Cumulus files for bankruptcy, again

• Cumulus Media has filed for bankruptcy. The company, which owns the Cumulus Podcast Network and Westwood One, is trying to eliminate around $600mn of debt. It’ll continue operating under chapter 11 protection in the meantime.

  • Competitors iHeartMedia filed for bankruptcy in Mar 2018, emerging in May 2019. Audacy also filed for bankruptcy in Jan 2024 (emerging in Sept). Cumulus itself last filed for bankruptcy less than ten years ago, in Nov 2017.

• Exclusive: SiriusXM has brought NBA news show The Deep 3 and NFL show House Call to the SiriusXM Media network, for ad sales and distribution. The agreement covers both short-form and long-form video and audio episodes, and SiriusXM subscribers will also get the show ad-free.

• On Netflix, video podcasts are watched more on mobile, and watched more during the day, said Netflix CFO Spencer Neumann.

• Moving over to Netflix seems to be bad news for creators - at least, those who want to reach a large number of people. Bloomberg reports that most shows who have yanked their full-length episodes from YouTube have, unsurprisingly, tanked in terms of growth - with new subscribers dropping by 50% for many channels.

• February’s Podtrac ranker, which measures participating publishers only, was published. The company seems to have removed its January ranker (the WayBack machine has our back); Fox Audio Network has overtaken The Walt Disney Company to land at #7 in the publishers ranker, while Pod Save America is a new entry at #6 in the top podcasts list, suggesting that Crooked Media is a new participant.

• Spotify gave a new set of Creator Milestone Awards to podcasters for Q4/25. The winners include Spotify exec Bill Simmons. Reaching Gold (500 million streams) is the true-crime show Morbid.

• The BBC responded to a UK government consultation about the renewal of its Royal Charter and how the broadcaster will be funded in coming years. “We will explore opening up BBC Sounds to UK third parties and creators”, the response claims. A brilliant idea: one the BBC trailed before the launch of BBC Sounds in 2018, press-released at launch, promoted again in its 2020/1 Annual Report, and has continued sporadically making agreements, like with Goalhanger in Nov 2024.

• Acast celebrated International Women’s Day, which is this weekend, with an event held in London with the hosts of The Receipts Podcast, to learn about its transition from a casual podcast to a media powerhouse.

• PodcastOne has signed four new shows. No Filter, The Wellness Cafe, Daddy Issues with Violet Benson, and The Michelle Collins show bring the podcast company’s network total up to 208.

• Kids podcasts are having a moment:

  • In Australia, Silly Stories for Kids is celebrating more than 2.4mn listens over the past thirty days, and is now branching out into a national live stage show, a children’s book, and character merchandise
  • US research has discovered that audio-based learning is highly effective, with high levels of student focus and participation. The research collaborators included kids podcast company Tumble Media
  • The Gather Time podcast is new, telling engaging stories and building socio-emotional skills for kids 3-8. It’s made by parent Dan Stern
  • Everyone Gets A Juice Box, a podcast for parents of neurodivergent kids was launched by Understood.org, a nonprofit helping people with learning and thinking difficulties.

Tips and tricks - with Riverside

• Screen capture can be very useful during a video podcast as a quick way to explain something (though don’t forget to fully describe it for those only listening in audio). Riverside looks at Chrome extensions for screen capture that you might want to try.
• How do the podcast charts actually work? You might think they all measure the same thing. You’d be wrong to think that.

Podcast News - with Airwave

With Airwave: This Day in History from The HISTORY Channel has the top historical event for this day in past years. An espionage trial began on this day in 1951. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were later executed, after being found guilty of stealing atomic secrets for the Soviets. But - did they really?

In the Podnews Weekly Review - what will the upcoming Apple Podcasts enhanced video podcasting mean to podcasters and brands? We speak to one of the launch partners - from Triton Digital, Sharon Taylor. Plus, Kattie Laur tells us about why Canadian podcasts are worth supporting.

Transit Unplugged has reached episode 400, and has celebrated with an exclusive interview and a retrospective. The show’s goal was to create a place where transit leaders could talk honestly about what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is headed.

The Projection Booth Podcast is celebrating 15 years tomorrow - with more than 700 episodes exploring cinema across genres, eras, and national boundaries. From canonical classics to overlooked oddities, The Projection Booth has built its reputation on rigorous research, spirited debate, and in-depth historical context.

On the Spectrum, hosted by Sonia Krishna Chand who is an Adult Autism, Neurodivergent and Mental Health expert, offers practical strategies, empowering conversations, and a supportive community. Whether you’re a parent, educator, clinician, or neurodivergent individual, On the Spectrum to help you navigate life with confidence. The show has been publishing for more than two years.

What happens when a financial advisor and world explorer get together? On Revolutionizing Your Journey: Travel With Points & Miles, learn how to see the world without the luxury price tag. Find practical tips on using points and miles, unlocking first-class flights and five-star stays, and meaningful travel experiences on a budget. Today’s episode looks at Japanese OneWorld carrier JAL, and wonders whether their frequent flyer program will change in the near future.

Mental health and trauma have gotten more into the mainstream, and yet we don’t apply the same lens to money. 3 out of 4 Gen-Zs and Millennials have PTSD-like symptoms caused by financially induced stress. Money Trauma challenges the many misconceptions about money behaviours - uncovering experiences like financial stress, gambling, and wealth accumulation from a trauma-informed perspective. This podcast takes a journey around the world speaking to experts about how these stories contradict real experiences people psychologically and socially - and who ends up benefitting from these stories.

Podcasts in the wild

The new MacBook Neo, launched this week by Apple, was exciting to Dallas Taylor, when watching the launch video for the product, saw his Twenty Thousand Hertz podcast on-screen at 2’11”! It was the first he knew about it. As Podnews reported in February, new terms of service for Apple Podcasts Connect now allow Apple to use a screenshot of your show without having to seek permission.