The Podcast “Chitlin' Circuit”: Black Podcasters, Alternative Media, and Audio Enclaves

This article explores how an informal network of Black podcasters, some of whom refer to themselves as the “Chitlin' Circuit” or “urban podcasters,” functions as a contemporary digital iteration of enclaved Black social spaces. The conversational nature of these podcasts and their use of Black American cultural commonplaces, combined with the intimate qualities of radio-style audio, reproduce a sense of being in Black social spaces such as the barber/beauty shop or church. Mobile technologies not only allow listeners to listen anywhere, but listening via headphones also potentially adds an element of immersion through the practice of sensory gating.