Political commentary on religious radio, and what listeners think about it

Most religious radio listeners say keeping up with news and politics isn’t a major reason they tune in. Still, some stations have a heavy focus on political commentary.

About half of U.S. adults (45%) say they ever listen to religious audio programming – such as music, sermons, talk shows or audio dramas – either via radio or online. Most listeners say they tune in because they find the content spiritually uplifting, relaxing or able to provide guidance for daily life. Fewer point to keeping up with news and current events as a major reason for listening.

Even so, political and social issues do come up in religious programming. About four-in-ten listeners say they hear commentary about these topics at least sometimes. And when we examined a month’s worth of religious radio broadcasts from July 2025, we found that some stations have multiple hours of programming each day that focus on political and social issues. Others seldom reference these topics outside of brief news reads or passing mentions.