What does Gen Z look for in podcasts?

Over 400 million people worldwide listen to podcasts! Like any other form of media, consumption varies by generation — and we're now starting to learn more about how Gen Z listens to podcasts.

Podcasts have become an increasingly popular form of media consumption, and their appeal varies among different generations, with each generation engaging with podcasts differently.

Edison Research finds that there are 24 million monthly podcast listeners in Gen Z, or those born between 1997 and 2012.

When it comes to staying up to date on current events and learning, Generation X consumes the most podcasts in news and politics, while  comedy, entertainment, and true crime are the top podcast genres for Gen Z.

Despite their love for light-hearted content, Gen Z's engagement with podcasts extends beyond entertainment. They use podcasts as a platform to explore and learn about topics that matter to them, such as social justice, the economy, and gun laws.

As for where Gen Z is finding their podcasts? The answer is social media. Not surprising considering that Gen Z does seem to be the generation addicted to their phones, but the role of social media cannot be underestimated in Gen Z's podcast discovery process. In fact the number one source used to discover podcasts for ages 13-24 is brief clips from social media.

Charlie D'Amelio would hate Congress Right Now!!

‍This episode is a fun, Gen-Z take on what was going on with Congress and Tik-Tok. Gen Z's Guide to Politics podcast explores news, democracy, and social justice issues in a relatable way for their generation.

This is Megan Goldstein, The Democracy Group's Community Manager. This week I listened to a lot of podcast episodes and wanted to share my favorites with you!

When the People Decide: Peeling back the curtain on local government

When the People Decide is back with an amazing first episode of the new season! This episode discusses the power of local government and the citizens ability to access it. Linda Harris, the guest on this episode, discusses Decatur 101 - a government class created to help residents of Decatur, Georgia learn about how local government works and to empower civic engagement.

Politics in Question: Why Congress?

‍This episode was incredibly informative and had a lot of great insight regarding congress. It takes a deep dive into congress with Philip Wallach, a senior fellow at American Enterprise Institute who studies congress. Wallach also goes into the details of his book, “Why Congress”  and asks important questions that help people see congress in a different light. Approval ratings, performance, job responsibilities, and more. Tune in to this episode!

Democracy Paradox: How Democratic (or autocratic) is Turkey Really?

Democracy? Autocracy? Both? This episode dives into what is going on with Turkey’s government. Both experts on this episode are professors of political science and also published, “How Erdoğan’s Populism Won Again” If you are looking for a challenging, yet educational episode give it a listen.

FEATURED EXPERTS

TPNR: Larry Wilmore on his life experiences

Larry Wilmore is a man of many hats - writer, producer, actor, mentor and podcaster! He has many accolades in the entertainment industry such as helping launch ABC’s Black-ish, Grownish, co-producing HBO’s Insecure, writing for shows such as The Office, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and more. He won a Peabody award in 2001, released his first book in 2009, and hosted the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in 2016.

Politics is Everything: Thom Reilly on the political state of Arizona

Dr Thom Reilly is the co-director for the Center for an Independent and Sustainable Democracy at Arizona State University. He has authored many works such as “Rethinking Public Sector Compensation: What Ever Happened to The Public Interest?”, “The Failure of Governance in Bell, California: Big Time Corruption in a Small Town”, and so much more. In addition to being an author he is currently a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, is on the editorial board for the academic journal Public Personnel management, and his work has appeared on many shows such as PBS NewsHour, CNN Money, Fox Business News.