The Podcast Boom: Podcasts as Popular Media & Why You Should Care!
Over the last decade the media landscape has changed again and again as new technologies have been created. From this constantly changing technological quagmire an entirely familiar, but new, medium has emerged: radio has reemerged from the dying remains of its audio empire to inspire a new form of on-demand listening and storytelling.
The rise of the podcast is indicative of an all-around shift in the way we consume media. Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu have proven we want to control the media we ingest on a daily basis. What’s more, an average American consumes over 10 hours of media every single day. But with this glut of listening comes a drawback: we are running out of time! The average person spends 52 minutes a day commuting and another 17 minutes a day working out. Also, for the most part, we don’t have jobs that allow us to watch videos all day. This means lots of time to passively engage in content we care about.
Podcasts are unique in that they allow the listener to engage with a topic on a much deeper level than they ever may have before. Instead of listening to a 5 minute segment on a morning news show you can dive into a 50 minute conversation about the topic. Some hosts, like Joe Rogan, can take hours to dive into their content while others, like Eric Molinsky, prefer to take 30 minutes or less. Each of these podcasts is built around a very specific community or fandom.
What makes podcasts powerful is the fact that every single one feels like it was made just for the listener. Outside of Audio Dramas and serial podcasts, you are not locked into an elongated character or story arc, you can choose the episode you want to listen to and ignore the rest. For example, my wife and I love the GastroPod which takes an incredibly deep dive on subjects ranging from peanuts to saffron. We love to pick and choose which episodes we are interested in and then listen while we take our weekend trips!
The power of podcasts is not just the engaging nature and specificity of content, it also lies in their flexibility, low barrier of entry, and ease of engagement. This is part of what has led to the incredible growth of podcasting as a medium. Anyone can create a podcast and anyone can listen to a podcast. They are free to listen to and many will offer bonus content to their Patreon supporters. The percentage of people in the US listening to podcasts has doubled in the last 4 years and 65% of active listeners only started in the last 3! Unlike other storytelling mediums, podcasting does not require expensive equipment to view it or a high cost of production. The listener creates the visuals and the story is crafted as it is told. In some stories like Hello from the Magic Tavern or The Adventure Zone there is no set canon and decisions are made as the podcast unfolds.
No matter what you are looking for, there’s a podcast for it! Some are elaborate audio dramas, such as Girl in Space and The White Vault, that take you through the creation of imaginary worlds. Others are more news oriented, like The Watch or Pod Save America, that walk you through the latest happenings in entertainment and politics. The reality though is that podcasts are here to stay and are increasing in impact and variety every year.
Happy podcasting!
TeePublic
