'Post Reports' cancelled amid massive layoffs

• The Washington Post cut more than a third of its employees, including more than 300 of its 800 newsroom staff. We gather that their audio department has been “all but eliminated”. The flagship podcast Post Reports is cancelled - and did not publish yesterday; the show reached almost half a million people a month, according to Podscribe. The host of the show, Martine Powers, is one of those affected; there are reports that the company has laid-off all but two staffers in their audio team (here are some of those affected). That audio team won two Peabody Awards in 2024; but in December, the newspaper made AI-generated podcasts that were “riddled with errors”, but were reportedly launched even knowing that they were a bad experience. The newspaper, which broke the Watergate scandal, was purchased by Jeff Bezos in 2013.

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• A new weekly news podcast in the Netherlands is to be entirely written, researched and fact-checked by AI. High Profile, a podcast made by Airborne Network, is human-hosted (at least, for now), but the company says that the “engaging” show provides depth and context to news. Today’s episode tells the story of Ayatollah Khamenei and the tensions within and around Iran.

• Are you in the podcasting or audio industry in the UK? AudioUK is helping the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, with a new project examining the size and scale of the UK’s podcasting and audio industry. There’s a short confidential survey for you to fill in by Tuesday.

• Malcolm Gladwell is to release a new book exploring the gun epidemic in the US. The audiobook will feature original reporting and interviews, archival tape, and sound design.

• PodcastOne has renewed a number of shows, and signed a new show, For Your Amusement. Combined, the shows represent 30mn downloads across the network.

• Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men has announced that the show is to end later this year. The show is twelve years old - including live recordings made at the Library of Congress - and the creators say: “we hope we’ve not only taught you about X-Men continuity and the perils of time travel, but helped you build the tools that’ll let you engage critically with the stories you love and find joy even in the ones you don’t.”

Podcast News - with Airwave

With Airwave: Serial killers. Gangsters. Gunslingers. Victorian-era murderers. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Each week, Most Notorious! features true-life tales of crime, criminals, tragedies and disasters throughout history. Host Erik Rivenes interviews authors and historians who have studied their subjects for years.

In its latest episode, Heavyweight's Jonathan Goldstein reports from Minneapolis, with first hand accounts and reporting of ongoing ICE enforcement and heightened federal activity on immigrant communities across the state. He speaks to families affected by the action - some forced into hiding.

In today’s edition of Pablo Torre Finds Out, Torre sits with Charles Flores on Texas’s Death Row. Flores will be watching the Super Bowl from behind bars; as he’s done for over 25 years after he was imprisoned by evidence from a witness that was hypnotised, evidence which is now against the law. He maintains his innocence.

Dead Dads is a new podcast, launched today - tackling grief and all the messiness that comes with it. From Roger Nairn and Scott Cunningham, each episode blends uncomfortable humor with honest reflection on loss, juggling family life, memory, and the strange moments no one prepares guys for.

The Podnews Weekly Review this week interviews the founder of the Mercury Podcast Network, Liam Heffernan; and James and Sam have views on AI and other things.

In I’m Fine (but…) launches this week. Hosted by Entrepreneur and bestselling author and Rose Gibson, it promises to be a bold, honest platform for women navigating identity, ambition, motherhood and building a life and business that works for them. The podcast tackles the unspoken truths many women carry: loving their families while longing for more, building businesses without losing themselves and choosing freedom in a world that rewards self sacrifice.

Black Sheep’s back, alright! It’s 10 years of RNZ’s most awarded podcast series, where host William Ray continues his look into the shady, controversial and sometimes downright villainous characters of New Zealand history. This season sees Ray with a new cast of rogues, like murderous nurses, foul-mouthed goldfield barkeepers, sly grogging kāuri gum dealers and plenty more.