Podcasting has ushered in new voices, ideas and topics into the African media space. Africa Podfest has written a report which interviews podcasters from across Africa, reviewed data from the African Podcast Database and SemaBOX, and conducted a survey with podcast listeners from across the continent. The Podcasting Africa Report reflects on the changes and growth that have occurred in the African podcasting space.
What were their findings?
- A desire for community is a driving force. According to the podcasters, audiences are the most important, as they are the core focus of podcasters. “Being encouraged by knowing that someone is listening is a sentiment that comes up across all interviews as a core driver to continuing to create and put out content,” the report states.
- Autonomy and experimentation are deeply ingrained desires in podcasting practice. Creative freedom and autonomy are reasons why creatives start podcasts. The ability for the podcasters to create content and to have control of what type of content they create.
- Podcasting opens the door to accessibility and inclusivity on several levels. Podcasting is considered to be easy to get into, as one needs a phone to start a podcast.
- Podcasting is an authoritative way to affirm presence. Podcasting allows for voices that are underrepresented by traditional media and podcasting enables any topic to be discussed. It is not exclusive compared to other forms of media.
- Infrastructure can be a constraint. Even though podcasting is growing in Africa, there is a lack of access to the internet and technology which makes podcasting difficult.
- The process of producing an episode is demanding. Producing an episode requires time and effort, which some podcasters have struggled to keep up with, consistently producing episodes during a specific time frame.
- So where is the money? Is there even money? More podcasters are trying to finance their content through advertising, which has been challenging for some podcasters.
- More downloads equals more money
To read the full report, click here.
Want to stay up to date with the latest journalism and media innovation news from the African continent? Subscribe to our newsletter.
