Podcasts: The New Voices of a Movement

Podcasting has been on the up-and-up for a number of years now. The spike began in 2005 when Apple released iTunes version 4.9 which added formal support for podcasts. The trend continued when popular comedians Joe Rogan and Adam Carolla launched their own podcasts in 2009, and now in 2017 it seems everyone and their mother has one.

It really does seem simple on the surface. All you need is a microphone and an internet connection and you're good to go. Unless you care about sound editing, tht is, in which case you'll need some editing software. Of course you'll also need something to talk about, a structure and general theme to your program, possibly a Lisbyn account, an RSS feed... a lot of stuff.

But this blog is not about the minutiae of podcasting. It is about why some people podcast. Some do it to entertain, some do it to inform, some do it to promote activism or support a cause, and some do all three simultaneously.

Black Men Can't Jump (in Hollywood) is one such podcast. Every week, hosts Jonathan Braylock, Jerah Milligan, and James III review a major motion picture with leading black actors and decide if the film helps "the Cause," which is to see more actors of color in leading roles in Hollywood productions. Common topics of discussion include racial stereotypes, pandering, and real life experiences in navigating life in America as black men. Their episode on Jordon Peele's 2017 suspense/thriller Get Out is especially eye-opening and worth a listen.

Another activism podcast is The Scathing Atheist, hosted by full-time podcasters Noah Lugeons, Heath Enwright, and Eli Bosnick. This podcast was created with the intention of promoting secularism in the public square and in government. The hosts accomplish this through the merciless mocking of all things religious, spiritual, or mystic. Outside of the comedic elements of the show, the hosts raise funds for organizations such as Modest Needs, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, and the Trevor Project through an annual charity drive.

The Scathing Atheist is the flagship show of Puzzle In A Thunderstom LLC, which supports three other podcasts, featuring the same three hosts. They are The Skepticrat (a bi-weekly show with a political focus), God Awful Movies (a weekly show where the hosts break down a Christian film i.e. God's Not Dead or If Footmen Tire You What Will Horses Do?), and Citation Needed (a weekly show in which the hosts pick a subject, read a single Wikipedia article about it, and pretend they're experts on it), where they are joined by Tom and Cecil (last names unknown), hosts of the Cognitive Dissonance podcast, another skepticism podcast.

Herein lies the beauty of activism through podcasting. Through crossovers, popular podcasts have given smaller ones a leg up and helped them find an audience. Through social media like Twitter and Facebook, listeners can share episodes with their friends with the intention of drawing them to their cause. The interconnectedness of these podcast promotes intersectionality of movements. They also can help some see from other points of view as the podcasts I listed here did for me, as I am neither black nor an atheist.

Podcasts have become the new starting points for grassroots movements. With the right audience and a few powerful voices, movements flourish from the ground up.

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