Crossed Wires wins award at the APAs

• The winners of the APAs from AudioUK were announced in London. The organisers of Sheffield’s Crossed Wires Festival, which took place in early July, were presented with the AudioUK Award. We’ve a full list of the winners.

• 404 Media says that Apple Podcasts is being used for a sophisticated hack. The article suggests simply visiting a website can trigger Apple Podcasts to open and go to a podcast episode without user intervention. Apple has not responded to them for comment. GadgetHacks suggests the hack works by putting unsafe links into episode descriptions, and hoping you’ll click on them.

  • This web page will open Apple Podcasts - but will ask first.

• In the UK, media regulator Ofcom has published its eighth annual report on the BBC. The regulator notes that the BBC has remained trusted by the majority of those in the UK, with 70% of regular BBC television viewers rating it highly for accuracy, and 68% for trust. However, it notes that BBC podcasts don’t appear in the Edison Research top ten for listeners aged 15-34.

  • Ofcom also released its latest data for equity, diversity and inclusion in broadcasting. Disabled people are “woefully” underrepresented in the industry, the regulator says. (We’d love equivalent data for the podcast industry.)

• Swell, a simple podcast app, has announced that it is to close on Dec 15. “Swell never reached the sustainable long-term growth needed to keep it running,” says the email sent to users. You’ve until Dec 10 to request your audio files if you need them.

• The Scottish Podcast Awards have been announced for June 2026. The organisation says that more people in Scotland listen to podcasts than any other part of the UK.

• Podcasts are turning into television, says The Atlantic’s Derek Thompson - pointing out that everything else is becoming television, too.

Thank you to Chirag Desai from Amaeya Media, who has become our latest personal supporter. Amaeya Media won its first gold Signal Award this year, for its show Nourish by Spinneys. It’s supporters like Chirag that allow us to offer Podnews for free, for everyone. You can join him here.

Tips and tricks

• If you’re having leftovers today, you might be surprised by how tasty they are. And it turns out that podcast leftovers - shows you did a while ago - are still fresh to make you some new listeners, says Headliner.

Black Friday deals

• Podcast hosting: New Podhome customers get 6 months hosting for free. Use promo code BLACKFRIDAY
• Podcast Marketing: Jeremy Enns from Podcast Marketing Academy is offering The Assembly Line bundle of 6 of his core podcast marketing & monetization trainings for a juicy 88% off. The discount is exclusively available to Podnews readers today only, and there are just 25 available.
• Podcast hosting: Transistor is offering 20% off the company’s annual plans. New customers can start here, while existing customers can upgrade here.
• Marketing: Tink Media is offering $50 off your first 1-hour podcast marketing consultation sessions booked between now and the end of the year.
• Podcast hosting: RSS.com is offering your first three months for free.
• Event: Podfest (Jan 15-18, Orlando FL). 10% off tickets with our code. (Not a Black Friday special, but a new extra just for Podnews readers).
• Remote recording, editing and hosting: Riverside is offering 35% off all annual plans. Use promo code BF2025
• Audiobooks: all Pushkin audiobooks are 25% off with the code friday2025
• Podcasts: Pushkin+ subscriptions are 25% off with the code plus2025 -- you can sign up on the Pushkin+ website or via Apple Podcasts.
• Podcasts: 30% off premium for the Sleepiest+ channel, with three shows to help you sleep: and also for the kids, with Koala Kids.
• Extras: Good deals for all Podnews readers all year round in our Podnews Extras section.

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Podcast News

In the Podnews Weekly Review this week, Dan Misener from Bumper helps Sam Sethi discover why a download isn’t a play - and we look at why Patreon has jumped into podcast hosting. It’s sponsored by Buzzsprout.

The infrastructure is crumbling, trains are regularly late, cars no longer sell themselves, and the hum of progress is drowned out by fax machines, yes, fax machines. Once dubbed an “economic miracle”, Delayland – Germany and the Missing Magic asks why things don’t run like they used to in Germany? How did Germany lose its magic? And who’s got it now? In this new podcast from DW, you’ll take a spin in fancy German cars, see why building an opera house takes forever, and travel beyond Germany — to India, France, Switzerland, and Denmark — to explore how others are getting things right, and what it would take to bring back the magic of Europe’s former Wunderkind.

With American Thanksgiving behind us, it’s now the sprint to Christmas and the Christmas Pop-up Channel is a single source for holiday podcasts from Caloroga Shark Media including trivia, ghosts, uplifting stores and chat about holiday songs (songs not included but we’ll talk about them!)

When the final whistle blows, what comes next? In the new podcast Changing Rooms: Beyond the Scrum, you’ll hear Rugby League legends Adrian Morley, Shaun Lunt, and Barrie McDermott tackle life’s toughest transitions: career-ending injuries, setbacks and reinvention with the same humour, camaraderie, and straight talk that made them fan favorites on the pitch. It’s with Elect.