Podcasts have created some of the best viral moments in the past year. No Jumper, Crime Junkie and Theo Von are just some of the recognizable names associated with the rising podcast trend. With the many varieties of podcasts coming into the mainstream, internet users are seeing opinions, knowledge, discoveries, misinformation and disinformation. The trend does bring questions of whether the world of podcasting should be regulated more.
In the United States post-COVID-19 outbreak, there has been a public decline in mental health due to a lack of social interaction. On top of this social isolation, many political and social issues reached a head that brought millions to the streets to protest — such as the death of George Floyd in 2020. With the craving for social interaction and the newfound compulsion of many to use their voice, people took to the mics.
Podcasting has given a rawness to the world of media. People are filling in the gap between the unheard and the “voiceless,” where people are taking their positions as the watchdogs of the government and other media sources. As there are around 4.18 million podcasts worldwide with an estimated 504.9 million listeners globally, there is a podcast option for everyone. According to the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2024, 44% of Americans listen to podcasts, and only 32% of Americans trust the media.
A majority of Americans have started seeking podcasts and television shows to get their information. Podcasts have created a network of parasocial, information-based relationships with the public and the media.
This rise in popularity has also gotten people more involved in their local communities. True crime has become a popular genre of podcasts and has seen benefits and proactivity in bringing cases to the media's attention, including solving some cold cases.
Recently, podcaster and content creator Stephanie Soo was praised for talking about the case of two South Korean actress sisters. The two were sexually assaulted by multiple executives and big names in the South Korean movie and entertainment industry, which resulted in their deaths by suicide in 2009. Their mother, who is referred to by her surname, Jang, has advocated for the reopening of her daughters’ cases and for the assailants to be brought to justice. With the release of Soo’s video in 2023, Jang’s fight for her daughters has reached widespread media attention globally, with many social activists now helping with the case.
Others are using their platforms to inform and entertain. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson uses his podcast, StarTalkto highlight niche, unrecognized studies of science; some episodes may even change the way you sleep, literally. He is giving the public access to expertise in actively ground-breaking fields.
Although podcasts have benefited society by bringing in a sense of community, getting people involved in their surrounding communities and providing groundbreaking information to the public, there is always a downside to unfiltered media.
There is an over-saturation in the podcasting market that is already causing some to feel burnt out with the concept. In a 2019 article, journalist Jennifer Miller interviewed Nicholas Quah, former head of “Hot Pod.” Quah said, “Anyone can start one and so anyone who thinks they can start one will do it — it’s like the business of me.”
This was elaborated on in the article by Karen North, a clinical professor of communication at the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California. North wrote, “Being a podcast host plays into people’s self-importance. And it projects that importance to others. Public speaking and consulting gigs now often go to ‘the person who’s the expert and has the podcast.’”
“The thing about podcasts is that it’s very, very hard to determine popularity,” North said. “It’s easy for the host to appear to be an influencer. And whether anybody finds that podcast or listens to it and the bounce rate — who knows?”
However, many podcast hosts have started to spew hateful and derogatory messages. Some hosts spread harmful rhetoric that has negatively influenced audiences and use unethical practices for their content.
Many podcasts talk about the same topics, with the defining factor of podcast popularity being the size of the audience. There also seems to be a new take on media regulation with platforms like podcasts. However, podcasts are shown to be the newest platform for information and parasocial content, but there is a need to question how sustainable it is because of the overpopulation of the platform and oversaturation of content.
