Can Alternative Media Fill the Void Left by Corporate News?
It better...or we're screwed.
Bypassing the Failing MSM
Here’s a sentence I never thought I’d write:
This week, a US Senator came to my podcast studio and answered some tough questions on-air.
Our show - The Dangerous Ones - is still pretty new, but we’ve already reached millions of people through our YouTube channel, our audio podcasts (subscribe on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you listen) & via social media clips of our content.
Potential guests are showing strong interest in joining us and in hearing YOUR calls to The People’s Hotline (503-212-4600). (Admittedly, our call-in-show / grassroots vibe is pretty unique in political media.)
On only our 11th full episode, a US Senator came to OUR studio and answered questions like this one from Casey in California:
“Unlike Never-Trump Republicans, it does not seem like elected Democrats understand the magnitude of the threat that Trump poses to the constitutional order. Am I wrong?”
Check out Ron Wyden’s answer to that and a lot more:
Why would a Senator or other elected official take time out to go on a new show like ours?
Because the mainstream media is failing, and the Democrats are FINALLY starting to understand it.
We’re Still Way Behind
Despite recent news that the eclipsed Joe Rogan in weekly listens to become the most-downloaded podcast in America (WAY TO GO GUYS!), we still have a long way to go.
A study by Media Matters recently found that - while viewership of traditional/corporate media continues to plummet - viewership of alternative media is on the rise.
And the picture isn’t pretty:
Right-leaning online shows had at least 480.6 million total followers and subscribers — nearly five times as many as left-leaning.
Across platforms — YouTube, Rumble, Twitch, Kick, Spotify, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok — right-leaning online shows accounted for roughly 82% of the total following of the online shows we assessed.
We have a lot of work to do to help grow our pro-democracy streaming channels online.
How We Can All Help Grow the Left’s Alternative Media Infrastructure
Here are some tips about how YOU can help build up the pro-democracy informationscape:
EXPLORE: Jump on YouTube, Spotify and other streaming platforms to poke around. Look for content that you’ve never watched. Ask your friends what they watch/listen to. Sample some new shows. (BE SURE TO TRY OUT THE DANGEROUS ONES :)
SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW: Once you find a new program that you like, be sure to subscribe to it. This is key - subscriptions help streaming platforms identify which shows they should algorithmically promote. Subscriptions and follows are - in some cases - also prerequisites for the programs to monetize and receive ad revenue sharing benefits from the platforms.
RATE & LEAVE A REVIEW: After you’ve subscribed to a show you like, go in and rate the show and leave a positive review. As a new podcaster I can tell you that the folks who are MOST apt to leave a review are the people who DON’T like the show, so positive reviews really help. Be sure you’ve rated every show you listen to / watch. I bet there are some shows you’ve been consuming for a long time that you’ve never reviewed. Go do it. ;)
SHARE EPISODES: Be vocal about the programs you like. Share the episode link to your Instagram Story or over on Bluesky, which allows for autoplay of YouTube links. Tell your friends. Send them a text. Move from being a passive listener to an advocate.
WATCH/LISTEN ALL THE WAY THROUGH: If you’re willing to have YouTube, Spotify, etc. playing in the background of your life, you can really help grow these shows by watching/listening to them all the way through. More “Watch Hours” on YouTube help shows get ad revenue, which can help them stay afloat. (It also tells the algorithm to suggest the content to more people, which helps grow the subscriber base.)
LIKE & COMMENT: Those likes and positive comments on platforms like TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and elsewhere really help boost the content algorithmically. Get into discussions with other users in comment sections. Platforms love to boost content that generates conversation.
This is just a quick list of suggestions for ways we - as consumers of political content - can actually help our pro-democracy digital infrastructure grow.
If you have some favorite programs/shows that readers should know about - leave your suggestions in the comments!
I also listened to Senator Wyden and wow we need more like him!
The dominance of right Wing alt media is scary.