I really feel this with podcasts; everyone seems like they need to make a buck now. Before about 2015 there were so many great podcasts that people did for fun

I really feel this with podcasts; everyone seems like they need to make a buck now. Before about 2015 there were so many great podcasts that people did for fun or because they wanted to get a message out. Slowly, one by one, they started adding sponsorships for Blue Apron and NatureBox and SquareSpace (these were the VPMs of 2015). Now even the most niche podcast has algorithmic ads. I frequently hear creators say that these ads make very little money but I guess the creators think they're losing out by not including them. I remember listening to The Skeptics Guide to the Universe back then and thinking "everyone else is adding ads but I bet this one never will, they've been doing it ad-free for like a decade". Then a year later they had ads. It's just sad to think of what we've lost.