What happens when Apple Podcasts promotes you

• We’ve seen the data suggesting it’s only the #3 most popular podcast app these days: but Apple Podcasts can still have a real effect when the editorial team highlight shows on its front page. One podcast says it saw 61,000 downloads in a single day after it was promoted. “What I Survived” is an independent podcast from Queensland, Australia, and got an editorial feature on Apple Podcasts at launch. (Our list of all the podcast directories includes the page to submit your show to the Apple Podcasts editorial team).

• Look at the US podcast charts, and there’s plenty of sports shows in the top 20. But in Latin America - countries like Argentina or Mexico - there are none in the top 200! So, why haven’t sports podcasts taken off in Latin America? There’s plenty of reasons, suggests Genuina Media; the company also has a compelling reason why this is likely to change this year.

• Never Not Funny, the Jimmy Pardo Podcast, is to celebrate its twenty-year anniversary this Saturday with an eight-hour livestream. The show started in 2006, recorded from Pardo’s dining table; and has produced video episodes since 2008.

• The Quill Podcast Awards are back for their 5th year, and nominations are now open. The awards celebrate the achievements of podcasters and podcast companies; there are thirteen categories.

• The Soundwave Summit is to return to Toronto ON, Canada, this May - "a day built for people who want to learn, connect, and build something real with others who understand the work,” say the organisers. The event is right next to Radiodays North America, and there’s a joint ticket to the Radiodays Podcast Creators Day.

• Audacy made a number of layoffs in its broadcast business. The company is also removing the role of Market Manager; a new role of Regional Vice President will look after multiple markets. Audacy’s podcasting appears to be unaffected, as best we know.

• Multitude has announced a new show, imagining a good future. Hosted by Dr Adam Becker, Dreaming Against The Machine pushes back against the dreams of tech oligarchs, and aims to envision futures that people actually want. It launches next week.

• In the letters page of the Wall Street Journal, a paid story: "Provocative Podcast Pundits Degrade National Dialogue: The digital swamp is made worse by influencers who refuse to engage in thoughtful, fact-based debate.” It links back to opinion piece The Astoturf Podcasts.

• Vox Media has announced the launch of a “video-first podcast”. Called America, Actually, with Astead Herndon, this “video-first” podcast is in audio-only on Spotify, and audio-only on Apple Podcasts, although it will be in video on YouTube.

  • Opinion: far be it for us to ask for the definition of the word “podcast” all over again, but if a podcast isn’t in video on Spotify, and isn’t in video on Apple Podcasts, can it really be called video-first?

Tips and tricks - with the Podnews Report Card

• Where should your podcast be? Everywhere - listing in podcast directories is free, but there are a lot of them! We’ve a full list of podcast directories, as well as hints and tips on how to make the most of your show.
• Uploading your podcast video to YouTube? Make sure you’re marking it as a “podcast”. If it’s marked as a podcast, it gets into places that only podcasts get - including YouTube Music.
• Setting your ID3 metadata tags correctly in your MP3 files? After an investigation, we suggest: don’t bother, nobody uses them. Go spend your time on something else.

Podcast News - with Airwave

For your Webby Consideration: Blowback for Best Individual Episode - Documentary. This history show promises a mini-series on Israel and America, a comic book, our seventh season and more this year: and, perhaps, a Webby too.

The Elis James and John Robins show has added video and a new Patreon page. This expanded offering - led by Elis, John and Dave Masterman’s company Significant Productions - comes after the recent announcement of the show’s involvement with the BBC Audio Release Policy.

Two Percent with Michael Easter is new from the author and journalist’s viral wellness newsletter. It’s a twice-weekly “audio and video” podcast series (no video on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, just YouTube), produced by Kaleidoscope, and launches today.

On The Hart Of It All this week — a podcast about navigating the realities of caregiving, for National Caregiver’s Day. Host Teri Hart sits down with R. Scott Gemmill, creator/showrunner of the award-winning HBO Max show The Pitt, to talk about why caregiving has become such a central thread in the series.

Influence Anyone is now in video on YouTube and Spotify. The show gets into the psychology of influence as guests break down decades of research, stories, and real-world strategies face-to-face with Howie Chan. You’ll see legends like Dr. Robert Cialdini, Nir Eyal, and (today) a 50-minute masterclass with Matt Sucha on sales strategy you can actually use. This is the podcast for you about persuasion, communication skills for leaders, and high-level thinking.

The new podcast Deep Care is a partnership between Dr. Kaytura Felix and PRX, highlighting the intimate stories of Black parents who chose midwifery care, and experienced transformative outcomes for themselves and their babies, and spotlighting Black maternal health and responses to the crisis.

In Quantum Matters, the future isn’t hypothetical — it’s already happening. This podcast cuts through the sci-fi myths surrounding quantum computing to reveal how it’s actively reshaping industries today, from automotive to retail. Backed by D-Wave, the world’s first commercial quantum company, each episode translates complex breakthroughs into clear, compelling stories from the researchers and leaders putting quantum to work on real-world problems. It’s a technology accelerating faster than most realize.

In Athletes Beyond the Game this week, Julia and Sara kick off season two with D1 track athletes and twins, Sofia and Izze Calabrese, who speak about the realities of being a female athlete in a sport that focuses on weight. They talk about growing up with a twin in the same sport, body image, overcoming an eating disorder and injuries, and what happens after retirement.