Why podcasts worked:
You could hear an author unpack the ideas from a book, being asked by someone who had read it.
Contrast to timebound broadcast TV and it’s obvious why the format is superior.
Discussion
Weren’t earlier TV formats exactly this? Long form conversations or debates focused on rigorous examination of ideas?
Yes. Watch Milton Friedman on TV, completely different level of engagement and time for his concepts.
All changed with Cable News in the US. It shifted everyone to 24 hour broadcasting with more “sprint” type content rather than languid slow-form stuff of prior years.
Plus any TV interview these days is scripted. The person being interviewed pretty much writes their own questions. Literally interviewing themselves through a puppet.