When fan culture and podcasting meet: new relationships with the audience in O Caso Evandro

In this article, we analyze, from the theoretical perspective of fan studies, two of the groups created, in online social networks, for the discussion of O Caso Evandro (The Evandro Case), fourth season of the Projeto Humanos podcast. O Caso Evandro discusses the intricacies, contradictions and implications of a crime that took place in Brazil in 1992, in the State of Paraná, with many elements and implications to date. The boy Evandro Ramos Caetano was brutally killed and seven people were accused. We analyze discussion groups created on Facebook and Reddit platforms by podcast listeners, with the purpose of discussing the fourth season of the podcast. Our sample corresponds to publications carried out from January to April 2021, corresponding to 120 days. Our hypothesis is that this season of the program enhances the role of audience - as in radio productions - by migrating to digital platforms and to the fruition dynamics of podcasting, exploring characteristics of the so-called fan culture. We adopted a descriptive study methodology, built from the theoretical scope adopted. As a result, we have six axes that indicate new audience relationships with the podcast and that can indicate ways to engage the audience in new productions.