Why nobody actually watches video podcasts #podcast #contenttrends

Name: Why nobody actually watches video podcasts #podcast #contenttrends
Uploaded: 2026-02-26T00:50:33+00:00
Duration: 1 min 45 s
Channel: Rob Greenlee
Description: In this short commentary, the speaker argues that video attached to podcasts functions primarily as a discovery and promotional tool rather than an…

26 Feb 2026 · 2 min

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1:45

In this short commentary, the speaker argues that video attached to podcasts functions primarily as a discovery and promotional tool rather than an immersive viewing experience. He notes that platforms such as Spotify and Apple Podcasts now allow creators to upload full‑length video episodes and short promotional clips, but most listeners still consume podcasts as audio. He observes that audiences rarely sit down to watch a podcast like a TV show; instead they may glance at a video while multitasking. The speaker highlights how other entertainment sectors stage fake podcast recordings on TikTok to drive attention, illustrating the discovery‑centric role of video. He references an (unidentified) poll indicating that roughly 98 % of podcast consumers prefer listening to watching, reinforcing his view that video serves more to attract listeners than to provide a primary consumption format.

Chapters

Well, I think, I think there's a piece of the, the, the video content experience from an audience side that I don't see talked about very often, which is specifically the discovery aspect of it. Like we're all being told, you know, that video is crucial for discovery. You know, Spotify has put in not only the ability to upload videos, which of course Apple Podcasts has just introduced like last week, I think this week, but also Spotify gives you the option to upload these shorter clips. That they use sort of promotionally within their app. And I do, maybe not question, but I, I, I, I'm curious about how many people actually are watching podcasts in the way that you would watch a TV show. I don't know that somebody is like turning on a podcast and sitting down and watching it. They're using their YouTube Premium to press the YouTube video and then they're closing the app and they're doing something else, you know? And so then the video is really about discovery. And I think one of the best sort of examples of that is the fact that there are entire other sectors of entertainment and content online that stage fake podcast recordings in order to promote their work. And so you'll see something on TikTok of two people sitting in front of microphones talking, and it's actually a promotion for an influencer who doesn't have a podcast at all. And I think that that's, I think that's really interesting. And so I do, I do wonder, I mean, there was that big, I forget, I forget if it was Edison or who ran the poll, but something like 98% of people are still listening to their podcasts over watching them. So it's, I think that it is much more of a discovery thing than an actual experiential thing.