Somehow, I’ve been bitten by the podcast bug. It was inevitable given that they’re everywhere. I’ve had the chance to listen to (and abandon) quite a few podcasts and here are my perfectly valid complaints.
1. So. Many. Celebrity. Podcasts.
Does everything have to be permeated by celebrity culture? And with all the money they have, there is still a bunch of obnoxious ads littered all through the podcast. Podcasts are a haven for the D-Z listers of yesterday. I keep seeing these ‘BTS’ podcasts for shows like One Tree Hill and 90210… shows which probably don’t need to be revisited because they haven’t aged well.
Seriously, though, do we need more celebrity exposure?
2. So. Many. Podcasts.
There’s a podcast for everything, much of which I am not interested in.
3. So. Many. Ads.
… with the code WHY you can get 10% off some shit you’ve never heard of and don’t need. I get that this keeps the podcasts free, but it feels like there’s no escape from it. More than ever, we’re not content consumers – we are the product.
4. So. Many. Tangents.
One of the first podcasts I listened to was super fun, and so I did what any normal person would do, I jumped from the older podcasts to the more current ones. It was a mistake. The episodes are longer. Waaaay longer and not for a good reason. It’s just the host rambling about other things and in one particularly distressing episode, bursting into song every two minutes because LOL I GUESS. Just stick to the topic at hand. That’s what the editing process is for, like, how is this stuff not getting cut out?
5. So. Many. Interruptions.
Sigh.
6. So. Many. True. Crime. Podcasts
… at what point does this obsession with true crime become a problem? I remember watching ‘It Takes A Killer’ for several nights and then I had the most disturbed dream and couldn’t sleep for about a week. It’s easy to get entertained by this stuff, but it does have an impact on the listener. A lot of the podcast have a good ‘hook’ and zero follow through. And then I’m just like, ‘this was depressing, but was this a story that people needed to know?’. It feels a bit scummy when we’re discussing real people that we don’t care about just for the sake of entertainment.
7. When the host has a nasally voice
… harsh, because that’s their voice that God gave them but I’ve dropped several podcasts because I can’t even mentally process the voices. I just can’t do it. Whiny, pitchy, nasally, nope.
8. Awkward cuts to ads.
Luckily a lot of apps come with a skip button, but sometimes a girl doesn’t have her hands free!
I think I’m done complaining now. There are some good podcasts out there. I’m not a huge Casefile fan, but their three part series on Silk Road is pretty good. I kind of prefer fraud/business based podcasts, like things based on WeWork and Theranos, etc. Something that doesn’t make me feel like I’m losing brain cells, lol.
Overall, though, I don’t think I’m a podcast person. I listen to them to pass the time mostly.
Give me a good book any day.
supernatural snark 
Hi – I still listen to radio shows – which are like mini podcasts
and fully agree with you about the celebs and the way some shows did not age well – but hey – if there is an audience for those podcasts I with them the best
the ads thing does seem out of hand in many things and as you noted – where we are the product
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Hi! I thinks podcasts are mini-radio shows, really. Nothing beats that feeling of someone talking to you in real time. In that respect some podcasts are a bit dry or overedited (and underedited lol).
I find the informative podcasts to be good, even if I don’t care for the subject. However, it just feels sleazy when someone who is reasonably wealthy is trying to convince us that they’re just like everyone else but also buy this vegan meal from wherever! Clearly, they are still acting in a professional capacity. I’m also side eyeing all of these celebrity podcasts where they discuss mental health and try to make it seem like they’re doing something revolutionary. It makes for uncomfortable listening at times.
There is an audience which is part of the problem for me. It’s just another extension of the already unhealthy attachment the world has to celebrities.
The ads drive me crazy but it got a lot better when I could skip them. Some I don’t mind! When the host puts some effort into making it seem less like an ad, it’s much better. The podcasts that just plonk them in mid conversation are the ones that I dislike. That’s huge no for me.
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thanks for sharing – and I agree with you abut when there is an audience it really does underpin so much
I always wished I started a podcast and still could someday – because even tho so flooded an area these days it does not mean that new ones are not needed – just depends on what we offer and what our goals are.
But did you know I almost started one in 2005-ish? And then a few times after that – anyhow, I may never ever get one going, but I dod feel as if I want to do something – even if just videos
and not sure if you listen to the Joe Rogan podcast – but sometimes my hubs does and if it is on a speaker I hear parts – and I love how they have a conversation that we get to listen in on. t is so much better than someone yapping at me
I heard his ads have changed (like you mentioned how they switch the placements) but his show seems to be a special podcast
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