What the numbers say: People want to be informed when they're listening to podcasts. But mostly, they want to be entertained. Earning the largest "Major Reason" votes percentage in the Pew Research Center survey on podcasts interests, Entertainment was the top choice among reasons why people listen to podcasts. Listening to podcasts "To learn" came in second, and the third most popular reason to listen to podcasts was "To have something to listen to while you're doing something else." Relevance: The Pew Research Center surveyed people at the end of 2022 about their interests in podcasts and their tendencies when listening. The least popular answers to the specific question on the survey, "How much is each of the following a reason why you listen to a podcast?" were "To hear other people's opinions," "To stay up to date on current events," and "For encouragement or inspiration." It should be noted that the topic that earned the most "Not a reason" votes was "For encouragement or inspiration." Looking forward: It will be interesting to see if another survey were to be taken as the 2024 presidential election creeps closer and to see if people are more interested in listening to podcasts to learn or stay up to date on current events. |
