Syndication is the process of selling the same content to multiple buyers so it can be used in many places at once. When a newspaper columnist's work appears in dozens of different newspapers across the country, that's syndication: one writer creates the column, and a syndication company sells it to papers everywhere, each paying a fee to publish it.

Television shows use syndication too. After a show finishes its original run on one network, it can be syndicated, meaning local TV stations buy the rights to air reruns. Shows like Seinfeld made enormous amounts of money through syndication because hundreds of stations wanted to broadcast the episodes.

Comic strips work the same way. Charles Schulz drew Peanuts once, but through syndication, his comic strip appeared in over 2,600 newspapers worldwide. Without syndication, he would have had to draw a different comic for each paper, which would have been impossible.

In syndication, a company called a syndicate handles the business side, selling the content to many buyers while the creator focuses on making quality work. Syndication lets talented creators reach massive audiences and earn money from their work appearing in multiple places at the same time.