Joe Rogan looked genuinely stunned during a recent podcast episode. He reacted to new poll results about assassination attempts targeting Donald Trump. The survey showed many Americans either doubt the attacks or remain unsure.
As a result, Rogan pushed back hard against conspiracy theories online, also blaming social media platforms for spreading confusion and misinformation.
Joe Rogan shocked many Americans believe Trump’s second assassination attempt was staged
During the May 13 episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, Rogan spoke with Brendan Schaub about the recent YouGov/NewsGuard poll. “Nearly one third of Americans, 30 percent, believe — 30 percent! — at least one of the attempts on the president’s life over the last two years was staged,” Rogan read. “Wooooow.”
“For each attempted assassination, a majority of Americans said either that it was staged or that they were not sure. 54 percent said they either thought it was staged or were not sure,” he continued.
The poll focused on three separate incidents. First came the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally shooting in July 2024. Then came the September 2024 incident at Trump’s golf club. Finally, the April 2026 shooting near the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was included.
However, Rogan strongly rejected claims that the Butler rally shooting was staged. “Anybody who says that doesn’t know anything about guns,” he said. He also argued no shooter could intentionally “nick an ear at 140 yards.”
In addition, Rogan mentioned the death of rally attendee Corey Comperatore. Several others were also injured during the attack. According to Rogan, Trump survived because he turned his head “at the exact microsecond” the bullet passed.
Later, Rogan blamed TikTok and social media algorithms for fueling conspiracy theories. “Only 38 percent of Americans believe that all three assassination attempts were authentic.’ This is TikTok. It’s f—– ruining people’s brains, rotting their f—— brains out from inside their heads,” Rogan said. Schaub then replied, “Americans, have fun. Go rot your brains.”
