Podcasting By The Numbers

In today's show, we dig into what really drives podcast discovery, why podcast ads outperform every other channel, and how Apple is upgrading the big‑screen experience.
Edison Podcast Metrics® shows the top decision drivers: topic (64%) and host (53%). Guests matter less (38%), and trailers, cover art, and kid‑friendly labels barely register. The takeaway: topic and host do the work.
Magellan AI and Buzzsprout highlight podcast advertising’s impact: • 69% discover new products through podcast ads • 81% pay more attention than they do to radio, TV, billboards, or social media • Two‑thirds research or purchase after hearing an ad
And Apple Podcasts on tvOS now supports video podcasts and premium subscriptions, with a redesigned sidebar, improved show pages, episode art, and full channel support — a sharper, more visual experience built for TV.
A quick hit of listener behavior, ad performance, and platform upgrades.

Today’s episode hits three big shifts in podcasting: automation, audience behavior, and measurement.
Podeo launches with a clear promise — turn podcasts into video people actually watch. It converts full episodes into long‑form video and auto‑uploads them to YouTube, instantly expanding a show’s reach on the world’s biggest video platform.
At Podcast Week in New York, the Podcast Study 2026 dropped fresh insights: • 45% of listeners are open to paying for an ad‑free tier • 64% would join a podcaster’s email list.  The authors will unpack the findings across four upcoming webinars.
And Podscribe just launched direct attribution with Rumble, making Rumble the first video platform to support every signal required under the AMP attribution spec — a major step toward standardized podcast ad measurement.
A crisp look at the tools, trends, and tech pushing podcasting forward.

Headliner is pushing podcast automation forward with its new YouTube Video Clips Automation, turning any YouTube Podcast Playlist into nonstop, styled, captioned, auto‑published clips — freeing creators from the busywork and keeping shows growing on their own.
At Podcast Week’s kickoff, Ira Glass reminded the Sounds Profitable crowd of “what podcasts do better,” arguing that deeper storytelling creates deeper listener connections — and stronger ad performance.
And TYT is making a major business move, naming Airwave its exclusive ad‑sales partner across key podcast, video, and live inventory, including GAM360 on YouTube. With Airwave scaling its sales team and TYT entering a new commercial chapter, both companies say the partnership is built for ambitious growth.
A fast hit of the tools, the craft, and the deals shaping podcasting right now.

Substack is making a bigger play in audio with a new podcast tab — a dedicated space that helps creators reach their current listeners while boosting discovery for new ones.  It centralizes shows from Substack writers and reflects a fast‑growing ecosystem where podcasters on the platform now earn over $200 million a year.  It’s another step in Substack’s push to become a full home for independent media, where writing, audio, and community live together.
We also dig into new research showing that AI host‑voice replicas outperform human announcer‑read ads by 26% — and that real host‑read ads still beat both.  The takeaway: authenticity, even when cloned, moves the needle.
And finally, Podcast Week kicks off in New York. Sounds Profitable’s Business Summit leads the charge, followed by the 2026 IAB Podcast Upfront and Podcast Movement — a full week spotlighting the business, the brands, and the creators shaping the industry’s next chapter.
A fast, focused look at the platforms, the tech, and the events driving podcasting forward.

This episode breaks down the shifting metrics shaping podcast and platform advertising. Glenn Rubenstein of ADOPTER Media warns that YouTube’s rushed view‑metric changes inflate counts while making each view worth less — and says Spotify’s skip‑ad tests only weaken measurement further.
We also dig into Magellan AI’s Q2 2026 report, which shows that judging podcast ads after one week captures less than half their true impact. Most conversions happen over a full month, not in the first few days.
Plus, Triton Digital introduces Demos+ Demographic Targeting, giving advertisers smarter, audience‑based planning instead of broad assumptions.
A fast look at why better measurement — not looser metrics — is becoming essential.
 

