Podcasting's Decline

 

Or...Maybe not

The Guardian reported in February that "the creation of new podcasts declined by 80 percent compared to the previous two years, despite viewership staying at an all-time high. Their experts point to the “Post-Pandemic Boom” of podcasts, a desire to create a podcast that has since depleted."

Maybe podcasting is just right-sizing post pandemic. The Interactive Advertising Bureau estimates that ad revenue from podcasts will surge to $4.2 billion by 2024. Leading the way now is celebrities and influencers. According to Conor Johnston in the Massachusetts Daily Collegian, "For influencers and celebrities at the height of their careers, it seems the new necessity is having a podcast. They’re everywhere. From Emma Chamberlain, Joe Rogan and now Alix Earle joining the scene, the rise of podcasting is palpable."

And there are plenty of listeners and viewers downloading podcasts. There are 464.7 million podcast listeners globally as of 2023. This number is predicted to reach 504.9 million by 2024. The podcast industry market size is $23.56 billion. There are over 5 million podcasts globally with over 70 million episodes between them. (demandesage.com)

Not everybody is enamored with the trend of people famous for being famous creating podcasts. Conor Johnston comments, "Even after all this cash greed, they still can’t do the podcasts right. But what did we expect from people that are only famous because of their grandiose lives and beauty?"

"Personally, sitting through an influencer podcast was by far the worst experience I’ve had. One such podcast, We’re All Insane, is hosted by influencer Devorah Roloff, and is insanely famous. It’s also hard to follow, doesn’t introduce anybody involved in the podcast and involves the influencer monotonously repeating words such as “right” and “yeah” in a valley girl accent for an hour. Even worse, the podcast is video recorded, a growing phenomenon as more who join the podcasting realm rely on their image more than their words."

"Despite these podcasts being generally bad, they gain viewers because of the hosts existing fame. For podcasters trying to independently break out without any existing renown, this creates a culture of making it exceptionally hard to be a successful podcaster. This is especially true considering how expensive it is to start a podcast. In many ways, influencers joining the world of podcasts will destroy it. The scripts are hard to follow, and they rely too heavily on their previous audiences and personal images. So, if you’re an up-and-coming content creator with an inclination to start a podcast, a message from this vexed writer: don’t."

Will big bucks be the end of meaningful content, and ultimately podcasting?