Make Me Smart

Why anime is everywhere all at once

Feb 28, 2024

The podcast delves into the massive revenue of anime, its surge in the US, problematic aspects, and impact on various industries. They also discuss climate change affecting cherry blossoms, commercial real estate, listener calls, and a digital illustrator's career journey.

30:00

Creator website

Episode guests

Chris Plante

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Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Anime's massive global revenue rivals that of the NFL, indicating its mainstream popularity.

Anime caters to diverse interests, from LGBTQ themes to niche topics like cooking and sports.

Deep dives

Anime's Increasing Popularity in the West

Anime's popularity in the West has surged due to improved access through streaming services like Netflix, Crunchyroll, and HiDive. Gen Z viewers, especially, have easy access to diverse anime content, showcasing stories ranging from sports to fantasy, catering to varied audience interests.

Introduction

2min

The Rise of Anime in the United States

8min

Exploring the Perception and Growth of Anime in Multiple Industries

4min

Anime Representation and Live-Action Adaptations

11min

Adapting to the Changing Job Market

5min

Anime seems to be just about everywhere these days: film, music videos, the NFL and big streaming services like Netflix and Hulu.

“Anime is colossal. In terms of raw revenue, anime and the NLF are tied at about $20 billion in [annual global] revenue,” said Chris Plante, editor in chief and co-founder of Polygon at Vox Media. “When you think of anime, it can be seen as niche, but the reality is that couldn’t be further from the truth.”

On the show today, Plante explains anime economics, what’s behind the rise of anime in the United States and some of the problematic aspects of the medium.

Later, we’ll discuss how climate change is impacting cherry blossom season and why the commercial real estate crisis could be a big problem for regional banks.

Later, one listener calls in on a landline about landlines. And, this week’s answer to the Make Me Smart question comes from a digital illustrator based in Long Beach, California.

Here’s everything we talked about today: