Podcast Movement Evolutions, co-located at SXSW 2026, is dedicating two days to the conversations that matter most to podcasting, and we’re looking for voices to help shape those conversations. Sounds Profitable and Podcast Movement are planning on hosting 10 minute talks to kick off panel discussions across all podcast programming. The event is free with no pass requirement and speakers will receive a $500 honorarium in addition to guaranteed entry to the space-limited event. Submit your talk idea here before the December 31st deadline.
News is in a tricky space. Traditional publishers, new and old, are dropping like flies for a myriad of reasons. Vice over-capitalized, many publishers became overdependent on Facebook traffic, massive political figures are actively hostile to both publishers and individual journalists. 80% of teen respondents to a survey from News Literacy Project believe journalists fail to produce more impartial information than other online creators. The line is blurred further by the ever-growing influencer-fication of journalism, with the person doing the reporting is more trusted by the audience than the publisher paying said journalist. Caliber CEO Ramin Beheshti argues legacy news has failed to catch up to how younger folks want to consume news content, leading to institutional journalists feeling like they’re condescending to teens instead of meeting them where they’re at and informing them. All of which to say: news publishers have an authenticity problem. Podcasting might not singlehandedly save journalism, but our superpower of authenticity and direct connection to audiences will be invaluable in building that news-literate Gen Z bridge.
Are Podcasters and Listeners Missing the Advantages of Audio? by Paul Riismandel.
As video grows, it has brought with it a shift in consumption habits that are easy to miss when simply looking at whether audiences prefer audio or video podcasting. Riismandel highlights a stat from the Download fall 2025 edition conducted with Cumulus Media: 88% of weekly podcast consumers who consumed their last podcast at home prefer video you actively watch. A group that represents half of weekly podcast consumers overall. Podcasting as a medium was designed for on-the-go consumption. As Tom Webster has said many times before, podcasts in your ear while washing dishes or commuting isn’t “spent” time, it’s “found” time. According to Riismandel, just under half of YouTube podcast viewers aren’t migrating off YouTube, making it less likely for them to consume their podcasts on-the-go. If a brand new viewer finds their first podcast on YouTube, it’s just expected that they’ll magically know that podcast is also available as an audio feed they could be listening to while at the gym or driving to work. Audiences love choice, but they have to know the choice exists, otherwise we’re just super-serving homebodies who might just want more good YouTube videos, regardless of if they’re labeled “a podcast” or not.
Podcast Ad Loads Hit New High, But Podscribe Says Advertisers Shouldn’t Panic.
Inside Audio Marketing covers the new Podscribe Performance Benchmarks for Q4 2025. According to the report, ad loads reached 10.9% in Q3, the highest since Podscribe began tracking the statistic, a 10% year-over-year increase. According to Senior Director of Partnerships Camden Weber, this load intensity isn’t depressing performance as there’s more room to grow in podcasting. TV and Radio remain riddled with ads by comparison, and podcasting’s focus on host-read content helps the pill of more ads per episode easier to swallow for audiences. This quarter’s benchmark is also the first time Podscribe has tracked net-new reach, finding seven in ten advertisers saw strong cost per acquisition improvement with higher net new reach.
As for the rest of the news…
- The Podcasthon, an annual event in which participating podcasts dedicate an episode to a charity of their choice, has reached 1,000 early registrations for the March 2026 edition, on course to be bigger than 2025.
- Owl & Co has a new analysis looking at which premium streamers are on track for the most advertising revenue this year and the idea “advertising is inevitable.”
- ANA members can read a new post looking at how new measurement tools in audio are giving marketers a better understanding of ROI
- Pierre Bouvard has a new 14 minute video and article looking at why AM/FM radio and podcasts are ideal media platforms for cellular service providers.
- The hosts of The Rest is Football are headed to Netflix with daily episodes recorded on location at the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup.
- As part of their overall Spotify Wrapped celebration, Spotify has a page dedicated to This Year in Podcasting, with each month of 2025 identifying a social media trend and attaching a relevant episode of a podcast.
- The Hollywood Reporter has gathered YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify top charts together to chart which shows cracked the top ten this year.
