U.S. President Donald Trump’s appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience had over 50 million views on YouTube. His appearance on the most popular podcast in the world capped off a campaign that was part of the “podcast election” where both candidates reached voters through podcasts. With this amount of reach, it’s clear that some high-profile podcasts have reached the status of a mass medium (
In 2020, Spotify acquired exclusive rights to “The Joe Rogan Experience,” escalating its podcast market presence. Rogan’s contentious content, especially during the COVID-19 debate, led to internal and external conflicts, highlighted by Neil Young’s ultimatum in 2022. This acquisition exemplifies the collision between traditional music and podcast publishing, placing Spotify in a complex role within media platformization and regulation, as discussed in Terje Colbjørnsen’s paper on the subject.
This article examines the opportunities and challenges that podcasts provide in literally hearing voices. It analyses the globally influential Joe Rogan Experience podcast to consider its acoustic impact on audiences.