Young Americans' favorite podcasts reveal a stark partisan split
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Young people are starkly divided by who they vote for, what they do for fun and where they get their news and information, according to new Axios-Generation Lab polling.
Why it matters: Gen Z and young millennials exemplify how social media, news and podcasts have fragmented America into competing realities.
Zoom in: Their favorite podcasts cover a vast range from comedy to true crime to daily news.
- But patterns — and partisan splits — emerge when honing in on the audiences of MAGA and MAGA-adjacent media stars like Charlie Kirk and Joe Rogan, according to the poll of 18- to 34-year-olds nationwide.
By the numbers: 27% of young people who voted for President Trump say they listen to "The Joe Rogan Experience" at least once a month, compared with 6% who cast their ballots for former Vice President Harris.
- 19% of Trump voters say the same about "The Charlie Kirk Show," and 18% tune into "The Ben Shapiro Show." Among Harris voters, it's 3% for each.
Podcasts from Barstool Sports, founded by Trump supporter Dave Portnoy, are the most popular among young people who voted for Trump.
- 34% of young Trump voters say they listened to a Barstool Sports podcast in the last month, compared with 9% of Harris supporters.
The intrigue: A few podcasts are roughly equally popular among Gen Zers on the right and left, including "The Daily" (13% of Harris voters and 14% of Trump voters), TED Talks Daily (17% of Harris voters and 23% of Trump voters) and "Call Her Daddy" (9% each).
Zoom out: There are divisions in what young Americans on the right vs. left do for fun, too.
- 44% of Harris supporters say they love going to concerts vs. 28% of Trump supporters.
- 42% of Trump voters are avid sports fans vs. 26% of Harris voters.
- Both sides are equally plugged into politics and current events (28%, Harris voters; 26%, Trump voters).
Methodology: This poll was conducted Feb. 21-28 from a representative sample of 972 18- to 34-year-olds nationwide. The margin of error is +/- 3.1 percentage points.
