Podcasters are the Most Trusted Media Personalities Among US Consumers, New Acast Research Finds

Acast, the world’s largest independent podcast company, today released the results of a new research study that shows podcasts are a highly trusted medium among US consumers. According to the study of US consumers, 64% of podcast listeners actively seek out podcasters and create time for their content -the most of any other tested media personality - making the time spent with podcasts highly engaging and intentional.

These findings come at a time when trust in US media has hit an all time low, with half of Americans reported to believe that national news organizations deliberately mislead them, according to research from Gallup and the Knight Foundation. In this era of skepticism and misinformation, podcasters are emerging as the trustworthy figures of the media industry.

In fact, according to Acast’s research, half of podcast listeners trust podcasters, the most of any other tested medium. The second most trusted is YouTubers, with 44% of YouTube consumers saying they trust these media personalities. Notably, with YouTube emerging as a leading platform for podcast consumption, many of these sought-after YouTube personalities are also podcasters.

“Trust in US media has been deteriorating in recent years as a result of socio-political unrest and conflicting coverage by news outlets on the same events. As US consumers have lost confidence in traditional media, they have increasingly turned to podcasters as a source of truth,” said Acast Director of Research and Insights Tommy Walters. “During times of hardship and uncertainty - like the start of the pandemic and the beginning of the war in Ukraine - at Acast we have consistently seen audiences flock to podcasts for deep conversations and analysis over clickbait headlines. When it comes to product endorsements, we have also seen audiences be more trusting of podcaster recommendations than any other form of media.”

For advertisers, podcasting is ripe with opportunity as US consumers say they seek out podcasters above all other media personality types when looking for product endorsements. According to this study, 75% of podcast listeners say they have listened to a podcaster for a product endorsement, compared to the 62% of social media users who have sought out social media creators and just 55% cable viewers who have considered cable TV personalities.

Importantly, this study also revealed that podcasters give quality product and brand endorsements. According to the research, 73% of US consumers who have acted on a podcast endorsement said the podcaster gave a good endorsement and they were happy with what they received.

To download this full study, please click here.