by Gavin Gaddis
Scalable takes a look at the world of paid clipping. Content creators like N3on and Clavicular have made headlines by hiring video editors to produce clips across multiple platforms. According to upcoming Sounds Profitable research, 86% of podcast listeners consume clips on at least one platform. Of those, 81% say clips lead them to a specific episode at least “some of the time.” Audiochuck CEO Matt Starker advises a measured approach to clip creation to ensure podcasters don’t give away so much content it undermines the point of watching a full episode.
Riismandel examines what defines a "hit" in modern podcasting. The Joe Rogan Experience, the #1 most-listened-to podcast on full-market, reach-based charts, has only been listened to by 20% of the U.S. podcast audience in the past month, according to Triton Digital / Signal Hill Insights Demos+ survey data from Q4 2025. As podcasting reaches mainstream audiences, fewer Serial-style breakout hits emerge. As The Podcast Landscape 2025 noted, the monthly podcast audience consumes an average of 3.4 podcasts regularly. So even if someone is consuming a “hit” show, there are several others also waiting on their phone to be consumed.
Evolving Modern Upfronts
AdExchanger Senior Editor Alyssa Boyle writes about YouTube’s NewFronts presentation, one that made a concerted push to unlock budgets normally earmarked for TV. Traditionally, upfronts have a clear divide between talent and publishers. Talent would focus on replicating the authenticity and appeal of their product, while publishers would stick to the jargon and numbers of why that content is worth investing in. Boyle found the YouTube NewFronts presentation a new experience, as creators would drop marketing terms normally reserved for publisher presentations. Outcomes are also becoming more en vogue as advertisers come to upfronts looking for content that proves outcomes, rather than broad reach. Amazon appears positioned for this shift, with projects like the Prime Video Insights beta program, which launched in November 2025.
Raizes recounts a recent conversation with two podcasters who find their weekly podcasts’ success comes with the price of not having time to grow the show. One episode's completion triggers the next one's start. Raizes argues that unglamorous admin work and strategy often limit growth, yet most creator advice assumes unlimited time. He points to the infrastructure Ashley Flowers built with her company Audiochuck, which established a team that could support a full roster beyond Flowers’ own Crime Junkie.
In a sponsored Tubefilter segment, Tribeca Festival announces this June’s edition of the festival will feature its “most ambitious podcast slate to date,” including live events featuring Radiolab, The New Yorker Radio Hour, and Lemme Say This. Announced guests include Peter Dinklage, Adam Scott, and Laurie Anderson. The festival’s podcast lineup also features its first expansion into Spanish-language programming, including series from La República Independiente de La Radio.
…as for the rest of the news:
Western Kentucky University radio station WWHR-FM has partnered with Zeno Media to power the station’s digital streaming capabilities. As a former Western Kentucky resident, I'm duty-bound to say "go Hilltoppers."
Brian Morrissey has a new special episode of The Rebooting Show looking at the decentralization of TV advertising.
A new post to the Type C Studios Substack looks at ominous narratives proposing narrative podcasts are on the decline (or dead already) before recounting The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s event celebrating the narrative series Who Blew Up the Guidestones.
Podscribe’s Industry Ranker has been updated to cover April 2026 data, including top podcasts by audio reach, top publishers by audio reach, and top advertisers by estimated spend.
Ausha community content manager Laura Hoffmann has a new article acting as a playbook for building a podcast platform growth system that combines organic discoverability with paid amplification “in the right order, for the right reasons.”
Audio Always has appointed Lisa Solman as its new sales director.
