Job cuts at Spotify

• Spotify has cut a number of jobs in its podcast division - “15 employees or about 3% of the team”, according to a report. Cuts are apparently in The Ringer and Spotify Studios, though Spotify wouldn’t confirm. Those affected include The Ringer’s special projects lead Andrew Gruttadaro, and writer Miles Surrey. A show from The Ringer, New York New York with John Jastremski, is to be cancelled.

  • Over the past few weeks, Podnews has heard sustained chatter from different parts of the industry about significant changes to come at Spotify’s podcasting tools, including potential closures of revenue programs and brands. Spotify flatly deny any upcoming changes, describing them to us as “very much not true”.

• CNN loves podcasts so much, it appears to be making some of its programs look like them. Jake Tapper’s show appeared to “come from his office”, complete with visible microphones and a cheap sofa; Anderson Cooper also appears to be using large, in-vision microphones.

• The Wall Street Journal cover “the veteran podcasters hanging up their headphones”; reasons given are the additional stress from video.

• Goalhanger has launched a creator fund called The Accelerator. Creators will receive mentoring and up to £10,000 ($13,000) over a three-month period.

How Spotify Search Became the Second Listening Source for BBC Studios

Paid content

On Spotify, discovery starts with a keyword search. Every result is a chance for a show to be found…or missed.

What listeners see is The Infinite Monkey Cage appearing in search results. What they don’t see is the visibility strategy behind it. In less than 2 months, after working on Podcast Search Optimization (PSO) with Ausha, the BBC Studios show climbed to #2 for “Secrets” in the US, #3 for “The Universe” in the UK, and #7 for “Black Holes Explained” in Australia.

As its visibility grew, Spotify Search became the show’s second-largest listening source.This free case study breaks down the strategy behind those results.

👉 Download the full case study for free

Tips and tricks - with Riverside

• AI could save you more than two hours per episode, suggests Riverside’s blog - with a set of prompts to use to plan, promote and repurpose.
• Has someone stolen your podcast? Here’s how to report it and get it taken down.

Podcast News - with Airwave

With Airwave: Security Now features Leo Laporte and cybersecurity guru Steve Gibson, who break down the latest cybercrime and hacking stories, offering a deep understanding of what’s happening and how to protect yourself and your business.

In the New Media Show, Arielle Nissenblatt and Rob Greenlee share a sharp conversation about podcast growth and discovery in 2026. Arielle has been speaking this week in Latvia.

Season 7 of Dorktales Storytime for kids and their pop culture loving grownups kicks off with “The Enchanted Sidequest,” where a simple trip to a game shop grand opening turns into magical chaos. It’s a fast-past fantasy adventure with TCG references (think Pokémon and Magic: The Gathering).