British publication The Independent about men wearing what's traditionally been women's clothing. ICYMI ... Sean said, "There are a lot of, I think, cowardly genes that lead to people surrendering their jeans and putting on a skirt."

Sean tried to clarify those remarks while talking to another UK outlet, and you can decide for yourself how that worked out. According to The i, he said ... "I am in the club that believes that men in American culture have become wildly feminized. I don't think that being a brute or having insensitivity or disrespect for women is anything to do with masculinity, or ever did. But, I don’t think that [in order] to be fair to women, we should become them."

SP added that the women in his life -- including his daughter, Dylan, who he directed in the new movie, "Flag Day" -- don't see masculinity as being inherently oppressive.

UFC champ Julianna Pena believes COVID is "just a money grab" ... admitting this week she's "a massive conspiracy theorist" when it comes to the pandemic.

The starfighter -- who just beat Amanda Nunes to win the women's bantamweight title in a huge upset at UFC 269 -- made the eyebrow-raising comments to Joe Rogan on "The Joe Rogan Experience."

During a talk about coronavirus with the podcast host, Pena said, "I'm a massive conspiracy theorist on this whole thing and I have been since the very beginning."

"And I'm like, 'This is just a money grab,'" she said. "This is -- they're trying to kill us," she added. "You know? And this is ridiculous."

Rogan responded quickly, saying, "Woah."

"I don't think they're trying to kill us," Rogan said. "I think there's a lot of confusion as far as what works and what doesn't work."

It's unclear exactly who either meant by "they" -- but it appears to be government officials.

The two went on to talk about COVID masks... and both Pena and Rogan made it very clear they have doubts about their efficacy.

"Have you seen that guy where he takes a pull from a vape pen, on the outside, and then just like clouds and plumes of smoke come out?" Pena said. "Like, what is [the mask] really protecting?"

Pena added, "I don't put on a mask unless somebody asks me."

Shaquille O'Neal is fed up with Ben Simmons -- the NBA legend wrecked the 76ers star with a rant on Thursday ... calling the baller nothing but a "crybaby."

Shaq's comments on "Inside the NBA" came during a conversation about Joel Embiid ... which turned into a comparison between the two teammates.

"The difference between [Embiid] and his soft partner is he can take criticism without being a crybaby and he still wants to play," O’Neal said.

"The other guy I don’t respect," Shaq said in reference to Simmons. "And I’ve been thinking about it. You’re missing the whole season because they asked your coach a question – can we win without you?"

"And your coach gave a funny answer. That should tell you, in the summertime, you need to work on your game."

The moment Shaq is referring to is a postgame interview with Doc Rivers, when he was asked if Simmons could be the point guard on a championship team ... to which coach responded, "I don't know the answer to that right now."

Shaq pointed out he was criticized by guys in the media over the course of his legendary career ... but he didn't let it get to him, and it motivated him to get better.

“You don’t think I haven’t been criticized by you guys and Stephen A. [Smith] and haven’t been criticized by LA media and New York media?" the Diesel said.

"Great players get criticized but the great players also step up to the criticism and perform."

The tension between Elon Musk and President Joe Biden is on the rise again ... with the billionaire hurling new, and colorful, insults over a perceived White House diss.

Elon was once again not invited to a summit meeting on Thursday, where top leaders – including Ford and GM's CEOs – are working together to promote Biden's "Build Back Better" bill.

The Prez gave them high marks for producing electric vehicles ... which Elon, Mr. Tesla himself, clearly took as a direct shot.

Musk lashed out on Twitter, saying ... "Biden is treating the American public like fools" -- and, for good measure, he called the President "a damp [sock] puppet in human form."

No response from the White House. Ditto for Lamb Chop.

This also happened last year after an electric vehicle White House summit in August. If you're wondering why Elon's being shut out ... WH Press Secretary Jen Psaki said back then, "The 3 largest employers of the United Auto Workers" had been invited. Yeah, it's because Tesla's factories are not unionized.

Elon's racking up opponents in DC -- you'll recall he's also been in a war of words with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who's railed on him for not paying enough income tax ... in her eyes.

Elon fired back, "You remind me of when I was a kid and my friend's angry Mom would just randomly yell at everyone for no reason."

Ex-NBA player Kwame Brown is livid with Dwyane Wade's daughter's fashion tribute to Kobe Bryant ... saying her #8 jersey dress was "disrespectful" to the Lakers legend.

14-year-old Zaya Wade showed love to the Bryants in an Instagram post on Wednesday ... wearing the outfit and captioning the post, "always remembering and honoring Kobe and Gianna."

