Casper mattresses and podcast history

The podcast industry is supported by just a few whales of advertisers. In the beginning, the entire industry was propped up by benefactors that specialized in delivering email, for some reason. Then, of course, things evolved, and for some reason, it was companies that enabled listeners to obtain postage stamps. Soon after, it was the direct-to-consumer underwear business, and then naturally, of course, the entire audio industry was propped up by mattresses for a solid couple of years. The fall of the house of Casper led to great chaos, in which any number of folk remedies, snake oil, mail-order powders and Gentlemen’s Aides moved in. Now, though, the most powerful person in podcasting is the woman who buys ads for BetterHelp, which has become the top podcast advertiser of all time, with $242 million spent on podcast ads since 2023, running ads on over 1,000 shows at any given moment.

🔗 Numlock News: September 4, 2026