They’re Not Only Talking About History, They’re Making It
Throughout history, women’s voices were muted and largely overshadowed by men. In 1920, women had to march for the right to vote here in the U.S. and they weren’t even allowed to open a bank account until the 1960s. Proudly, podcasting has been a medium where women’s voices have been heard, respected and revered since the start.
Just look through the Academy of Podcasters Hall of Fame: In its inaugural year in 2015 Mur Lafferty of Geek Fu Action Grip was inducted, and women have been represented throughout, both independently and as part of teams.
Two of the top five podcasts of 2020 were by women, including Crime Junkie (Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat) and My Favorite Murder (Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark). Edison.com notes that the gender of podcast listeners are evenly split — 51% male, 49% female, and 31% of women in U.S. households listen to podcasts at least once a month, compared with 39% of men.
And now women’s voices — and the voices of those who identify as women — are shaping history. In ‘The Story Behind Podcast,’ Emily Prokop shares the extraordinary history of the ordinary. Jen Briney’s podcast, ‘The Congressional Dish’ focuses on the actions and processes that go on between official votes of the U.S. Congress.
Yet, like every month celebrating genders, cultures, ethnicities, etc., it’s not enough to point to any certain group for 30 days, then act like they don’t exist the rest of the year. In the second half of 2020 alone, Podcast Insider showcased two articles: Powerful Women in Podcasting and Top Podcasts Hosted, Produced, Or Promoted By Women.
The Blubrry Directory includes thousands of podcasts with women in the title alone, and there are hundreds of times as many shows hosted, produced and/or engineered by women. Still, you can see that there is infinitely more room for women’s voices and influences to shine in podcasting; and women to not only discuss history, but be a vast, vocal part of shaping it.
That’s where Blubrry can help — how many women (and men for that matter) want their voices to help shape history but aren’t sure how to pull together a podcast? Check out our services here.
What women podcasters inspire you the most? Give them a shoutout in the comments below.