Seems harmless, right?? Not in Brown's eyes ... as the 2001 #1 overall pick unleashed on Dwyane during his "Bust Life" YouTube show on Thursday ... saying the ex-Miami Heat star doesn't "level up as a man."

"You are letting your woman control your house," Kwame said ... claiming Kobe's wife, Vanessa, and kids would not honor Kobe the same way Zaya did.

Kwame strongly believes Zaya's tribute does a disservice to everything Kobe stands for ... citing his work ethic, masculinity, and faith.

"I'm not saying there's anything against homosexuals, but [Kobe] is a heterosexual man. Why is he being honored by making his jersey into a dress? Wear his goddamn jersey for the day to honor him without the dress part," Brown added.

"Let's please not show our Black brother in this light. This is no offense to nobody else. This man was a heterosexual man with a wife and a family. There's no reason for this to be tied to Kobe Bryant. None whatsoever."

D-Wade has been nothing but supportive of Zaya ... and has spoken out about how the family has grown in understanding over the years.

Ben Roethlisberger had a better NFL resume than both Eli Manning and Philip Rivers ... so says Charlie Batch, who tells TMZ Sports Big Ben is the best QB from that insane 2004 draft class.

We spoke with Charlie just minutes after Roethlisberger retired on Thursday ... and the former NFL quarterback explained he thinks Ben is hands down a better QB than Manning and Rivers.

"It's no knock against Eli or Philip, but I'm taking Ben Roethlisberger 1A," Batch said. "Eli 1B, and then Philip Rivers is behind them, only because of the Super Bowl victories."

Of course, Batch is biased -- he played with Ben for years in Pittsburgh -- but he said the guy was just that good.

In fact, Charlie tells us he instantly connected with Ben after he was taken in the first round of the '04 draft because they both played in the same college conference before they got their NFL starts.

“When I first met him back in 2004, there was instant respect because he went to Miami of Ohio and I went to Eastern Michigan," Batch said.

"So when you’re from the mid-American conference, we know how hard one, it is just to get to the NFL, and how hard two, it is to get there from the mid-American conference."

As for the Ben/Manning/Rivers debate ... Batch says even though he's got Ben on top of the heap, "all three of them will end up in Canton one day."

We also spoke with Batch about where the Steelers go from here now that Ben is retired, and he told us he believes they won't be able to pursue guys like Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson because they straight-up need all the draft capital it would take to acquire them.

Neil Young's catalog is no longer streaming on Spotify -- the rock legend told the platform it couldn't have him AND Joe Rogan, so Neil's gone ... but he's already found another home.

Young essentially gave Spotify an ultimatum earlier this week, claiming it's allowing Rogan to spread misinformation about COVID-19 on his immensely popular podcast. In a letter to his managers, he wrote, "They can have Rogan or Young. Not both."

Not shockingly, Spotify chose Rogan -- with whom it has a $100 million deal -- but it also responded to Neil's criticism about misinformation. Spotify says it's actually removed 20,000 clips containing false COVID-19 info since the start of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, SiriusXM is seizing on all the Neil buzz this week ... announcing it's relaunching Neil Young Radio -- a channel spinning his catalog 24/7 -- for the next month. BTW, you can still find his music on other streaming platforms too.

Apparently, the whole “self-isolate if you test positive for COVID” thing, doesn’t apply to everyone … at least, that’s what Sarah Palin seems to think.

Palin was spotted with former NY Ranger Ron Duguay and friends Wednesday night at Elio’s in New York. The issue? Palin, who is unvaccinated, tested positive for COVID two days prior ... causing a judge to delay her defamation trial against the New York Times.

Things got so overwrought, according to law enforcement, a heated dispute broke out between a stranger and Duguay.

We're told someone tried to record Sarah and Co., because it became big news she tested positive. Cops were called to the restaurant but no one was arrested.

Someone who worked at the restaurant scoffed at the criticism, telling the New York Post, "S*** happens. People come to eat. We are not the border police."

Palin and Co. did sit outside at Elio’s, but that wasn’t the case over the weekend. She was there a few days earlier and dined inside, which caused an uproar and forced her to return to apologize. When she came back to eat again, Elio’s said, “Palin returned to the restaurant to apologize for the fracas around her previous visit. In accordance with the vaccine mandate and to protect our staff, we seated her outdoors”.

We don't know if Palin got a negative result after her positive tests. Many doctors say the virus stays in the system of unvaccinated people longer than those who are vaccinated.