Are Australian podcasters, not politicians, driving Gen Z's election interest?
Tomorrow's
Australian election
will be the first in which Gen Z and millennial voters - those under 45 - outnumber baby boomers.
However just how influential young voters will be on the result is far from clear, with analysis of the 2022 election by Griffth University showing many Generation Z voters only voted to avoid a fine.
Voting in Australia is compulsory.
Some commentators however believe this time might be different, as evidenced by the rise in popularity of online political influencers and podcasters who target engagement with younger voters.
One online political influencer that is making a mark in Australia is Punter's Politics hosted by former teacher Konrad Benjamin.
Punters Politics has around 415 thousand followers on [https://www.instagram.com/punterspolitics/?hl=en
Instagram]
Benjamin said his site and others are engaging young voters this time around because they focus on context and single issues that young voters care about like housing, rather than the political punditry that main corporate media stations focus on.
He said the success of online sites like his in politics is evidenced by the fact politicians are choosing to engage with online podcasters.
In the US Donald Trump is thought to have boosted his vote with young male voters thanks to appearances on sites like the Joe Rogan podcast.
Liberal leader Peter Dutton in Australia has appeared on the popular Australian podcast
Diving Deep.
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Otago Daily Times
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