The roles are changing in how Republicans and Democrats watch, listen and participate in media outlets.
Podcasts
For a while, normal listener podcast make-up was mostly left-leaning voters, but now that’s changed. Latest media data from Edison Research shows that Republicans, not Democrats, are making up for a larger share of podcast listeners.
There has been steady growth in conservative podcasts that have attracted a larger audience during the Trump and Biden administrations. In 2019, 23% of podcast listeners were identified as Republicans. Today, that number is just over 30%. The number of Democrat listeners is declining, with around 26% of listeners being independent.
Top of the conservative talk podcasts are the Bensha Piro Show, Megging Kelly Show and the Matt Walsh Show of Daily Wire.
Sports Radio
Radio ratings show that sports radio listeners are primarily Republicans. However, after losing the 2024 election, more Democrats have relied on sports radio and podcasts to regain voters.
ESPN Sports Analyst Stephen A. Smith has been talking about more politics on his daily podcast. He has interviewed more about the sports podcasts, including Minnesota Governor and 2024 Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Tim Waltz, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Maryland Governor Wes Moore.
PA Governor Josh Shapiro recently made a play-by-play during a Pittsburgh Panthers University game.
Radio analysts point out that President Trump did well with the young man following sports radio and podcasts. The New York Times reported that Democrats hoping to get voters back will do more outreach to media outlets they have worked on in the past.
Radio talk show host and founder of Outkick.com Clay Travis said that if Democrats could regain presidency in 2028, they would need to choose male or female candidates.
