In a world full of headlines, sound bites, and 280 character posts, sometimes you want “the rest of the story.” You know, something in depth.

Welcome to the world of podcasts

Like a radio station, only dedicated to a particular topic with in-depth episodes, podcasts are extremely popular with 41% of the population listening to podcasts at least once a month. Older adults turn to podcasts primarily to learn, according to the Pew Research Center.

Podcasts differ from radio shows in that they are pre-recorded, can be played on demand, and are published on an RSS feed, which means (in simple terms) they are on the internet. Radio shows are designed to appeal to a wide audience; whereas podcasts appeal to a niche audience by focusing on specific topics - and there are so many different ones. You can even find a podcast dedicated to learning how to podcast. According to DemandSage, there are over five million podcasts globally with 70 million episodes between them.

Each podcast (think radio station) has episodes (think individual segments or shows.) For instance, one of my favorite podcasts is Feel Better, Live More with Dr. Rangan Chatterjee. All of his episodes are dedicated to health - either in long form (up to two hours) or short form, which he calls “bite size” that are around 20 minutes. An episode could be about intermittent fasting or how your brain creates your reality.

**Apple Podcast Browse Screen**

Spotify and Apple are the two most popular streaming services. There are over five million titles in Spotify’s library and half that in Apple’s library. Between the two, you’re bound to find a topic of interest. If you have an iPhone or an iPad, chances are you’ve seen the podcast icon. Once you click on the icon, you are brought to the main page.
Clicking on the search button is a great place to start, since topics are categorized into areas of interest - history, business, sports, religion & spirituality, parenting, books, relationships, news, and health & fitness to name a few. If you type a word in the search bar, like travel, you will be shown results in shows, channels, and episodes. Expand the selection in each by clicking on “See All.”

Once you find a show of interest and click on the icon, episodes are listed. Listen by clicking on the title and then the play button. Each episode will have an explanation, provide a link to the author’s webpage, and show the length of the episode.

Travel typed in search bar

Chosen show - Travel with Rick Steeves

You will notice to the right of the play button, three other icons; the flag, checkmark, and three dots. (see image below) The flag is there if you want to save the episode. You might want to do this if you don’t have time to listen but want an easy way to find it again. All episodes that you save can be found in the Saved section under Library on the left side of the screen. When you save the episode by clicking on that flag, the episode is automatically downloaded, as noted by the checkmark. All downloaded episodes are found in the Download section under Library on the left side of the screen.

So what’s the difference between saving and downloading an episode, you ask? The major difference is that when you download an episode, you can listen to it without an internet connection. It is saved to your device. This comes in handy if you want to listen to the episode in the car. You can remove the episode from the download section and it will still show in the saved section.

Hit the three dots to find many commands - download or save an episode or remove or unsave an episode. You can even get a link to the show or share the show with others.

If you like the format of the show and would enjoy listening to more episodes on a regular basis, you can click on the +Follow button. Enable notifications if you’d like to be notified when new episodes are added.

All shows that you follow are added to your library under “shows” which you will find on the left side of the screen.

Exploring various topics and episodes can be overwhelming. There is so much out there. Check out these or search for a topic that is of interest to you. I’ve added an explanation of the podcast copied from each of their sites.

What Should I Read Next? - What Should I Read Next? is a show for every reader who has ever finished a book and faced the problem of not knowing what to read next. Each week, Anne Bogel, of the blog Modern Mrs Darcy, interviews a reader about the books they love, the books they hate, and the books they're reading now. Then, she makes recommendations about what to read next. The real purpose of the show is to help YOU find your next read.

The Pioneer Woman - Ree Drummond shares her comforting home cooking from her kitchen on the ranch. With direct audio from her hit Food Network TV show, you can now enjoy Ree’s company as she cooks up meals for every occasion, from last-minute family suppers to elegant celebrations.

The New York Times or NPR’s Consider This - Stay up to date on current events with in-depth reporting.

The School of Greatness - Lewis Howes is a New York Times best-selling author, 2x All-American athlete, keynote speaker, and entrepreneur. The School of Greatness shares inspiring interviews from the most successful people on the planet—world-renowned leaders in business, entertainment, sports, science, health, and literature—to inspire YOU to unlock your inner greatness and live your best life.

Diary of a CEO - Steven Bartlett interviews some of the world's most influential people, experts and thinkers to discover untold truths, unlearned lessons and important insights to make lives more enjoyable, more successful and more fulfilled.

It’s no wonder that podcasts are so popular. Listening to various podcasts have become a place for me to learn new things, as well as to stay up to date on current events.

Perhaps, the next time you can’t find anything to watch on the television or want to hear more than music in your car, consider listening to a podcast. There is so much to explore.

One word of caution though - podcasts take up a lot of space on your iPhone or iPad, and when you follow a podcast, new episodes are automatically downloaded. To prevent this, you’ll want to go into Settings on your iPhone or iPad, then find the Podcast app. Once opened, you will find two settings to change. Click on Remove Played Downloads so that the green button shows. Find Automatically Download and click Off.