Today’s Index essay – Will No One Rid Me of These 3 Hour Podcasts? – struck a nerve. Where do people find the time to consume them, and particularly since they’re so content sparse?
I know some feel we shouldn’t be using AI to summarize, but that’s the only way I’ll get anything out of a podcast that long, and even then it’s got to be worth the trouble to grab (or even make) a transcript.
I like my content more information-dense, please.
Yep! If a podcast doesn’t respect my time enough to edit down the fluff, I don’t respect that podcast enough to listen to it.
An episode that lasts over an hour better be packed with great stuff.
I really struggle with this.
I find the max - the absolute max - I can listen to is a one hour podcast, and that’s usually just a true crime deep dive.
A podcast I like: The Omni Show by Omnigroup, the folks who make OmniFocus (my all time favourite productivity tool)
They clock in at around 25-30 minutes per episode, and I always walk away inspired / informed. Example: How Andrea Soro Uses OmniFocus — The Omni Show — Overcast
The only long-ass podcasts I’ll even contemplate are Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History pods and even them I listen to at 1.5 speed.
I was, thankfully, blissfully unaware of the 3hr bro pods, though. Kinda feels like a spinoff of Twitch streams and all those fake podcast vids people make for TikTok? And then worse?
Douglas Rushkoff talked about this briefly on Team Human recently. He blames the shift to video, which makes it harder to cut down interviews or use notes to stay on topic. The platforms also strongly incentivize three-hour video podcasts by rewarding watch time above all else. And on the other end of the attention spectrum, long videos can be cut into many similar clips to churn out short-form content.
I think it’s pure engagement farming. The longer they can make a cheap video, the more watch time they’ll get.
Netflix at least can’t do that because content costs more to produce.
Ego. All ego and engagement, all the way down.
I don’t know. I have a 9 year old stepson (I don’t talk about that much, I keep family private in public) and I cannot imagine having the time in my day to listen to that much of a single episode.
I’m already trying to juggle actually getting work / writing done with parenting.
Speaking of kids, I think the reason these podcasts are getting so much watch time is the same reason Cocomelon racks up millions of views with 10 hour playlists that parents put on for their iPad babies to fall asleep to.
As you mentioned, it’s easy to start one of these and drift off as they drone on. Even seeing a two-minute Lex Fridman clip makes me want to take a nap.
I think these long-form conversations typically serve a different purpose. It’s more about communion than communication. 2-3h is the time required to get a “feel” for the person, and for the level of trust to build up to the degree that you allow the person to actually influence a real change in your life. It’s in this slowed-down, somewhat chaotic “bro” atmosphere that you can tune into worldview of the other person as it manifests through stories, moral judgements and language patterns. I can remember a few worldview-shifting conversations just from the top of my head.
That said, there might be a bubble. But I hope the format stays around. You just has to have the right frame of mind going in, and select what resonates, just as you select a movie or a novel. Watching movie at 2x or speed-reading novels doesn’t make sense — these things have to be experienced. Same with people.
Hardcore is History is probably where I started gaining tolerance for 3h podcasts.
At least those are interesting and informative. Most of the others offer minimal value aside from encouraging parasocial relationships that serve as a replacement for real connection.
Frankly I’d rather watch the directors cut of lord of the rings again…