Webster unwrapped his metrics from the normally shielded Share of Ear research study, an ongoing B2B project available to subscribers. Pulling data from 2014, Webster noted that podcasting enjoyed 2% of American listening time. That’s not bad, he said, as it represented “tens of millions of hours” spent on podcasts. But AM/FM radio listening took 51% share of ear. That relegated podcasting to a 1-to-25 ratio with broadcast radio, in terms of American time spent listening.
Fast-forward to 2021, and podcasts obtain a 6% share of ear — a nice tripling of share. Even more significant, according to the Edison maestro, is the shifting ratio vis-a-vis radio, which logs a 39% share in the same report. That puts podcasting in a 1-to-7 ratio, a tremendous improvement and gain in stature.
“Podcasting is an extraordinarily vibrant and important part of media.” –Tom Webster
Webster also noted that the podcasting audience has changed from a mostly white/male audience to “an incredibly diverse audience.”
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