With a seemingly infinite number of podcasts to listen to these days, college students are most drawn to comedies.
A new survey of 1,500 undergraduates finds that about 1 in 5 (21%) listen to comedy podcasts most often, while fewer prefer news and politics (11%), true crime (11%), and sports (4%). More than one-third (35%) of students say they don’t listen to podcasts.
Students’ podcast preferences differ across gender and political lines. Male students are less likely than female students to say they don’t listen to podcasts at all (28% vs. 41%). Male students are also more likely than female students to favor news and politics podcasts (16% vs. 6%).
Male Students are More Likely to Listen to Podcasts
What type of podcast, if any, do you listen to most often?
At the same time, Republican students are more likely than Democratic students to say they don’t listen to podcasts (44% vs. 31%), and are less likely to prefer comedies (11% vs. 23%).
The Joe Rogan Experience ranks as college students’ favorite comedy podcast, followed by Call Her Daddy and The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. Republican students are more likely to prefer The Joe Rogan Experience, while Democrats’ preference for The Joe Rogan Experience and The Daily Show are about equal. College Democrats’ top pick to become the Democratic nominee in the 2020 presidential election, Bernie Sanders, notably sat down for an interview with Rogan that grabbed the nation’s attention in August.
Republicans are More Likely to Prefer News & Politics Podcasts
What type of podcast, if any, do you listen to most often?
Students’ favorite news and politics podcast is The Ben Shapiro Show, followed by NPR’s Up First. While Democratic students have a wider range of favorite political podcasts, Republican students largely agree on The Ben Shapiro Show as their favorite. College Democrats prefer The Daily from The New York Times and This American Life.
When it comes to true crime podcasts, My Favorite Murder is the favorite, followed by Serial. Almost three-quarters (73%) of students say they don’t have a favorite true crime podcast, but female students are twice as likely as male students to listen to true crime most often (14% vs 6%).
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Methodology: This survey was designed and conducted by College Pulse. Interviews were conducted among a sample of 1,500 full-time and part-time students attending four-year colleges or universities in the U.S. who are part of College Pulse’s American College Student Panel.
