A podcast is much like a radio show, except that it is recorded and it is on the internet.
And podcasts are growing in popularity every day with millions of casts and even more listeners.
If you want to join the fun, you probably have everything you need right now. IPhone users can search for podcasts via the little purple podcast app that is loaded by default. Android users can listen through Google Play Music. Simply open a podcast app and search for topics: religion, politics, art, languages, or even full dramatic tales. You can also search by name for commentators, for example. You can also search through iTunes and Apple TV.
At least 44 percent of the American population has now listened to one, according to Podcast Insights. In fact, about 73 million people listen to podcasts at least once a month and 48 million tune in at least once per week. The ability to stream or download podcasts and listen to them later on a smartphone has been the primary driver of listener growth during the last several years, moving from 9.5 million listeners in 2014 to 23.9 million in 2017.
The popularity of podcasting is partly due to the fantastic diversity of content. There are about 525,000 active shows and more than 18.5 million single episodes, according to Fast Company.
You don't need much technical expertise or money to start a podcast, according to Mashable. Anyone can start a podcast and speak their mind.
On the other hand, not everyone can keep their podcast, especially political podcasts. Unlike radio, which is a public media, there is significant censorship in the private podcast world. Tech companies like Google, Apple, and Facebook, have united to eliminate podcasts not in keeping with their political ideologies. Political and cultural podcasts uploaded to sites such as Facebook or YouTube have been 'de-monetized' if opinions are contrary to tech company views so that their creators can't make money. Other podcasts are simply removed.
