Why help the big gatekeepers?

• “I’m not sure why we are feeding our content to one of the biggest gatekeepers in media.” Sounds Profitable’s Tom Webster has published an overview of his talk at Podcast Movement last week. “You can put your show on YouTube or on Spotify, promote it there, and as long as you don’t violate the terms of service, you stay there. You cannot put your show on Netflix. The podcasts that are on Netflix are, frankly, the shows that don’t need the help; they were already the upper echelon by audience, which is precisely why Netflix picked them.” He adds: “We are potentially making a deal with the devil when we put our programming on Netflix, because ultimately we don’t matter to Netflix, and I’d like us to focus on the places where we do.”

• A lot is said about the benefits of open RSS. One is that you can publish, almost anonymously, on all the big podcast players: especially if you have a story to tell. In Slip Three, the audio has been treated to disguise the voice of the host - who is somewhere at sea, hiding from the authorities, after what he calls an incident where four men died. It’s an intriguing listen, with more of the mystery to discover.

• The shortlist has been announced for the International Women’s Podcast Awards. There were almost 500 entries received this year; it was judged by over 80 people across the world. Winners will be announced on Oct 8.

• Podbean’s PodAds dynamic ad insertion tool has quietly got worse. Not only does it no longer place any ads throughout the 743mn people who live in Europe - pulled without notice in March - you’re now no longer able to geo-target advertising at all, with the system now forcing all campaigns to air in “all supported regions”. The “select targeted geographies” feature, visible in Podbean’s support pages on Jun 30, was removed in late August.

• Crooked Media is expanding its political podcast and digital sales network, bringing Adam Mockler, The Argument, and Weekly Skews into its growing host-read advertising lineup.

• PAVE Studios’ Max Cutler is highly critical of the average ad load in podcasting. In a piece published last week to LinkedIn, he calls for better measurement (which includes measurement of skipping), and for better ad creative.

• Media Prima Berhad, a media group in Malaysia, has signed with Triton Digital for podcast hosting, measurement, distribution and revenue.

• Thoughts on Sounds Profitable’s Business Summit from Paul Riismandel.

• KSL Podcasts’s COLD has returned for a new season, reopening a case blamed on Ted Bundy. But… was it him?

Tips and tricks - with Audiencelift

• Samuel Sleger has four simple rules to outlast 99% of podcasts - based on his own experience.

Podcast News - with Airwave

With Airwave: The History of Egypt covers Ancient Egypt, from Creation to Cleopatra. This podcast tells the story of pharaonic Egypt “in their own words” using archaeology, ancient texts, and up-to-date scholarship.

Street You Grew Up On is turning into a weekly, full-length audio and video podcast, in partnership with Daylight. The show is hosted by Kerry Washington, and invites a guest to revisit the people, places and experiences that shaped them long before the world knew their name.

Daren the Peasant Chef is a scripted narrative cosy fantasy adventure podcast that follows Daren, a young peasant boy leaving home for the first time in pursuit of his dream of becoming the king’s chef. It follows his trials and tribulations as he makes mistakes, finds friends, and discovers who he is outside the close-minded town he grew up in. Think of it like a movie without the picture.

Season 2 of Vintage Politics brings journalists, politicians and political insiders back to the table for thoughtful conversations over a few glasses of wine. Episode One features broadcaster and journalist Jeremy Bowen, who talks about his hopes for the future in the Middle East, his “blast boxers” and his stake in a French vineyard. Other guests include George Osborne, Gillian Keegan and Anthony Scaramucci.

Death of a Poet is a sonic unearthing of the chaotic, charismatic life of Bingley’s forgotten Victorian poet, John Nicholson. From the skylarks and standing stones of Ilkley Moor to the river at Saltaire where he met his end, a cast of poets, bellringers, artists, academics, enthusiasts, actors – and a direct descendant – return to Nicholson’s writing, and to the places where he lived and died, to piece together the eventful story of The Bingley Byron.