‘I heard about it in the podcast …’: Young Danes’ (re)discovery of podcasts for coherent information

This paper’s objective is to investigate the potential qualities of young Danes’ extensive uses of podcasts as supplements to other information sources, that is, a combination of strategic and erratic information facilitated through mobile technologies. The study behind this presentation investigates the research question of how young Danes integrate podcasts into their critical information and -debate repertoire and what the specific affordances of podcasts offer. A wider perspective regards the impact of transforming information patterns on young citizens’ democratic citizenship and participation (Coleman & Blumler, 2009; Ohme et al., 2022; Stald, 2023).
The paper draws on three publicly available surveys on media use in Denmark (DR, 2023; Schrøder et al., 2021; The Ministry for Culture, 2022). The survey findings are contextualized by results from a case-study with 15-24-year-old Danes, conducted in 2021 in the project Youth, Trust, Information, and Democracy and on data from a pilot study conducted in 2023, on 15-24-year-olds’ use and reflections of podcasts.
It is not a new phenomenon that young people get information in different formats in a hybrid media environment (Mascheroni & Murri, 2017; Stald, 2023; Wunderlich et al., 2022). It is, however, vital to understand the impact of the transformations of access platforms and the qualitative diversity of the content sources. A new direction in the information repertoire is the increasing use of podcasts among young Danes. Schrøder et al. (2021) found that 56% of the 18–24 year olds listened to a podcast during the past month. One of the informants from the 2021 study says: ‘I listen to podcasts a lot. And social media, but I get more on international politics from them. … . And I catch up on stuff from my parents’. (4. Male, 16).
A need for meaningful activities triggered the re-discovery of podcasts during the Corona lockdown when many young people took up individual activities such as long walks or runs. Podcasts are listened to on-demand (Ohme et al., 2022), alone, and in a kind of dual mobility modus, on the smartphone, on the go, or in the immersed tranquility of a private setting (Lundström & Lundström, 2021). The podcast, however, also serves as a bridge that enables users to cross boundaries of knowledge and context (Swiatek, 2018).
While TikTok and similar services motivate fast, erratic surface orientation and flux between bits of content, professional podcasts invite immersion and in depth consideration (Chan-Olmsted & Wang, 2022). Many podcasts, although varying in professional quality, offer coherent narratives and longer formats of in depth topics that include research, agonistic positions, new insights, and pointers for debate. The topic and approach in podcasts are often popular and personal. However, some provide critical journalistic perspectives that potentially inspire reflexivity and discussion: ‘Right now, I follow the news on the kids in those refugee camps because it came up in several media. Me and my parents talked about it, but I also heard about it in the podcast and my friends talk about it’ (4. Male, 16).