Who Actually Units the Funds Agenda—Media or the Public?

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In Singapore, the rise of podcasting has shifted from leisure and way of life into a brand new area – public discourse and politics. Because the 2025 Normal Election attracts close to, podcasters are making waves throughout on-line information and social media. To kick issues off, we used Narrative AI, the primary search engine for public opinion, to determine how massive the worldwide narrative on podcasts and their affect on audiences is within the final 6 months, utilizing knowledge from X.

We subsequently narrowed the main focus of this international development to Singapore and analysed on Pulsar TRAC greater than 7k mentions throughout platforms like YouTube, Fb, Reddit, TikTok, podcasts, On-line Information, blogs and boards to grasp the place the discourse is coming from, which channels are capturing the podcasters’ content material and the way audiences are responding to this content material. 

Mentions of podcasts in information and social media are rising

Social media is the place the bigger chunk of podcast dialog is happening, particularly these episodes that characteristic a political determine, journalist or those who embrace healthcare-related discussions. The audiences that have interaction with these movies, majority being on YouTube, seek for political credibility that resonates with them. Younger Singaporeans watching these podcasts count on to see leaders who don’t simply uphold the picture of being a politician, but in addition somebody who’s grounded and reliable.

Youth and politicians’ lives dominate podcast narratives

The audiences that eat these podcasts essentially the most are younger Singaporeans seeking to take part within the dialog as a lot as they’ll. These audiences are being extra proactive than ever.

With youthful voters consuming media in a different way, these appearances are efforts by political candidates to attach with the general public. Lawrence Wong, Josephine Teo, Indranee Rajah, and Desmond Tan, have used podcasts to speak immediately with the general public – sidestepping conventional media filters.

Prime podcasters on election-related content material

After we concentrate on who essentially the most talked about podcasters round election content material are, the Straits Occasions’ podcasts, the Every day Ketchup and Yah Lah BUT emerge on prime. These podcasts have figured that essentially the most discourse occurs round content material that’s both academic or controversial round elections. The general public is actively responding to political content material shared by way of podcasts, notably these by The Straits Occasions and unbiased exhibits like Yah Lah BUT. 

How are podcasts doing on Tiktok?

Satire and irony are key methods to make politics palatable, particularly for youthful, digital-native audiences. The Every day Ketchup and Yah Lah BUT are mixing severe matters just like the GE2025, celebration agendas, healthcare, and opposition voices with humour that make them virtually meme-worthy. Posts similar to “PAP actually mentioned: ‘Belief me, bro’” TikTok clips present that these are genuinely made for content material to go viral whereas retaining severe undertones too. 

What’s fascinating to notice is that The Frequent People, with content material in Malay and Indonesian, is tapping right into a cross-border Southeast Asian viewers and has among the highest engagement on its content material. Native slang, cultural jokes, and informal festive content material like Raya greetings and songkok jokes have generated 1000’s of views, at instances outperforming English-language political pods. This means a big, under-acknowledged urge for food for vernacular podcast content material that has a mix of humour and relatability. 

Podcasts are now not simply background noise – they’re turning into one of the vital related methods Singaporeans have interaction with politics. With excessive engagement on platforms like TikTok and YouTube, a large unfold of matters from youth points to celebration politics, and rising presence in each mainstream and social media, podcasters are carving out a key position in shaping the GE 2025 dialog. 

Concerned with studying extra? E mail us at data@isentia.com

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Because the federal election marketing campaign reaches its midpoint, patterns in media protection and public consideration are starting to shift. Early social engagement was pushed by cost-of-living pressures, vitality coverage, and political point-scoring, however has waned following the primary leaders debate, regardless of this discussion board offering leaders the chance to set the agenda and techniques of the most important events. So how has protection focus advanced for the reason that first debate and are audiences nonetheless participating with the marketing campaign or switching off?

Social media engagement forward of the federal election has been sharp and private. It centered much less on coverage and extra on id and illustration. From debates on matters similar to  immigration to housing stress and tradition, social media has pushed a values-first narrative. However whereas early consideration  was sturdy, each media protection and social engagement have began to wane within the weeks for the reason that marketing campaign launched. The primary leaders debate briefly reignited consideration—belief, id, and media—however protection patterns recommend a shift away from each day blow-by-blow reporting in direction of broader social and cultural tensions.

