The Power Of In-Person Discussion to Promote and Advance Podcasting as an Essential Part of the Greater Media Landscape

Good Tape, the leading magazine with critical coverage on entertainment and podcasting, officially launches “Off The Record,” a community-centered media business that facilitates real-time dialogues between podcast executives, creatives, and brands. Each event convenes diverse industry leaders and inspires conversation around hyper-relevant topics focused on evolving the medium.

What began in 2023 as an informal monthly coffee meetup in Brooklyn, NY—first hosted by Jeff Weiner, Joe Fucigna, and Dane Cardiel—has now evolved into a formalized network and new brand under the leadership of Dane Cardiel, Kristin Myers, and Meggan Ellingboe, who will establish Off The Record’s founding chapter in Los Angeles, CA.

As podcasting solidifies its position in mainstream media, Off The Record offers direction and intention to the industry’s growing identity crisis, providing a space for strategic minds to move beyond surface-level discussions and toward collaborative problem-solving.

“The idea remains the same as when we first started—connecting the well-appointed but often siloed podcast leaders who truly care about the future of the medium,” says Dane Cardiel, Good Tape’s founder. “These leaders hold deep expertise across the industry’s ecosystem and have a clear vision of what’s missing and what needs fixing, but are too isolated to affect widespread change. Off The Record is a container where these thinkers can move beyond talk and into action.”

Through intentionally curated gatherings over coffees, happy hours, or dinners, Off The Record brings together decision-makers to move past roadblocks, share expertise, and collectively shape the industry’s next chapter.

“I’ve taken to calling this a bit of a think-tank for podcasting,” says Kristin Myers, a host of the Los Angeles chapter. “There are more boutique teams, more brilliant consultants, more ways to monetize and grow than ever before, but none of that matters if the landscape cannot be navigated. There are still fundamental challenges and under-explored territories to be charted. We need every bit of passion, technology, and experience we can find and we need it in one room, ready to earnestly make things happen.”

Off The Record is proud to partner with boutique podcast marketing consultancy, Listening Party Agency, as one of our launch partners. For more information about Off The Record, partnership opportunities, or to request an invite to our next gathering near you, visit goodtape.com/offtherecord or contact otr@goodtape.com.