Over 100 podcasts have made the shortlist for the second year of the Publisher Podcast Awards demonstrating the resilience and innovation of publishers in the audio space, despite a challenging year.
New categories for the second year of the awards include Best Coronavirus Podcast, Best Launch and Best Commercial Strategy. These have given publishers the opportunity to demonstrate their creativity in creating informative content for their audiences, as well as highlighting those publishers forging a path to financial sustainability through podcasting.
The winning podcasts will be decided by a line-up of more than 45 judges from around the world, from organisations including Axios, Google, Vox Media, The Reuters Institute and more.
The winners will be revealed in a virtual celebration on Wednesday 21st April 2021. The Media Voices team have decided to experiment with a ‘pay-what-you-want’ ticketing model, ensuring that no one is excluded on the basis of affordability. In addition, there are print programmes and gift boxes available for UK attendees to allow them to celebrate from the safety of their own homes.
Esther Kezia Thorpe, co-founder: The world has changed so drastically since we put on our first awards that we were wondering what entries would be like this year. But we’ve been really encouraged by the continued improvement in standards, growth, and monetisation strategies, as well as the sheer volume of new launches. Although it won’t be quite the same as an in-person event, we’re committed to making the virtual awards an event to celebrate.
Peter Houston, co-founder: “It’s been amazing to find out about publishers putting so much work into keeping their podcasts going through lockdowns and hear the lengths people have gone to to keep their audio quality up and the conversation flowing. This year’s Coronavirus category also highlights just how quickly publishers can move when there’s a job to be done.”
Chris Sutcliffe, co-founder: “Our entrants this year have proven that podcasting is an intensely personal medium, connecting journalists and brands with audiences. That offers huge advantages – both commercially and creatively – but it also comes with a responsibility to live up to audience expectations. This year’s entries demonstrate that publishers are honouring that responsibility during an extremely challenging time.”
See the full list below or on the Publisher Podcast Awards website.
Publisher Podcast Hero of the Year 2021
Velo Mitrovich – Reby Media
Laura Mueller – Euromoney
Rowan Hooper – New Scientist
Theodora Louloudis – The Telegraph
Jack Meegan-Vickers – Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime
Fleur Rollet-Manus – SUITCASE Group
Ollie Guillou – Freelance contractor / New Scientist
Pierre Bienaimé – Digiday Media
Ailsa Cowen – Rail Technology Magazine
Best Commercial Strategy
1: Airfinance Journal Week in Review – Euromoney Plc
2: Energy Voice Out Loud – DC Thomson Media
3: Engineering Matters – Reby Media
4: Finger on the Pulse – National Health Executive
5: Public Sector Voices – Public Sector Executive
6: Scran – Laudable / JPI Media
7: The Dirt – Grow Your Own, DC Thomson Media
8: Track Talk – Rail Technology Magazine
Best Podcast Launch
1: Author In Your Classroom – Plazoom, DC Thomson Media
2: Finger on the Pulse – National Health Executive
3: In Machines We Trust – MIT Technology Review
4: New Scientist Weekly – New Scientist
5: Planet Normal – The Telegraph
6: Stories of our times – Wireless Studios / The Times and Sunday Times
7: The Car Throttle Podcast – Dennis Publishing
8: The Dirt – Grow Your Own, DC Thomson Media
9: The Upgrade by SUITCASE Magazine – SUITCASE Magazine
Best B2B Podcast
1: The Media Navigators – The World Media Group
2: The Product Experience – Mind the Product
3: Airfinance Journal Week in Review – Euromoney Plc
4: Engineering Matters – Reby Media
5: Journalism.co.uk podcast – Journalism.co.uk
6: The Global Franchise Podcast – DC Thomson Media
7: The Glossy Podcast – Digiday Media
8: The IT Pro Podcast – Dennis Publishing
9: Energy Voice Out Loud – DC Thomson Media
Best Coronavirus Podcast
1: Alone Together – A Coronavirus Podcast – Laudable
2: Care Home Management magazine podcast – S&A Publishing
3: Coronavirus: The Latest – The Telegraph
4: Engineering Matters – Reby Media
5: The Big Miss You – The Big Issue
6: The Impact: Coronavirus and Organized Crime – Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime
7: The Nature Podcast – Springer Nature
