Study reveals American political media consumption trends, attitudes

SALT LAKE CITY — A study conducted by Podcastle found that 28% of Americans are consuming less political media during this election cycle. 

“We surveyed 1,000 U.S. general population respondents in an online survey. This data was then split by multiple demographics, including generation and political ideology, to uncover key insights,” said Joe Towner, the content lead at Podcastle. 

The company works to build easy-to-use podcast creation software. 

According to Podcastle, 57% of the survey respondents said they are engaging with political media about the same amount during this election cycle. 

Political podcast consumption varies by views

Podcastle’s study said that one in six respondents said they consume political media by listening to podcasts. 

According to Towner, the study revealed that podcast listening habits vary with political views.  

“Nearly 60% of right-leaning respondents are tuning into audio news this election season, compared to 47% with centrist ideologies and 45% of left-leaning listeners,” said Towner. 

Additionally, those with liberal or center-leaning views favored NPR’s News Now.

Podcastle did not directly reveal which podcast those with right-leaning ideologies favored. However, the study revealed that only 32% of conservative respondents chose The Tucker Carlson Podcast as their first choice. 

A table included in the study summary showed that younger podcast listeners also favored NPR’s News Now. The show tied was the number one pick for Millennials and tied as Gen-Z’s favorite. 

Gen-X respondents favored The Tucker Carlson Show. Baby Boomers’ favorite is The Rachel Maddow show, per the study. 

Where else do people consume political media? 

While the study said that 75% of the respondents choose not to express political views online, younger users are likely to interact with political media posted by others. 

“There were interesting variations when asked where the different generations engage with and consume political media too. Almost half of Gen Z respondents, 46%, shared that their top platform for consuming political news was X, followed by news websites or apps,” said Towner. 

Millennials and Gen-Xers most often choose news websites or apps. In comparison, Baby Boomers tend to choose television news programs as their number one option. 

Despite the differences in media consumption, the study revealed one similarity. Baby Boomers are viewed as the most annoying generation when posting and interacting with political media. 

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