Edison: Rogan is #1 podcast in US

• The Edison Research Podcast Consumer Tracking Report has a new name: Edison Podcast Metrics. The company has released the top 50 most listened-to podcasts in the US over the last twelve months: Joe Rogan is #1 and has increased his listenership, the company says. Dateline NBC and The Ben Shapiro Show are new entries to the top ten; The Daily has slipped a place to #3. The data is unique in including all available podcasts.

• Edison Research has also released the top US podcast genres for Q1/22. Comedy is #1 - true crime is #3. Government is least popular on the chart at #19.

• The largest podcast publisher in the US, SXM Media released “The New New”, the 2022 Podcast Trends Report. It looks at listeners, creators and advertisers. Doctors were the most targeted contextual audience, the report reveals.

• CBC has launched the CBC True Crime subscription podcast channel. International listeners can pay to listen ad-free.

• Podfest Africa and Baraza Media Lab have released their report on African podcasting. An 83-page document, it notes that most listeners stream rather than download, and that there are big differences in African nations between use of mobile data and wifi. Spotify is most-used by 35%; Apple by 18%; and Google Podcasts, interestingly, 15%.

• Third Coast has unveiled a year-round programme of content over the next twelve months. The organisation is rebuilding, and will open their Third Coast Competition entries in Q3.

• Podsights unveiled an easier way for new users to install the Podsights Pixel. The pixel helps the company match people who’ve listened to an ad on a podcast, to people who’ve visited a website or purchased a product.

• And finally - Finally: the next version of macOS adds an auto-delete function to Apple Podcasts.

People (seemingly a Spotify special)

• Parcast’s Max Cutler is being promoted to Head of Talk Creator Content & Partnerships at Spotify - a similar role by name as Michael Mignano recently had. (His title is Head of New Content Initiatives at Spotify on his Linkedin). Spotify wants to increase the overall number of creators from 11m to 50m, according to Deadline.

• Bill Simmons is being promoted to Global head of Sports Content at Spotify, retaining his role as MD at The Ringer.

• Matt Lieber, Gimlet’s co-founder, is to leave the company this summer, says Bloomberg.

• Julie McNamara is to manage Spotify’s three studios: The Ringer, Gimlet Media and Parcast, and some high-profile partnerships.

Tips and tricks - with SoundStack

• Podcast launch dates matter, says Elizabeth Hames at Pacific Content.

• How can you tell what RSS feed Google Podcasts has decided to serve its users for your podcast? We built a tool for that.

Podcast News - with Lemonada Media

From Lemonada Media: Every day, the world seems on the brink of crisis. Join Andy Slavitt and policymakers, journalists and thought leaders in Burnout Monday, Wednesday and Friday to stay informed, safe and … entertained. Now, when overlapping crises and a relentless news cycle overwhelm Americans, Andy finds the right helpers to help us move forward together.

Pod Chat has Elsie Escobar as a guest in its latest episode. On why we need diversity at board level, to help advertisers and investors understand how to really connect with diverse voices, she says: “There are so many people that need to be in these positions (board level and decision-makers) so that they can really address the pain points that a lot of those folks that are actually investing the money into the podcasting space need to be aware of.”

The award-winning Shelter in Place has hit episode 200 - and they announce a new name and a new direction in this finale episode.

The children’s podcast network Fun Kids has launched a 12-part true crime fiction series called Truthdiggers. It follows School friends Morgana and Alfie looking into a notorious cold case: the mysterious disappearance of local eccentric Odd Colin from their Lancashire town in 1972 and have decided to make a podcast about it.

The Pay Check returns for a fourth season today. The season looks at how the pandemic created a global economic crisis that economists and experts expected would lead to greater wealth inequality than ever before. However, that’s not exactly how things have played out. It’s hosted by Rebecca Greenfield.