Best Entertainment Podcast
1: Author In Your Classroom – DC Thomson Media
2: Beatles City – Liverpool Echo, Reach Plc
3: Biscuits & Jam – Meredith Corporation
4: Pathfinders Podcast – 99 Percent Lifestyle
5: The Penguin Podcast – Penguin Random House
Best Food & Drink Podcast
1: olive magazine podcast – Immediate Media
2: Scran – JPI Media, Laudable
3: The Food Programme – BBC Radio 4
Best Health & Wellbeing Podcast
1: Bump, Baby and Beyond – Emma’s Diary
2: Going for Goal – Women’s Health, Hearst UK
3: Mad World – The Telegraph
4: The ECHO’s Menopod – Liverpool Echo, Laudable
Best Hobbies & Special Interest Podcast
1: Factor Two – UKClimbing
2: Radio Astronomy – BBC Sky at Night Magazine, Immediate Media
3: The Dirt – Grow Your Own, DC Thomson Media
4: The Week in Art – The Art Newspaper
5: Big Brains – University of Chicago News
6: Reasonably Speaking – The American Law Institute
7: The Bunkered Golf Podcast – DC Thomson Media
8: The Plodcast – Immediate Media
Best Lifestyle Podcast
1: We Are Family – Meredith Corporation
2: Bump, Baby and Beyond – Emma’s Diary
3: Real Fix – SWNS
4: The Dirt – Grow Your Own, DC Thomson Media
5: The Upgrade – SUITCASE Magazine
6: Who Cares Wins with Lily Cole – Penguin Random House
Best Limited Series
1: Crossfire – The Telegraph
2: Floodlines – The Atlantic
3: In Machines We Trust – MIT Technology Review
4: My mother’s murder – Tortoise Media
5: The Anthill – The Conversation
6: The Brink – Liverpool Echo, Laudable
7: Unfair – Digiday Media
8: Unfinished – Shoebury’s Lost Boys – Archant
9: Weekend Bigots – JPI Media, Laudable
Best Local & Community Podcast
1: Liminal – Liverpool Echo, Laudable
2: Northern Goal – The Press & Journal and Evening Express, DC Thomson Media
3: Talking Australia – Australian Geographic
4: The Courier Talking Football – The Courier, DC Thomson Media
5: The Door County Pulse Podcast – The Peninsula Pulse
6: The Edinburgh Briefing – JPI Media, Laudable
7: The North in Numbers – Manchester Evening News, Laudable
8: Twa Teams, One Street – The Evening Telegraph, DC Thomson Media
Best News Podcast
1: Planet Normal – The Telegraph
2: The Stooshie – DC Thomson Media
3: The Week Unwrapped – Dennis Publishing
4: World Review – The New Statesman
Best Political Podcast
1: Public Sector Voices – Public Sector Executive
2: The New European Podcast – Archant
3: The New Statesman Podcast – The New Statesman
4: The North Poll – Manchester Evening News, Laudable
5: The Stooshie – DC Thomson Media
Best Science & Medical Podcast
1: All Things Photonics – Laurin Publishing
2: Curiosity Daily – Discovery, Inc.
3: eLife podcast – eLife Sciences Publications
4: Finger on the Pulse – National Health Executive, Cognitive Publishing
5: New Scientist Weekly – New Scientist
6: Sharp Scratch – The BMJ
7: Stereo Chemistry – American Chemical Society
8: The Nature Podcast – Springer Nature
Best Sponsored Podcast
1: Energy Voice Out Loud – Energy Voice, DC Thomson Media
2: Engineering Matters – Reby Media
3: olive magazine podcast – Immediate Media
4: Small Steps, Big Impact – Mail Metro Media
5: The Dirt – Grow Your Own, DC Thomson Media
6: The Upgrade – SUITCASE Group
Best Sport Podcast
1: B/R Football Ranks – Bleacher Report
2: Deeper Blue Podcast – Deeper Blue
3: Kings of Anglia – Archant Suffolk
4: The Bunkered Golf Podcast – Bunkered, DC Thomson Media
5: The Pinkun.com Norwich City Podcast – Archant
6: Twa Teams, One Street – The Evening Telegraph, DC Thomson Media
Best Technology Podcast
1: The IT Pro Podcast – Dennis Publishing
2: Track Talk – Rail Technology Magazine, Cognitive Publishing
3: All Things Photonics – Laurin Publishing
4: Engineering Matters – Reby Media
5: In Machines We Trust – MIT Technology Review
6: The PC Pro Podcast – Dennis Publishing
About Media Voices:
Media Voices is a weekly look at all the news and views from across the media world, featuring leading figures from media and publishing businesses. The team behind the podcast take a common sense approach to media analysis, from the practices of journalism to deep dives into publisher business models.
The Media Voices team have recorded live at media events, featured in numerous roundups of the best industry podcasts, and have interviewed an impressive roster of guests from top organisations such as WIRED, The Economist, Facebook, CNN, The Times, Refinery29, the FT, and more.
For more information about the Publisher Podcast Awards, please contact team [at] publisherpodcastawards [dot] com.
