LunatechSo, I just listened to a podcast at Refuse Fascism (https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/refuse-fascism) and while it was interesting, I found that it tended to fade into background noise after a while. In other words, I found that I was listening, but not really hearing. And I have noticed that this happens whenever I hear panel discussion type podcasts (ones where there are more than two participants). This one, as panel discussions go, was not bad - at least no one was trying to get the last word in, nor were they arguing with each other. In that respect, it was a model of how panel discussions should be if you want to attract people who don't enjoy listening to conflict.
So, why was I tuning it out? Well, and I hate to admit this, but I think in part it was because I am a man and two of the three voices were female. And that got me to thinking. I mean, I don't turn away from female voices. I watch the CBS Evening News which has a female host. Back when I had access to MSNBC I often used to watch Rachel Maddow and enjoyed it (but did not enjoy the number of commercials on that network). But I think at least some people instinctively start to tune out members of the opposing gender once they start going into lengthy expositions. You hear women complain about "mansplaining" and you hear men complain about how the females in their lives drone on and on about things that have no relevence to either of them.
Now I am fairly liberal (at least up to the point where you start talking about forcing people to stop eating meat, or to give up their car and ride a fucking bicycle) but those who identify as conservative are probably far less likely to tune into female voices. In the old days they would listen to people like Paul Harvey and Rush Limbaugh. Now they watch Faux News, which puts predominently male hosts on in prime time.
That is one reason I sometimes boost the podcasts of #Keith_olbermann (https://omny.fm/shows/countdown-with-keith-olbermann/playlists/podcast). He is about as liberal as they come, but his is a strong male voice. He was the anchor of ESPN's sportscenter for a while, and he still often talks sports on his podcast for a few minutes. I don't even like sports, but he often makes them seem interesting. And it is just him talking (though he very sparingly plays news clips), it is not a panel discussion, which I personally have a strong dislike of (I can hear enough arguing without seeking it out).
Most conservative women will listen to men as long as they are not "mansplaining" (and honestly I am still not exactly sure what that means), but I will bet the reverse is not true, I will bet most conservative men will not listen to women for very long, expecially if they are going into long social commentaries. The ones with a pseudo-Christian background have been taught that women should keep silent in the churches, and I suspect that attitude carries over into everyday life. I have known men who would quit their jobs before they would work under a female boss, and yes they tended to also be the type that would support former president orange.
So my point in all this is that I think one big reason that the liberal and anti-fascist message is not being heard by many white men is that it is not be presented to them by the voices they want to hear. We need more men to start speaking the anti-fascist message. Keith Olbermann is one example, and his podcast is continually growing, but we need more voices like that. And I mean podcasts where the host is the primary voice. I just don't think multiple voices work that well on a news/information type podcast (if you are talking something like comedy, that may be another matter, but then again Jon Stewart's best segments were the ones where he did all the talking).
I am NOT for a moment implying that women should not have a voice in the public discourse, I am just saying that if you are trying to reach a certain segment of men, they are going to tune out when they hear a female voice, just as many women will tune out a male voice in certain situations. And right now, more than ever, it is important that those people hear about the dangers of fascism and of the conservative and pseudo-Christian worldview. I know that liberals may think that in order to have a "big tent" you must have many voices on your podcast, but I am not sure that actually attracts listeners.
Now, be aware that I am old (the first TV I ever watched was an old black and white set in a furniture-sized cabinet and it had a round picture tube, so I am that old) so maybe younger listeners have different attitudes, but then again it is often older people who vote Republican, and I think many of them do so because that's what the voices they want to listen to are telling them to do. You may disagree with me and that's fine, I'm just throwing this out there for consideration. I just think there are not hearing enough strong male voices speaking out against fascism and pseudo-Christianity in a way that might cause those men who lean conservative to stop and listen.
(And unfortunately, I cannot personally do anything about this, because my voice is abnormally high for a man, and very grating to listen to. I would not want to hear me talk for several minutes. Plus I cannot read a script without stumbling over words to save my life.)
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