The Era of Joe Rogan is Ending, The Era of Meidas Touch is Here
Meidas Touch has overtaken Joe Rogan on the podcast charts, what does that mean for the wider world of political commentary?
For over a decade, Joe Rogan has been the undisputed king of podcasting. His mix of celebrity interviews, conspiracy chatter, and culture war commentary dominated the charts and shaped the medium. But a seismic shift is underway. MeidasTouch, once a small pro-democracy PAC turned media powerhouse, has surged past Rogan to claim the top spot in podcasting, not for a fleeting week but as part of a sustained climb that is redefining what listeners want from their daily content.
Between mid-February and mid-March 2025, MeidasTouch drew roughly 115 million downloads and views across platforms. Rogan, still massive by any measure, pulled in around 64 million during the same period. In July, the gap widened. MeidasTouch claimed number one on YouTube’s weekly podcast chart for at least three consecutive weeks, pushing Rogan into second place. This is not an isolated spike, and the trajectory points to a long-term trend.
MeidasTouch has not tried to replicate Rogan’s model. They have done the opposite. Instead of infrequent long-form interviews, they pump out multiple short, sharp episodes daily, supplemented by longer weekly shows. This high-frequency, high-responsiveness strategy taps directly into the pace of modern political news. Their listeners do not wait a week for insights. They get analysis, fact-checking, and commentary within hours of a breaking story.
That speed matters. In a political environment where narratives shift overnight, MeidasTouch delivers immediacy without sacrificing clarity. And because their production is built for agility, they can address emerging stories while they are still unfolding, shaping the conversation rather than chasing it.
Rogan is political and always has been. But his brand of politics is deeply embedded in the neo-right media ecosystem, blending libertarian talking points with grievance culture and conspiracy-tinged skepticism of mainstream narratives. For years, that mix resonated with millions.
The MeidasTouch surge reveals a different appetite taking hold. Listeners are turning toward grounded, evidence-based political analysis that cuts through misinformation rather than feeds it. MeidasTouch’s audience is not just passively entertained. They are engaged in the political process, following developments closely, and demanding accuracy and accountability.
This is not simply a liberal counterweight to Rogan’s right-leaning guests. It is a rejection of the culture war-first framing that has defined so much of podcasting’s top tier. It is a sign that a significant slice of the audience wants substance over spectacle.
MeidasTouch’s rise is also a story about how independent media can scale. Founded by three brothers as a political action committee in 2020, it evolved into a media network with 12 full-time staff, 30 contributors, and millions of followers across social platforms. It still carries a grassroots energy, even as its reach rivals corporate-backed shows.
The network thrives on community identity. The MeidasMighty are not just fans. They are participants, amplifying content, feeding story leads, and creating a feedback loop that keeps the show responsive to its audience. That relationship is hard to replicate for personalities like Rogan, whose massive audience is more diffuse and less mobilized.
The dethroning of Rogan is not the end of his influence. But it marks the beginning of a new competitive reality where audience loyalty can be built not through celebrity guest lists but through relentless relevance. The success of MeidasTouch shows that political content, delivered with speed and grounded in verifiable information, can outpace entertainment-first approaches in the fight for daily attention.
Podcasting is maturing. The era of Joe Rogan dominance was defined by personality-driven conversation that blurred the lines between entertainment and commentary. The era of MeidasTouch is being defined by political urgency, factual grounding, and a community that treats podcasting as part of their civic engagement. And that era has only just begun.