During or after a tragedy, podcasting may be the last thing on your mind. Or maybe it's actually something you want or need to get back into, but you're not sure if it's appropriate.
Whatever the “tragedy” is to you, there is no single right answer to this. But I would like to share several points for you to consider so that you can make the decision that's right for you.
(I will use my own past divorce as an example many times in the following.)
1. A Difficult truth: tragedies don't impact everyone equally
I think we can categorize tragedies by two factors: impact and weight. Here are some examples of that:
- When I went through the wounds and betrayal of an unwanted divorce, that greatly impacted and weighed on me. It also weighed on many of my sympathetic listeners, but it didn't really impact them (aside from how it affected my podcast they were listening to).
- If you podcast about a local town, and there's a catastrophe in the town, that impacts and weighs on both you and your audience. The same would probably be true for major national or worldwide events, perhaps regardless of what your podcast is about.
- You might have a tragedy involving someone you know, and that may weigh on you, even if it doesn't directly impact you. And it may not impact or weigh on your audience at all.
- There might be a tragedy somewhere else that neither impacts nor weighs on your nor your audience.
The personal impact and weight of these (and other) categories of tragedies should not diminish the nature of the tragedy. But these can give you some things to think about regarding how or even if you handle it in your podcast. So please keep these different categories in mind with the following points.
2. People need positivity
No matter what your podcast is about, it's probably some kind of positivity to the majority of your audience. Even if that positivity is simply a healthy distraction.
When I was deep in the sorrows of my divorce, I found comfort in the book of Psalms in the Bible every day, and I also found great positivity in multiple podcasts, such as That Story Show, The Karen and Ellen Letters, and a few others. Note that those two podcasts had absolutely nothing to do with healing or relationship advice. In fact, there were a couple of things that made me tear up a little. But they helped me to do something I didn't feel like doing, but that I desperately needed to do: smile.
Your podcast could be that for other people. Your consistency might be just what someone needs when they—or you and they both—are going through or recovering from a tragedy. Sometimes, simply the routine is healing.
3. People need community
Because of the “intimate” nature of personable podcasting, it's easy for communities to form around podcasts. So when something impacts someone in that community, it's felt by the whole community. And it's often good for people to cry together. I think Pixar's Inside Out illustrated this beautifully with the importance of the character and emotion of Sadness and how it's actually necessary for healing and growth.
I love this passage from the Bible:
[9] Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. [10] For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! [11] Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? [12] And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
(Ecclesiastes 4:9–12, ESV)
People need people. And your podcast could help provide just the community they need.
Here's another example of this. When I was going through my divorce, some friends invited me to join their Friday-night Xbox-gaming squad. That gave me something fun to do, a little camaraderie with other men, and it was sometimes simply stress relief. A few years later, one of those men went through his own unwanted divorce, and I was there for him every day. One day, in tears, he apologized to me, regretting that he couldn't give me the support I needed when I went through my own divorce. But I told him, “Oh, but you were there for me. You were there every Friday night for me, giving me something to look forward to, something to help me have fun again. It might seem silly, but it was exactly what I needed.”
4. Podcasting can be therapeutic
I'm no psychologist or counselor, but I've seen and experienced that “letting it out” and (eventually) “moving on” are very important parts of healing and growing. Podcasting may give you an outlet for both.
Todd Cochrane was only 61 when he died on September 8, 2025. His dad also died young (unrelated cause). And a touching story I remember Todd telling multiple times was when he and his mom did several podcast episodes together talking through their grief, healing, and more. Todd frequently spoke of how therapeutic that was for them both, as well as how supportive their community was.
I remember my own first personal tragedy. In working to recover, I was getting Biblical counseling from someone in my church. I'd been podcasting my now-retired clean-comedy podcast, the Ramen Noodle, for barely a year at that point. And I remember my counselor saying some wise and encouraging words, “Daniel, the world needs the Ramen Noodle!”
I needed it, too!
I can think of multiple other examples of this. But the point is that returning to something you love will probably be difficult and may even feel inappropriate at first. But pressing through the mental and emotional resistance can make you stronger and help you reignite your passions.
5. It takes courage to not stay down
Lastly, eventually returning to your passions after a tragedy takes courage because you're proving—even if difficult—that the tragedy cannot defeat you.
I love the brief exchange from Batman Begins: “Why do we fall, Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.”
Podcasting isn't just a “pick me up.” Sometimes, it is part of the process we can use to learn to pick ourselves back up—often lifting others at the same time.
Special thanks
- Thanks to Bryan Enztminger, Dreb Scott, Dave Jackson, and Lyceum for streaming payments for the past couple of episodes.
- Dreb Scott sent an extra 5,678§, saying, “You are doing great work here! Keep it up.”
- PestMerc sent 100§, saying, “Thanks, Daniel.”
- Lyceum sent 1,776§ with a message I'll save for a future episode about freedom of speech in podcasting.
Motivated by recent deaths that impacted and weighed heavily on me, I have several somber and “controversial” topics I'll be covering in upcoming episodes. I'd like to address censorship, freedom of speech, death, including politics, and more. So please send feedback if you have thoughts or questions about these or similar issues in podcasting!
If you love The Audacity to Podcast and value the podcasting inspiration and education I provide, would you please consider giving back what it's worth to you?
Supercharge your podcast engagement and grow your podcast!
Do you ever feel like your podcast is stuck? Like you're pouring your heart into your podcast but it seems like no one is listening?
Try Podgagement to help you supercharge your podcast endgagement!
Get speakable pages to simplify engaging with your audience, accept voicemail feedback (with automatic transcripts), see and share your ratings and reviews from nearly 200 places, follow your podcast rankings across nearly 34,000 global charts, discover networking opportunities, and more!
Ask your questions or share your feedback
- Comment on the episode
- Send a written or voicemail message here
Follow The Audacity to Podcast
- Apple Podcasts, Spotify, other Android apps, or in your favorite podcast app.
- Subscribe on YouTube for Podcasting Videos by The Audacity to Podcast
- Follow @theDanielJLewis on X-Twitter
Disclosure
This post may contain links to products or services with which I have an affiliate relationship. I may receive compensation from your actions through such links. However, I don't let that corrupt my perspective and I don't recommend only affiliates.
Related Content
