Podcasts burst onto China youth scene

Wang Qing, co-host of Chinese podcast "The Weirdo", is part of an explosion of Chinese podcasts that wrestling with social issues in the country. — AFP

A lesbian coming to terms with her sexuality, a village covering up abuses and a dissection of the three-child policy — an explosion of Chinese podcasts are wrestling with social issues considered taboo under the country's strict media controls.

More than 7,000 new podcasts came online last year with an audience tipped at nearly 10 million — a small but fast-growing group in the world's largest market for web audio content.