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Mapped: The Top Podcasts on Spotify Across Countries

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Top podcasts on spotify globally

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The Top Spotify Podcast Across Countries

We are amidst the breakout era of podcasts. Since the beginning of the smartphone revolution, the digital audio format has picked up serious traction with audiences all over. In the U.S. alone, it’s estimated that there will be 132 million podcast listeners by 2022.

Today, there are 850,000 active podcasts available in 100 languages, with over 30 million episodes to tap into—perfect if you have an afternoon to yourself.

Worldwide Podcast Chart-Toppers

The data in this infographic comes from Spotify, the top global streaming service in the industry by paid users. How do the top podcasts fare on a per country basis?

CountryTop PodcastHonorable Mention (Second Highest)
CanadaThe Joe Rogan ExperienceCall Her Daddy
FranceChoses a SavoirMythes et Legendes
UKThe Michelle Obama PodcastThe Joe Rogan Experience
GermanyGemischtes HackFest & Flauschig
ItalyBlu Notte - Fisteri ItalianiMushio Selvaggio
U.S.The Michelle Obama PodcastCall Her Daddy
Japankemioの耳そうじクラブHapa英会話 Podcast
AustraliaFrom The NewsroomThe Joe Rogan Experience
IndiaThe Michelle Obama PodcastPurijagannadh
IrelandThe Joe Rogan ExperienceThe 2 Johnnies Podcast
MexicoLeyendas LegendariasLa Cotorrisa
New ZealandThe Joe Rogan ExperienceCall Her Daddy
ArgentinaConcha PodcastEntiende Tu Mente
AustriaVerbrechenFest & Flauschig
BrazilNerdCastCafé da Manha
ChileTomas Va A MorirMatriarcalmente Hablando
ColombiaDianaUribe.fmDani 3Palacios Podcast
DenmarkMorkelandHer Gar Det Godt
FinlandPOKSJaliila
IndonesiaRintik SeduPODKESMAS
NorwayFriminutt med Herman og MikkelG-punktet
PhilippinesSleeping Pill with InkaAdulting With Joyce Pring
PolandKryminatoriumJa I moje przyjaciółki idiotki
SpainNadie Sabe NadaEntiende Tu Mente
SwedenP3 DokumentarSommar & Vinter i P1
NetherlandsZelfspodcastMan man man, de podcast

Many of the top shows around the world follow a familiar interview or conversational format, but there are trends that deviate from that formula. In particular, there are a number of podcasts focused on health and wellness as well as current events.

The early beginnings of podcasting were dominated by upstart content creators, but as the market has matured, big media outlets and A-list personalities have been vying for listeners’ attention in an increasingly crowded field. As it stands now, two podcasts from America carry a large presence in foreign markets, and the two big personalities—Michelle Obama and Joe Rogan—stand a notch above the rest.

The Rogan-Obama tug of war in the podcast realm has had its back and forths. Obama pulled ahead in many countries in August, but in September the pendulum swung in favor of Rogan.

Follow The Money

In 2015, ad revenue in the podcast industry was a minuscule $69 million across the board. It’s expected to reach over $1 billion by 2021, and to grow further from there.

podcast industry revenue

The podcast boom is powered by younger generations, and both millennials and Gen Z represent a sizable portion of the total podcast audience globally. In particular, demographic listenership numbers experience a big drop after the 35-54 age bracket.

podcast audience by age group

Flexibility and variety are key features that are helping fuel the growth of the medium. One can keep up with serious world affairs or listen to Call Her Daddy—a podcast on sex and relationships by Barstool Sports, another podcast that frequently tops the charts.

Top Podcast Publishers by U.S. Audience

When it comes to key participants in the industry, National Public Radio (NPR) sits on the top spot with over 26 million unique monthly audience members. In close second, iHeartRadio holds a whopping 494 shows.