Because the federal election marketing campaign nears its midway mark, final week’s media highlights present a contest nonetheless struggling to chop by. Key moments included the primary chief’s debate, the Treasurers Debate, the vitality showdown on the Nationwide Press Membership, and Senator Jacinta Worth’s Perth look with Peter Dutton, which drew consideration for its MAGA-style rhetoric.  The primary leaders debate was billed as an opportunity to reset the race—however for a lot of viewers, it strengthened present divides. Media consideration across the debate momentarily lifted visibility for all main events—however the spike was short-lived. The one celebration that has seen continued will increase in social media engagement is the Liberal Celebration. The Liberal Celebration’s sustained rise in social media engagement could also be linked to its digital-first technique, together with an AI-generated marketing campaign advert spruiking a gasoline excise lower and a meme-style diss monitor focusing on Anthony Albanese—techniques designed to seize on-line consideration and drive shareability.

The Liberals additionally pitched a $1200 tax lower, Labor attacked their WFH backflip, and the Greens pushed housing and tax reform. In the meantime, Dutton warned of a Labor-Greens-Teal alliance. Protection suggests public engagement is pushed extra by polarising moments and political theatre than detailed coverage.

When the election marketing campaign formally kicked off, cost-of-living pressures dominated the information agenda. Contemporary off the again of the federal funds, it’s no shock that inexpensive healthcare, decrease fuel and vitality costs, and tax cuts had been the important thing messages celebration leaders needed to land with voters. However protection rapidly pivoted. Previously week, international diplomacy—notably how every chief would handle Donald Trump—has surged in prominence. Whereas Trump’s position in tariff threats has made headlines, his affect on the broader election narrative goes past commerce. Media reporting has more and more centred on Albanese and Dutton’s capability to navigate a possible Trump presidency, with ideological alignment, nationwide safety, and financial fallout all in play. The primary leaders’ debate was anticipated to refocus the marketing campaign on home points. Nevertheless, it briefly touched on worldwide issues, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese addressing the potential financial affect of Trump’s proposed tariffs. Albanese described these tariffs as an “act of financial self-harm” that will dampen international progress, highlighting the intertwining of international coverage with home financial issues. This means that sustained consideration is extra possible when home points are reframed by the lens of international diplomacy, and nationwide id.

Within the social media panorama, Trump was a flashpoint in election-related dialog. His affect—actual or perceived—was rapidly linked to the Liberal Celebration, with MAGA-style rhetoric and Trumpian coverage cues gaining traction on-line. These narratives are inclined to escalate on platforms the place ideological alignment and cultural grievance amplify engagement. However it wasn’t all imported tradition wars—the federal funds, and the Liberal Celebration’s gasoline excise rebuttal, additionally drove vital social chatter. In latest weeks, comparisons between main celebration messaging and Trump-era coverage—from worldwide pupil caps and nuclear vitality to debates about faculty curricula—have continued to dominate dialogue.

The primary leaders’ debate briefly touched on international coverage, with Albanese warning Trump’s tariffs may damage international progress, whereas Dutton framed it as a take a look at of sturdy management. Domestically, Dutton’s renewed push for nuclear energy reignited social media debate—drawing comparisons to Trump-era insurance policies and fuelling dialogue about Australia’s vitality future. On the similar time on social media, guarantees like HECS cuts, free TAFE, and extra funding for public faculties sparked real engagement, particularly amongst youthful voters and schooling employees, displaying that sensible, future-focused insurance policies can nonetheless lower by. In comparison with the beginning of the marketing campaign, the place cost-of-living dominated as a top-line concern, the dialog has expanded: audiences at the moment are weighing each hip-pocket points and the nationwide values shaping Australia’s future.

Whereas the controversy itself tended to be overshadowed by frustrations about entry and media management, a number of political undercurrents nonetheless surfaced. Anthony Albanese drew some constructive mentions, however reactions had been removed from policy-focused. The Liberal Celebration’s early declare of victory grew to become some extent of humour, with a number of customers likening it to Trump-style misinformation techniques. Disillusionment with the most important events ran deep, with repeated calls to “break the donor-fuelled duopoly” and shift assist towards independents or smaller events. Nonetheless, these reactions appear extra like a symptom of broader voter cynicism than an indication of energised political engagement, reflecting broader themes across the declining belief.

The leaders’ debate didn’t reset the race—it refracted it, spotlighting how media protection is now formed much less by coverage element and extra by polarising symbols and cultural cues. As election day nears, the competition for consideration is revealing simply as a lot about media technique and voter fatigue as it’s about celebration platforms.

Uncover extra of our political information providers

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The Australian podcasting information trade continues to develop. Whereas Australian audiences do eat content material from worldwide manufacturers just like the BBC, in addition they exhibit sturdy affinity for unbiased Australian productions over mainstream sources. In a interval of uncertainty amidst Apple’s latest replace to computerized obtain insurance policies Australia’s podcast viewers has quickly expanded, with advert income rising from $5 million in 2017 to over $100 million in 2024. So how do podcasts match into the Australian information cycle? As audiences direct consideration to unbiased and worldwide productions, viewers focusing on, partnerships and media monitoring tendencies point out a shift and a have to adapt engagement metrics and messaging technique.