Today, Audiencelift launches Preferred Apps & Players, giving podcasters real control over where their audiences grow. Listeners discover shows across 50,000 premium publishers and pick exactly where to listen—Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Overcast, and more. With Verified Growth™, creators can finally see the full listener journey instead of chasing raw download totals.
We also spotlight FOX News Rewind: 9/11, a powerful series revisiting the day the world changed and the resilience that followed. Link in the description.
Plus, Podtrac’s August ranker shows sharp year‑over‑year declines for major publishers: iHeart down 15% in audience and 20% in streams, NPR down 15%, and Libsyn hit hardest with a 33% audience drop and streams cut in half. YouTube and Spotify video views are included, but HLS video still isn’t measured.
 
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fox-news-rewind-9-11/id6806045654
 
 

This episode covers three major shifts in podcasting. First, Caloroga Media unveils Linnet, a browser‑based AI studio that handles scripting, recording, editing, mixing, artwork, video, and publishing in one place—built to match real production quality and keep creators fully in control. Then we dig into new survey data showing a growing divide between fast, high‑volume video creators and slower, highly produced audio storytellers, and why protecting audio‑first formats still matters. Finally, Flightcast launches unified video ad delivery across Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and RSS video feeds, giving publishers more reach with fewer blind spots.
A quick look at the tools, tensions, and tech shaping podcasting’s next chapter.

This episode looks at three stories shaping the podcast landscape right now. First, Bobby Bones marks ten years of The BobbyCast, a show that’s grown from a passion project into a multi‑platform force — now pulling in 92 million monthly social impressions, reaching 5.4 million followers, launching the Nashville Podcast Network, and expanding all the way to Netflix.
Then we break down new publishing trends: nearly one‑third of podcast episodes drop every 3–7 days, one in four release every 8–14 days, and only 1% publish monthly — a snapshot of how creators pace their output in a crowded market.
Finally, we dig into the debate around video clips.  With 74% of indie podcasters saying clips boost full‑episode listening — and 26% saying they hurt it — creators are navigating a tricky balance.  Clips can spark discovery, but they can also become the product if you’re not careful.  Used well, they open the door; just don’t expect everyone who walks in to stay for the full conversation.

This episode brings together three big stories shaping the podcast world right now. First, Audacity v4 has landed with a major redesign — a cleaner interface, customizable workspaces, new clip‑editing tools, expanded plugin support, and a more flexible recording workflow. The core app stays free, even as Audacity promotes its optional cloud‑saving service.
Then we zoom out to listener behavior: 62.1% of adults listen to podcasts on an iPhone, dwarfing Android, Windows, and iPad usage. It’s a reminder of just how dominant Apple’s ecosystem remains in podcast consumption.
And finally, we head to London, where Goalhanger wrapped the inaugural The Rest Is Fest — a three‑day takeover of the Southbank Centre that sold 26,000 tickets across 22 shows. From Gary Lineker’s conversation with Stanley Tucci to debut live editions of The Rest Is Football, The Rest Is Money, The Rest Is Science, and more, the festival brought the entire Goalhanger universe together for the first time.
Three stories. One episode. A snapshot of where podcasting is heading next.

This episode zooms out to the real tension in the creator economy — not content, not algorithms, but the disconnect between creators, audiences, and advertisers. Each group thinks they’re listening, but they’re operating on assumptions that haven’t matched reality in years. Part 5 brings the whole series together, showing where those gaps line up and how the ecosystem gets smarter once everyone stops talking past each other.
Plus, a quick look at Apple Podcasts’ refreshed embedded player, now supporting full episodes, show pages, video, and trailers — a simple upgrade that makes discovery easier right on your website.

Part 4 cuts through one of podcasting’s biggest myths: the idea that the medium skews male.  It doesn’t. Across markets, gender is nearly balanced — and the real story lives in the deviations. France and the UK lean more female, while the US, Germany, and Australia sit near the global baseline. Category behavior sharpens the picture: True Crime skews female, News and Sports skew male, and Comedy and Society & Culture stay balanced.  In the UK, women over‑index to Comedy; in France, they lean hardest into True Crime. Gender isn’t universal — it shifts by market and category, and planning without those nuances means leaving precision on the table.
You’ll also hear Rachel Quester of The Daily share five craft principles that keep the show evolving a decade in: stay intentional, reinvent familiar stories, avoid formulas, meet your audience where they are, and invest in people who invest in you.
And we track True Crime’s steady rise to the top of U.S. listening — overtaking Comedy in 2026 after climbing from fifth place in 2019. It’s a long‑running momentum story that reshapes how genres compete for attention.
A fast, data‑driven look at how gender, craft, and category trends are rewriting the audio playbook.

