“Michelle Obama was loved in the 2010’s and now, even with a mass marketing campaign, got less views than your average 20 year old girl on TikTok making a video about her Starbucks order,” Evie magazine founder Brittany Hugoboom wrote on X. “This is why Newsom is bringing more right leaning guests on his podcast. He knows that’s what gets the views and also will make him appear “centrist” and “likable” to those who don’t live in California for a potential 2028 run.”

Michelle Obama was loved in the 2010’s and now, even with a mass marketing campaign, got less views than your average 20 year old girl on TikTok making a video about her Starbucks order.

This is why Newsom is bringing more right leaning guests on his podcast. He knows that’s… https://t.co/WzKptHsadc

— Brittany Hugoboom (@BritHugoboom) March 13, 2025

The podcast’s first episode, as of noon on Thursday, has garnered roughly 54,000 views on YouTube, while the second received about 17,000 views. The former first lady’s podcast also has under 20,000 subscribers.

On Spotify, IMO is the 23rd most popular podcast in the United States. In comparison, Newsom’s podcast is in the top five, putting it in the same leagues as The Joe Rogan Experience, which sits at the top of the list.

Obama and Robinson’s podcast is listed at No. 1 on Apple Podcasts’ top shows. However, neither of the podcast’s episodes appears within the top 24 episodes on Apple Podcasts’ homepage, with the second episode, featuring actress Issa Rae, sitting at No. 200.

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Newsom’s podcast, meanwhile, started off strong with viewership with its first episode, in which the governor spoke with Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk. Their discussion has generated over 743,000 views on YouTube. However, subsequent episodes have not received the same attention, with his latest discussion with Michael Savage getting around 18,000 since its upload on Wednesday. Likewise, his discussion with Steve Bannon, also uploaded on Wednesday, has received over 105,000 views on YouTube and made it into Apple Podcasts’ top 100 episodes at No. 99.

Last week, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy revealed he turned down an offer to be a guest on Newsom’s podcast, calling the governor “trash.” Portnoy added that Newsom is “everything that you think of” when one thinks of “a slick politician.”