To spotlight the affect of podcasts on viewers engagement, we tracked protection of key information themes in Australian podcasting from January 2020 to November 2024.

Podcasts surged into the mainstream throughout the pandemic, they usually’re now evolving by integrating with platforms like video and audiobooks to fulfill new viewers expectations. 

Whereas basic podcast information dialogue stays regular, dialogue on information podcasts signifies listener engagement peaks round high-impact tales, suggesting that the subject and knowledge itself is what really resonates with audiences. Retailers like The Australian Monetary Assessment and ABC have expanded into the format, but even main applications like ABC’s Background Briefing face fluctuating engagement in comparison with dialogue about information content material being consumed by podcasts. The information suggests there’s a niche being left by predominant retailers within the podcasting house. Whereas conventional media adapts, unbiased producers are gaining traction with tales that deeply resonate on id and neighborhood points, such because the 2021 Christian Porter case and The Briefing’s 2024 episode on pianist Jayson Gillham’s lawsuit towards the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Understanding viewers preferences and monitoring content material tendencies helps communicators craft methods that leverage podcasting’s distinctive attraction.

https://twitter.com/Emilie_Dye/standing/1833416097871089706

Podcasts provide creators the liberty to pursue tales with fewer constraints of advertisers, traders, or different stakeholders, resulting in content material deeply formed by private ardour and a robust connection to the topic. This independence empowers impactful storytelling, as illustrated by The Instructor’s Pet, the place Hedley Thomas’s rigorous reporting on the case of Lynette Dawson uncovered new, essential particulars and underscored the journalistic integrity driving viewers engagement in a shared pursuit of reality. Equally, New Politics, co-created by Eddy Jokovich, leverages its Patreon-funded mannequin to discover views exterior mainstream narratives, showcasing the ability of unbiased journalism by podcasting.

https://twitter.com/lisapodcasts/standing/1564484950984130565

https://twitter.com/EddyJokovich/standing/1632314733524303872

Sports activities and leisure are inclined to generate excessive visibility and engagement, suggesting they profit from a quicker publishing cadence and broad attraction. Nevertheless points like international conflicts draw vital consideration, particularly amongst communities immediately impacted. The Briefing podcast, for instance, addressed the October 2024 battle in Gaza in a latest episode the place Lebanese-Australian journalist Liz Deep-Jones supplied a private perspective. Such a protection exhibits how podcasts can present each journalistic depth and emotional resonance, connecting listeners to complicated tales in a extra relatable manner.

Even when a serious broadcaster or outlet owns a podcast manufacturing, the distinctive fashion and tone set by the hosts and manufacturing staff typically place podcasts exterior the standard PR and communications scope. Not like the rigorously curated speaking factors present in a typical puff piece or advertorial, podcasts permit for candid, in-depth discussions that discover complicated matters with a level of freedom seldom present in conventional information media channels. This authenticity is pushed by the podcast format itself, which favours nuanced dialogue providing audiences a extra clear and fewer scripted narrative fashion.

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Lots of the main information podcasts, like The Quicky by Mamamia, observe a each day launch that faucets into the rhythm of the 24-hour information cycle, offering well timed responses to breaking information. This format appeals to listeners by delivering information in a fast, digestible fashion, superb for staying knowledgeable on the go and catering to audiences prioritising each comfort and relevance. It’s no shock, then, that prime information spotlight podcasts typically incorporate advertisements at a number of factors—earlier than, throughout, and after episodes—capitalising on the excessive listener engagement these accessible, on-the-go updates create.

Sports activities and leisure podcasts have a tendency to draw larger engagement with frequent, simply digestible episodes, typically in the popular 20-30 minute vary, which maintain a gentle listener base. Personalities like Hamish and Andy, and John Graham exemplify how viewers visibility may be pushed extra by participating personalities than by conventional information evaluation. In distinction, retailers like The Australian Monetary Assessment keep a extra analytical focus with podcasts similar to The Fin and Chanticleer, identified for his or her conservative, business-centric tone. In the meantime, digital-first manufacturers like Mamamia take a extra hybrid, accessible method throughout different matters, leveraging podcasting to achieve broader audiences and foster engagement with impactful information tales. This vary of codecs illustrates how completely different manufacturers tailor their podcast methods to fulfill viewers preferences, from speedy updates in leisure to in-depth discussions on present occasions.

Whereas legacy media retailers leverage their reputations to boost their podcast presence, credibility alone doesn’t guarantee engagement. As an alternative, PR and communications groups can increase viewers connection by aligning content material with listeners’ pursuits and authenticity, serving to refine podcasting methods to seize consideration and drive significant engagement.

Concerned with studying extra? E mail us at data@isentia.com

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