Gen Z matters — just not in the oversimplified way advertisers keep assuming.  New data shows Gen Z’s podcast behavior is intensely market‑specific: Sports dominates 18–24s in France, Comedy leads in the UK and Australia, and personas across the U.S., France, and Australia reveal wildly different interests from auto and fitness to sustainability, fashion, Pride, and summer travel.  Treating Gen Z as one global audience misses the nuance — and the opportunity.
We also break down why podcast listeners aren’t casual at all. Most spend over seven hours a week listening, and a dedicated segment clocks more than 22 hours. This is deep, consistent attention.
Finally, we look at Everywhere — a new creator‑first media company built for a world where audiences follow creators, not platforms. As the creator economy surges toward $480B, Everywhere offers one commercial partner for creators across every channel, and one streamlined access point for advertisers who want to meet audiences where they actually are.
If you’re still planning for “Gen Z” as a single block, this episode rewrites the playbook.

Part 2 digs into who’s actually listening to podcasts — and spoiler, it’s not just Millennials. Sure, 25–34 is the biggest group across major markets, but the full picture shows real spread: Gen X, Gen Z, Boomers, even Gen Alpha all show up in meaningful ways. Different ages lean into different genres too — teens hit Sports, 18–34 loves Comedy, 35–44 leans Society & Culture, 45–54 goes Education, 55–64 rides True Crime, and 65+ sticks with News. Podcasting isn’t “young.” It’s genuinely cross‑generational.
We also look at two big shifts in discovery. Buzzsprout found most shows weren’t listed everywhere they could be, so they rebuilt their submission flow — one click now pushes your show to 16 directories. Over 5,200 podcasts picked up new distribution in just two weeks.
Then there’s CBC, using Magellan AI to track which promos actually convert. With better visibility, they tested new creative and timing — and the results popped. Episode‑specific promos beat generic trailers, timely promos hit huge conversion spikes, and simple “here’s why you should listen” messaging brought in thousands of new followers. Those wins pushed teams to move faster and jump on cultural moments while they’re hot.
This episode breaks down how age, discovery, and smarter promo strategy are reshaping podcast growth — and what creators can learn from it.

We start with the creator blind spot — the fact that 27% of podcasters don’t listen to other shows in their niche. Some avoid influence on purpose. Others get swallowed by production. Either way, it shapes how they create and how disconnected they can become from the listeners they’re trying to reach.
Who Actually Listens to Podcasts is a five‑part reality check for creators and advertisers who think they already know their audience. Spoiler: most don’t.  Then we zoom out to the audiences advertisers keep underestimating. Seniors aren’t fringe; they’re a growth engine with high‑intent listening moments across travel, retail, grocery, wellness, and more. The data proves it, but the industry still plans for a fictional “typical listener.”  This series exposes the assumptions holding audio back and spotlights the listeners, creators, and markets that are actually moving it forward.
And in markets like Australia, podcasting isn’t experimental anymore — it’s driving real ad growth, real attention, and real performance.
 

Audacy is quietly shutting down Creator Lab on November 1 — the hosting and monetization platform it rebranded from Podcorn after a $22.5M acquisition.  Despite a splashy 2025 relaunch and YouTube integration this spring, the service never caught fire, hosting just 426 shows.  And the weird part?  Audacy hasn’t acknowledged the shutdown. The site still promotes Creator Lab, and they’ve advertised on 52 podcasts this week.
We also break down fresh listening data from Sounds Profitable showing why people actually tune in — from topic‑driven curiosity to commuting and workouts.
Plus, YouTube just made a major commerce move: eligible U.S. creators can now tag Amazon products inside the YouTube Shopping Affiliate Program.  It’s a powerful shift, even if it’s only visible in select regions and surfaces for now.
A platform shutting down, another leveling up — and creators caught in the middle.

