Many news media outlets and personalities have referred to the 2024 election as the “podcasters election” to signify the growing importance of podcasts in electoral politics. Trump’s three-hour sit-down appearance was a pleasant surprise for Rogan’s audience. Rogan previously denied Trump would appear on his popular podcast. “Trump Cancels All His Events in Favor of One of the Worst People Ever,” read the New Republic's headline announcing the shift. The New Republic’s disdain for Rogan has been typical for legacy media. In 2020, Democratic Party leaders, including Joe Biden and many in legacy media chided then-presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, a candidate legacy news media had reported on negatively and inaccurately in previous two presidential election cycles, for appearing on Rogan and accepting his endorsement. Mainstream media accused him of legitimizing Rogan’s alleged misinformation. In 2022, Vox labeled Rogan a problem, arguing that "the problem of Joe Rogan is a problem of the modern internet." In 2024, an editor at the New York Times appeared on MSNBC to dismiss the Rogan audience as people in need of “therapy.” However, reducing Trump’s talk with Rogan to a conversation about Rogan misses the critical role that podcasting is playing in the 2024 election.
Both candidates have appeared on various podcasts throughout their campaign. For example, Trump has been interviewed by comedians Theo Von and Andrew Schulz, while Harris made an appearance on "Call Her Daddy," will appear on Shannon Sharpe’s "Club Shay Shay" podcast, and considered an appearance on Rogan before declining. There is much speculation around which voters these candidates are targeting — such as low-turnout voters or the coveted male voters (men make up the majority of Rogan’s audience), and Black male voters in particular — which Democrats fear will cost them the election. But regardless of the target demographic, their decision to appear demonstrates that those in electoral politics are coming around to see the power, utility, and opportunity of podcasting in a democracy. Podcasters have become key players in shaping public discussions around elections, and in the process, they compete with and often outperform legacy media outlets.
