Women turn to podcasting to have their voices heard; from comedy to controversial topics, medium offers a platform away from traditional male-led media
With their low barrier to entry, podcasts are increasingly providing a platform for women to entertain or discuss issues important to them, while in China they offer a safe space to bring up potentially difficult topics
Podcasting is booming. In Los Angeles, its growing influence is obvious everywhere: many nights a week local theatres host live, often sold-out, recordings; tote bags and T-shirts proclaiming people’s favourite shows are commonplace; and increasingly podcasters are joining the ranks of the city’s only real aristocracy: celebrities.
According to a 2018 study on podcasting by Edison Research, the number of Americans who listen to podcasts weekly has grown by six million over the last year. Podcasting is also big business. In the US in the last year alone, advertising sales for podcasts have grown by as much as 80 per cent.
It is not just in America that podcasts are surging in popularity. All over the world, and especially in Asia, podcasts – digital audio files similar to radio broadcasts that you can download from the internet – are increasing in popularity among the younger generation as a way to entertain themselves and stay informed.
One of many new voices in podcasting is journalist Joanna Chiu, who co-founded NuVoices, an “international editorial collective” aimed at supporting “self-identified women working on the subject of China”. Since July she has also been a co-host of the group’s eponymous podcast, along with Alice Xin Liu and Sophie Lu.
“I’ve noticed in China the number of podcasts launched, as well as the people who are listening to podcasts, has greatly expanded,” Chiu says. “It’s also great to see that Chinese women born and raised in China are increasingly podcast hosts.”
According to the Edison Research study, the number of US women listening to podcasts went up 3 per cent last year (the percentage remained unchanged for US men). The total US audience for this digital medium, who had listened to at least one podcast in the month before the study’s survey, is estimated to be around 73 million. Women make up 48 per cent of that, but less than a quarter of podcast hosts are female.