Quince is absolutely flooding podcast ads — $7.5 million in July, outspending everyone, with BetterHelp and Amazon trailing behind. Hero Bread, Accenture, and Lululemon are the surprise climbers, jumping fast in month‑over‑month growth.
YouTube had its classic “oops” moment: The Parent Tap got banned, appealed, denied instantly… and then reinstated once an actual human looked at it. The algorithm stays dramatic.
Patreon is in full makeover mode, rolling out 30 new discovery features that are already driving 1.5 million new members a month. From auto‑pulled previews to bite‑sized clips to new Niches and anti‑AI‑scraping tools, Patreon wants to be where fans find you — not just where they pay you.
And globally? Podcast listeners outside North America are putting in the hours. South Africa, Indonesia, and Mexico are tuning in way more than the U.S. and Canada, who are… trying.
Big spenders, platform backtracks, creator upgrades, and global momentum.

Podbean basically walked in waving its IAB certification like, “These numbers aren’t vibes — they’re science.” With fully standardized metrics, your downloads finally mean what you think they mean, and sponsors can stop squinting at your analytics like they’re reading tea leaves.
Meanwhile, Meta has resurrected its podcast dreams — not on Facebook, but on Threads, the app that somehow became everyone’s group chat. They’re testing transcript‑overlaid audio clips, profile podcast links, and a “Dear Algo” button that’s basically, “Hey, show me more pod stuff.” Turns out 500 million monthly users make a pretty decent podcast playground.
And YouTube? Oh, YouTube is feeling jealous. Bloomberg says creators who also drop content on Netflix might get quietly shoved down the algorithm stairs. Less promotion, fewer brand campaigns, and maybe a big bag of money if they promise YouTube first dibs.

Conservative podcast audiences are shifting fast heading into the 2026 election cycle. Edison Podcast Metrics shows major gains for Megyn Kelly, Shawn Ryan, and Candace — while Dan Bongino, Jordan Peterson, Ben Shapiro, and Mark Levin are trending down.
Podbean creators also faced a major analytics glitch after an anti‑bot update wiped out all Apple Podcasts downloads, leaving many stuck with inaccurate reporting.
Plus, Apple Podcasts reminds creators that followers matter: followers listen to about 80% more of each episode than non‑followers.
This episode covers 2026 podcast audience trends, the Podbean analytics issue, and the Apple Podcasts follower metric shaping creator strategy.

We’re digging into the plot twists shaking up the podcast world.  First: YouTube’s own data reveals that video podcasts . . . aren’t being watched.  Nearly half of YouTube‑first listeners are treating the platform like a giant audio app — even as creators obsess over lighting, angles, and perfect hair.  We’ll break down new Edison Research numbers showing podcast listening hitting 115 million Americans weekly — a massive jump from 2024.  Then: the shocking disappearance of The Parent Tap, one of YouTube’s top parenting podcasts, wiped out overnight by an automated enforcement system. No strikes. No warnings. No humans. Just gone.  And finally, a new tool enters the chat — PodCritic — blending AI and human editorial review to give creators real, scalable feedback on every episode.  It’s a wild moment for podcasting: audiences are growing, platforms are shifting, and automation is rewriting the rules. 
 

This week in podcasting, the power plays are everywhere. Triton Digital’s Q2 Ranker shows the charts in motion — comedy dominating, news surging ahead of the midterms, and creator‑led shows climbing fast. Spotify drops a shiny new ad‑skip button that could reshape creator revenue and listener loyalty. And Audacy locks in MeidasTouch as its exclusive audio partner, adding one of the most fired‑up audiences in digital news to its ecosystem.
We break down the biggest movers, the platform bets, the audience behavior data, and what all of it means for creators trying to grow in a shifting landscape. From chart‑toppers to strategic alliances to features that could backfire, this episode is all about the forces reshaping podcasting right now.
If you want the pulse of the industry — the charts, the platforms, the deals, and the stakes — this is your briefing.