Podcast PublisherU.S. Unique Monthly AudienceGlobal Downloads & StreamsActive Shows
NPR26,933,000219,716,00049
iHeartRadio26,182,000234,417,000494
New York Times13,102,000145,961,00015
Barstool Sports10,228,00067,569,00043
PRX9,035,00082,245,00087
Wondery8,794,00057,261,00098
ESPN/ABC8,472,00066,685,00096
NBC News6,751,00044,219,00026
Cumulus Media/Westwood One6,473,00040,912,000115
Warner Media6,350,00033,503,000113
This American Life/Serial5,924,00022,722,0002
Kast Media5,319,00030,353,00046
Daily Wire5,212,000
43,342,0005
WNYC Studios5,209,00035,381,00052
All Things Comedy4,890,00028,770,00058
TED3,739,00051,696,00010
American Public Media3,362,00017,997,00050
Fox News Radio2,518,00013,633,00034
Slate1,951,00013,812,00097
WBUR1,105,0006,758,00018

If you’re bullish on podcasts, many in the top 20 are publicly traded entities who either stand alone, or are part of a larger corporation. Notable stocks include the New York Times, ESPN as part of Disney, and Warner Media as part of AT&T.

Spotify Today and Tomorrow

Spotify’s direct listing IPO was initially met with a lack of confidence, due to Big Tech’s entry in the space, as well as the profitability and monetization concerns that typically plague the music industry as a whole. However, the company has done well in abating those concerns, especially if you consider Spotify’s stock price, which has doubled in the last year. An impressive 21% of Spotify’s monthly active users engage with podcast content.

In addition, a wealth of personalities have entered the podcasting space. These big names suggest that the competition is dialing up.

In recent months, an exclusive deal between Spotify and Joe Rogan, valued at over $100 million took the podcasting world by storm. This is quite a monumental step for the podcast timeline, and one that suggests more deals could follow as Spotify looks to lock people into their platform with exclusivity deals.

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Politics

How Much Do Americans Trust the Media?

Media trust among Americans has reached its lowest point since Trump won the 2016 presidential election.

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How Much Do Americans Trust the Media?

Media trust among Americans has reached its lowest point in six years.

Gallup began its survey on media trust in 1972, repeating it in 1974 and 1976. After a long period, the public opinion firm restarted the polls in 1997 and has asked Americans about their confidence level in the mass media—newspapers, TV, and radio—almost every year since then.

The above graphic illustrates Gallup’s latest poll results, conducted in September 2023.

Americans’ Trust in Mass Media, 1972-2023

Americans’ confidence in the mass media has sharply declined over the last few decades.

Trust in the mass media% Great deal/Fair amount% Not very much% None at all
197268246
197469218
197672224
1997533115
199855359
1999553411
2000513712
2001533314
2002543511
2003543511
2004443916
2005503712
2007473517
2008433521
2009453718
2010433621
2011443619
2012403921
2013443322
2014403624
2015403624
2016324127
2017412929
2018453024
2019413028
2020402733
2021362934
2022342838
2023322939

In 2016, the number of respondents trusting media outlets fell below the tally of those who didn’t trust the media at all. This is the first time that has happened in the poll’s history.

That year was marked by sharp criticism of the media from then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.

In 2017, the use of the term ‘fake news’ rose by 365% on social media, and the term was named the word of the year by dictionary publisher Collins.

The Lack of Faith in Institutions and Social Media

Although there’s no single reason to explain the decline of trust in the traditional media, some studies point to potential drivers.

According to Michael Schudson, a sociologist and historian of the news media and a professor at the Columbia Journalism School, in the 1970s, faith in institutions like the White House or Congress began to decline, consequently impacting confidence in the media.

“That may have been a necessary corrective to a sense of complacency that had been creeping in—among the public and the news media—that allowed perhaps too much trust: we accepted President Eisenhower’s lies about the U-2 spy plane, President Kennedy’s lies about the ‘missile gap,’ President Johnson’s lies about the war in Vietnam, President Nixon’s lies about Watergate,”
Michael Schudson – Columbia Journalism School

More recently, the internet and social media have significantly changed how people consume media. The rise of platforms such as X/Twitter and Facebook have also disrupted the traditional media status quo.

Partisans’ Trust in Mass Media

Historically, Democrats have expressed more confidence in the media than Republicans.

Democrats’ trust, however, has fallen 12 points over the past year to 58%, compared with 11% among Republicans and 29% among independents.

How-Much-Do-Americans-Trust-the-Media

According to Gallup, Republicans’ low confidence in the media has little room to worsen, but Democrat confidence could still deteriorate and bring the overall national reading down further.

The poll also shows that young Democrats have less confidence in the media than older Democrats, while Republicans are less varied in their views by age group.

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