Exploring Popular Podcasts: A Comprehensive Analysis

Joe Rogan, Jon Lovett, Alex Cooper, Ben Shapiro, and Dan Bongino are among the leading figures in the U.S. podcasting scene, a medium that celebrates the power of conversation and storytelling. Tuning into podcasts not only keeps you informed about current events and diverse perspectives but also offers an excellent opportunity to enhance your language skills while exploring fascinating narratives.

With so many fantastic podcasts available, we set out to discover what perspectives are capturing the attention of Americans today. To do this, we utilized Google Trends to analyze which podcasts are currently trending across the country. By examining the 25 most-listened-to podcasts of all time, we gathered data on search volumes for each in every state, revealing where listeners’ interests lie.

To gain deeper insights into the language styles of various podcasters, we carefully examined hundreds of recent transcripts from popular personality-driven shows, such as *The Joe Rogan Experience* and *Call Her Daddy*. This analysis helped us uncover their unique speech patterns and preferred discussion topics.

Here’s what we found.

Key findings

• The top-three words American podcasters use are “states,” “crazy” and “family.”
• Liberal podcasters embrace words like “weird,” “different” and “online.” 
• Conservative podcasters favor words like “money,” “president” and “inflation.”
• Impaulsive with Logan Paul is the most-searched podcast in the U.S. right now and #1 in nine states.

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The most-searched podcasts by state

While podcast preferences vary by state, several shows have emerged as favorites across the country. Topping the charts is “Impaulsive” with Logan Paul, leading the search rankings in nine states. Following closely is “Morbid,” which ranks as the most-searched podcast in eight states. Other popular picks include “H3,” “Call Her Daddy,” and the widely recognized “Joe Rogan Experience,” with seven, six, and five states, respectively, naming them as their top choice.

Popular podcasters’ favorite words

At LingualNeeds, our passion for language drives us to dig deeper into its applications. We conducted an in-depth analysis of up to 100 recent episode transcripts from fifteen popular personality-driven podcasts, exploring the unique speech patterns of influential hosts such as Joe Rogan, Conan O’Brien, and Alex Cooper.

In our analysis of each podcast, we identified and ranked the most frequently used verbs and nouns, deliberately setting aside common modifiers such as “the” and “and,” as well as basic action words like “is” and “was.”

The frequently used words from various podcasters offer intriguing insights into their communication styles and topics. For instance, Joe Rogan’s distinctive speech is marked by terms like “exactly” and “listen,” while more laid-back hosts like Alex Cooper and Logan Paul often incorporate slang such as “dude” and “suck.” This contrast highlights the diverse ways these personalities engage with their audiences.

In various instances, the themes of the content become clear: The political emphasis in programs such as The Dan Bongino Show and Pod Save America is highlighted by frequently used terms like “states,” “inflation,” “president,” and “bill.”

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The most-used words across podcasts

While everyone has their favorite expressions, language is a communal experience, with many words and phrases appearing across a wide range of discussions, no matter the subject or political views. In fact, tuning into podcasts that utilize this shared language can be an excellent way to enhance your language skills.

To identify the most frequently used words in popular podcasts, we analyzed the vocabulary from several personality-driven shows, focusing on terms that appeared in at least two of them.

Interestingly, the language of podcasts, whether discussing trending TV shows or political matters, leans heavily towards American themes. The word “States” leads the pack with an impressive 521 mentions, while “crazy” and “family” follow closely behind, each with over 400 occurrences. Additionally, terms like “President,” “money,” “America,” and “god” also make the list of the top 25 most frequently used words, highlighting the cultural touchstones that resonate in these discussions.

Liberal versus conservative hosts: How do they talk?

Political beliefs often influence the language we choose, so we examined the distinct vocabulary used by liberal and conservative podcast hosts. Our analysis featured 10 podcasts led by liberal voices and 5 hosted by conservative figures, shedding light on how their ideologies shape their communication styles.

Our research revealed that conservative podcasters frequently employ a distinct political vocabulary, using terms like “states,” “money,” and “president” more often than their liberal peers. Additionally, words such as “America,” “united,” and “American” consistently appear among the top 25 words used by conservatives.

Liberal hosts, on the other hand, talk more about “family” and “kids.” 

The way people communicate offers valuable insights into their identities, backgrounds, and values. If you’re eager to explore the fascinating intersection of language and podcasts, check out LingualNeeds’s own podcast for an enriching experience.

Methodology: In September 2022, we performed a Google Trends analysis on the 25 most-listened-to podcasts in America, as identified by Edison Research. Our goal was to uncover the most popular podcast in each state at this moment. Below is the complete list of the podcasts we examined, organized alphabetically:

1. Call Her Daddy
2. Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend
3. Crime Junkie
4. Dateline NBC
5. Fresh Air
6. H3 Podcast
7. Impaulsive with Logan Paul
8. Morbid: A True Crime Podcast
9. My Favorite Murderer
10. NPR News Now
11. Office Ladies
12. Planet Money
13. Pod Save America
14. Serial
15. Smartless
16. Stuff You Should Know
17. TED Talks Daily
18. The Ben Shapiro Show
19. The Daily
20. The Joe Rogan Experience
21. This American Life
22. The Dan Bongino Show
23. Up First
24. Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me
25. WTF with Marc Maron

We conducted an in-depth analysis of up to 100 recent transcripts from some of America’s most popular personality-driven podcasts, carefully filtering out common and filler words. For our study, we sourced Joe Rogan Experience transcripts from Happy Scribe, while all other transcripts were obtained from Podscribe. Here’s a list of the podcasts we examined:

1. Armchair Expert with Dax Shephard
2. Call Her Daddy
3. Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend
4. Crime Junkie
5. Impaulsive with Logan Paul
6. My Favorite Murder
7. Office Ladies
8. Pod Save America
9. Stuff You Should Know
10. The Ben Shapiro Show
11. The Dan Bongino Show
12. The Dave Ramsey Show
13. The Joe Rogan Experience
14. The Rachel Maddow Show
15. WTF with Marc Maron