Updated August 2, 2025 at 4:01 AM CDT
Some of the most popular podcasts in the country aren't about politics, but that hasn't stopped ambitious candidates on both sides of the aisle from sitting down for lengthy interviews.
President Trump spent much of the 2024 presidential campaign as a guest on a wide range of shows, riffing with Joe Rogan and chatting with comedians like Theo Von and Andrew Schulz on his path to victory.
At a time when many people are checked out of politics and the next major election cycle is a year away, these politics-adjacent podcasts are still driving some of the conversation around culture and the perception of what goes on in Washington — and serving as a testing ground for those considering higher office trying to emulate Trump's success.
Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna in particular has been a prolific podcast guest, explaining to Von on his show, "This Past Weekend" why he was sitting for the interview.
"I'm not saying this to flatter you, a lot of times you'll ask questions and they're like, deeper and smarter than some of the Sunday talk show hosts," Khanna said. "And I think it's 'cause you actually talk to real people and it's sort of like 'Well, how does this affect my buddy, how does this affect real people?'"
Khanna spoke at length about his childhood, views on artificial intelligence and regulation and offered thoughts on the Democratic Party's message that he said needs to change.
He also used the two-hour chat to bring up the War Powers resolution he had introduced in the House that would have limited military action in Iran in the aftermath of the strike on Iran's nuclear facilities. That resolution was coauthored by Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who coincidentally was on the very next episode of Von's show.
Texas Democratic State Rep. James Talarico spent two and a half hours last month talking with Rogan, one of the most influential podcast hosts in the country, about how Christianity influences his worldview and political stances, leading Rogan to push Talarico to "run for President."
Fitting politics in a politics-adjacent space
These popular shows are not explicitly politics-focused like the "NPR Politics Podcast" or NBC's "Meet The Press," and the target audience is different, too. These listeners prefer a longer, organic conversation over buzzwords, short soundbites and questions that feel more like an interrogation.
That in turn leads to a bit more friendly common ground than outrage, even when discussing family upbringings, news of the day and, of course, those political views.
Take a lengthy interview that California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom – who has his own podcast – did last month with Shawn Ryan, a former Navy SEAL whose show highlights the perspectives of military servicemembers and veterans and caters more to conservatives.
For four hours, the pair discussed guns and foreign policy, views on transgender rights and COVID lockdowns, local politics and national questions. Ryan started the conversation by noting he wanted someone that "thinks a little bit different than me" and ended up being impressed by Newsom's perspective.
"I really appreciate you coming, and just being totally honest, a lot of my opinions about you have changed," Ryan told Newsom.
It's important to remember the function of these sit-downs: these are not debates or interviews done with journalistic purposes in mind, so there's usually little pushback to someone's opinion or perspective.
As another example, popular Trump-friendly podcasters the Nelk Boys did an hourlong interview with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. They opened the episode by saying they were not "so not qualified" to conduct an interview with the leader of Israel. After the interview published, the two hosts faced intense backlash from supporters and opponents alike who agreed that the duo was not prepared.
Will longform podcasts be a prerequisite for future candidates?
Eric Wilson, the executive director of the Center for Campaign Innovation, says "Do more podcasts!" is the wrong takeaway from 2024.
"The takeaway is like, you've got to be willing to say something and have a message and be willing to do things that are going to break through to the people who are news avoiders," the Republican digital strategist said.
Longform podcasts are a growing slice of the attention economy pie, and in some cases have more viewership than a primetime cable show where politicians have a shorter amount of time to speak and are often preaching to a choir of people who already support the candidate's party.
Being able to speak for hours about your backstory and beliefs isn't going to be mandatory to win an election in the future, but having that level of comfort in the format does suggest a level of authenticity that resonates more with voters, Wilson added.
"Realistically, it's something that you've got to add to your repertoire as a politician," Wilson said.
Many of the politicians that are comfortable speaking on a variety of podcasts may determine who gains traction and success on the national stage in upcoming elections, much in the way the Lincoln-Douglas debates helped Abraham Lincoln's career, television debates helped John F. Kennedy and the current Trump era of politics is optimized for cable news appearances.
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