“The podcast election” is missing the point

(Disclaimer: I’m purposely writing this before the election is decided, because the outcome is irrelevant to the point I’m making here.)

When your executive balks at doing an interview with an outlet you bring them because “I’ve never heard of it” . . .

Ask them if they’ve ever heard of:

• Bussin’ with the Boys
• Impaulsive
• Call Her Daddy
• Club Shay Shay

Those are among the podcasts that Donald Trump and Kamala Harris did interviews with during the heat of this campaign.

If your exec claims to recognize all four, I can confidently accuse them of fibbing. Because those podcasts (and another dozen or so the candidates did) target very different audiences that don’t overlap, and it would be a highly unique non-communicator who follows all four. (In case you’re wondering, the first two are Trump’s, last two Harris’.)

In today’s permanently fragmented media landscape, your responsibility ISN’T to bring your exec interview opportunities that reach far and wide. That’s close to impossible. Instead, you owe it to your employer to drill down into niche audiences key to your strategic objectives.

If you haven’t already, cure your bosses of their obsession with widespread reach outlets (which are increasingly hard to land anyway) and teach them to venerate your key trades or vertical outlets.

To be clear, the lesson isn’t “pitch podcasts.” It’s “pitch your niche.” Could be a 90-year-old industry magazine. Or a Substack that a laid-off MSM reporter started last year. Any outlet that’s trusted by a core audience you need.

Most of the time, national electoral politics and everyday PR are entirely different animals. But this is one lesson of the 2024 campaign that does translate . . . regardless of the winner.