2024 will be remembered as a turning point in which podcasting displaced the mainstream media in terms of influence on presidential elections.  for years, the alternative media was based on a kind of myth: we are the truth-tellers! were too honest, edgy, and badass for the msm. indeed, if the world learns what we know, the whole system will come crashing down! or something like that.  the irony is that podcasting has become far more accommodating to system politicians than the mainstream media ever was. whereas nbc news might, at its worst, throw a softball across the plate, podcasters set a ball up on a tee and let the politician swing away. podcasters are edgy in the sense that theyre vulgar and casual; the complete absence of critical inquiry is astounding.  the maga moment foretells a time in which politicians wont bother answering questions at all, but will instead eat hot-wings with a former model or compete with a comedian in a chugging contest of prime energy drinks. in turn, podcasting is no longer an alternative to mainstream news and opinion; for most, it is the primaryin many cases, solemeans of political, social, and intellectual engagement.  there is no revolution emerging from alternative media. its ultimate achievement has been to make system politicians relatable.
United States