Trump’s win against Harris: Podcasts the voices of a nation?

While the dust and the shockwaves felt in certain quarters are still settling from the result of the 2024 US Presidential elections (and the accompanying Senate and House of Representative races), discussions are already underway on the outcome, the reasons behind it, and so on and so forth.

Please note that in this, and accompanying stories, we will only be looking at only the contest between Trump and Harris , not the previous race between incumbent Joe Biden and the 47 th President-Elect, nor the fallout from that assassination attempt, which many say actually decided the contest months ago.

Among the many angles and paths that these discussions will take, one really stood out to us, it spoke to us.

Kamala Harris and the Democrats have dominated political ad spends; they have leveraged the massive tech forces of Google and Meta far more than their Republican opponent; they have courted and curried celebrity endorsement; and they have canvassed city and society, demographic and denomination, nation and notions. They have been a collective. And they have lost. They have lost the White House, they have lost the Senate, and look poised to lose the House of Representatives.

Donald Trump went on podcasts. A lot of podcasts. He went on popular podcasts, populist podcasts, and puerile podcasts; the three often overlapping each other in a venn diagram. He did ads and roadshows and rallies, sure, but what we'll remember from this contest with Harris are the podcasts. Donald Trump has been a one-man brand. And Donald Trump has won. Donald Trump has won the White House . Donald Trump has won the Senate. And Donald Trump is likely to win the House of Representatives.

Talking Numbers

What’s interesting is that during the 2024 US election cycle, both Harris and Trump strategically leveraged popular podcasts to engage voters and amplify their messages, but the podcasts (and said podcasts’ target audiences) they chose were widely varied.

Harris made notable appearances on several influential shows. On Call Her Daddy , a podcast that boasts around 5 million downloads per episode and is valued at approximately $60 million, her episode garnered about 10 million views on YouTube. This platform, hosted by Alex Cooper, primarily attracts a young female demographic, allowing Harris to connect with potential voters on personal and cultural issues.

She also appeared on All the Smoke , which focuses on sports and culture, achieving around 1.5 million downloads per episode and an estimated net worth of $20 million. This episode reached approximately 13 million views on YouTube, engaging young Black men—which was a crucial (and seemingly distant) voter segment for her campaign. Additionally, Harris’ appearance on the Howard Stern Show , which draws around 10 million listeners per episode and has a staggering estimated net worth of $650 million, provided a significant opportunity to discuss her political agenda in an informal setting with one of America’s most iconic radio jockeys.

In contrast, Donald Trump utilized his podcast appearances to reach out to admittedly a broader audience. His episode on The Joe Rogan Experience stands out, with nearly 45 million views on YouTube and about 14 million downloads per episode, making it one of the most influential platforms in the industry, valued at approximately $250 million. Rogan is the godfather of the podcast format, having cemented his place as the top podcast in the world by most reckonings and having really formulated its most current and popular iteration. This was a big (if expected) get for The Donald.

Trump also featured on This Past Weekend with comedian Theo Von, which has around 1 million downloads per episode and an estimated net worth of $10 million; this episode attracted about 13 million views. Lastly, his appearance on Flagrant , a comedy podcast that garners around 700,000 downloads per episode and is valued at about $5 million, reached approximately 8 million views.

Both candidates effectively utilized these influential platforms not only to reach substantial audience sizes but also to tap into the lucrative revenue potential of the booming podcasting industry, reshaping their engagement strategies as they sought to mobilize specific demographics ahead of the election.

If US politics is a House of Cards, Donald Trump is playing Bingo, and he's just yelled it out in triumph.

Indian Connection

While the US Presidential Election may be viewed as the most consequential in the world, digitally-savvy Indian politicians have not skipped a beat. This past General Election saw leaders from both major blocs tuning into the people’s interests. With over two-thirds of India’s 1.4 billion population under 35, political parties, especially the ruling BJP, have turned to influential podcasters to engage younger, digitally active voters.

Ranveer Allahbadia, known for The Ranveer Show (TRS), formerly BeerBiceps, is a key figure. His podcast reached millions, including BJP ministers like Anurag Thakur and S. Jaishankar. A conversation between Jaishankar and Allahbadia amassed 8.7 million views, showcasing the massive reach of podcasters in political campaigns. Kamiya Jani of Curly Tales has also played a major role. Her conversation with BJP's Nitin Gadkari, centered on food and travel, garnered 2.5 million views. The Opposition also followed the trend, when Rahul Gandhi made an appearance on Curly Tales during his Bharat Jodo Yatra campaign garnered 3.78 million views, with 8.6 million on his own YouTube channel following the same narrative. Politicians like Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav also turned to podcasters during elections.

With inputs from Shalinee Mishra