To kick off The Podcast Show 2024, we welcome back James Cridland, Editor of Podnews, to look back at the last twelve months of podcasting and share some exclusive data about how podcasting is really being consumed around the world. Learn where podcasting is going - and what questions to ask as we kick off another Podcast Show in London.

The podcast industry has seen tremendous growth over the past five years and is predicted to see the most growth of any media channel in 2024 by 2X. As the newest mass-reach medium continues to evolve, there are plenty of narratives around the state of podcasting. Overall audience is growing, individual engagement is growing, ad spend is up, and data is more important than ever now that this emerging medium has become a permanent, new part of our media consumption.

Who’s listening? How is listenership changing? What are advertisers learning and what trends should we expect in the year ahead? Will Pearson, President of iHeart Podcasts, will give his take on the industry, while also sharing a few listening recommendations.

Closing a deal where everyone feels invested in the success of the content is perhaps the hallmark of a “good deal”- but how do you get there? When do you compromise and when do you hold? What lessons have we learned as in industry and how are deals changing as a result?

Join us at the negotiating table for a candid discussion with top industry executives and a look at the current (and future) dealmaking landscape.

A varied panel looking at the true-crime genre and whether it's inherently unethical. The panel will debate and discuss the issue based on their own experiences in making content within this popular genre. From crafting stories to providing due diligence for victims, the audience will be able to listen, engage and learn more about what to consider when telling true crime stories.

Scott Greenstein and James Corden will host a wide-ranging conversation on the state of the global audio landscape, the rise of podcasting, and SiriusXM’s place within it all. The two will also discuss James’s entrance into audio and his hit new SiriusXM show, This Life of Mine… with James Corden.

What podcast content are Gen Zs consuming more than others? What tools are creators using to connect with their fans? And how do brands leverage podcasts to drive results? Join Spotify as Jenny Haggard (Global Thought Leadership Lead), walks through the latest trends in podcasting and Ryan Rummery (Head of International Podcast Sales), discusses with leading brands the application of these trends in advertising and how they’ve crafted successful podcast ad campaigns.

Why are the top UK chart positions still dominated by middle-aged white men in an era when other industries have made considerable strides towards greater inclusion? Elizabeth Day, the creator and host of How To Fail and founder of Daylight Productions, asks what opportunities we might be missing and considers how to elevate expert voices from different backgrounds.

A rare opportunity to catch three podcasting legends explore how important powerhouse women are in the audio industry. Join us as we shine a light on the significance of sisterhood, the necessity for safe spaces, and the appetite advertisers’ have to reach more female listeners. Why are celebrating the wins as important as discussing the challenges faced? Why might women feel they need to ‘break through’ to reach the top of the podcast charts? Does podcast production and hosting look different in a female led space? We'll cover this and much more.

Kirsty Young is the leading interviewer of her generation. She presented Desert Island Discs – the most enduringly successful interview format in the world - for over a decade, interviewing many of the most influential people of our time. Now, in her hit BBC podcast Young Again, she invites her guests to share their hard-won wisdom with their younger selves. In this session – aimed at anyone who wants to improve their own interrogative skills - BBC Studios’ Director of Audio Rich Knight attempts the daunting task of interviewing Kirsty about interviewing. Wish him luck.

In a year where international politics pull no punches, audiences need engaging reporting to understand the whole story. As more video podcasts launch in listeners’ feeds, creators and brands have an opportunity to immerse new audiences in the next evolution of investigative journalism.

The News Agents Investigates, the Agents sub-brand hosted by Lewis Goodall, gives audiences on-the-ground reporting in their feeds and visually on Global Player. The show spends time exploring questions in more detail, with more time than a 90-second broadcast package ever could.

Meet expert journalist Lewis Goodall who chats to Head of news and factual podcasts Vicky Etchells about reporting on the US election using an audio-visual podcast experience, the difference between reporting on-air and with podcasts & building a multi-platform media brand from a podcast.

Whether you have an entire network of shows or you’re a new advertiser of the medium, there are many ways to approach the business of podcasting. In this session Dan Fierman, Head of Audio at Higher Ground, President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s media company, and Acast CEO Ross Adams will discuss the future of podcasting within the broader $250 billion creator economy.

The duo will share tactics they employed around the successful launch of recent podcasts, including Ways to Win and Your Mama’s Kitchen, along with their approach to custom content campaigns with podcast hosts like Michele Norris and Michelle Obama. They’ll offer invaluable insights into building a media company in a rapidly changing environment, solving the problems of the next three years (not the last three years), and how to develop a creative slate that breaks through with impact. Additionally, they will share some of the strategic content approaches they have taken in their partnership to increase engagement with brands like Maker’s Mark, Airbnb, and Invesco.

With tangible takeaways, audiences of podcasters, advertisers, media buyers, and industry professionals will all learn more about the business behind the medium as well as the incredible power of podcast advertising.

During the session, Higher Ground and Acast will unveil news tied to their expansive, upcoming slate.

When Electoral Dysfunction launched in March, Sky News knew it’d need to stand out in the politics podcast space.
Political editor Beth Rigby teamed up with Labour’s Jess Phillips and Conservative peer Ruth Davidson. The idea was that their no-nonsense styles and decades of experience would offer an unvarnished view on the week in Westminster and beyond.

It set out to look at political leaders and their policies – how they’re written and how they’re sold to voters – to try to explain what’s really going on.
Less than three months in, the podcast has topped charts and developed a loyal fanbase which is at the heart of the conversation on each episode.

Here, Beth, Jess and Ruth tell the Times Magazine’s associate editor, and cover presenter of the Off Air podcast, Jane Mulkerrins about what they’ve learnt in their first three months of podcasting and how they’ll continue to explain decisions and policies as the election draws closer.

Join Dolby & Audible as we delve into the popular new Audible Original: George Orwell’s dystopian thriller “1984”. Hear how Audible continues to redefine the audio storytelling landscape using Dolby Atmos, the leading spatial audio technology. Gain perspective from Audible’s Chris Jones and Granny Eats Wolf’s Nathan Freeman as they share insights into the creative process, the importance of Dolby Atmos in sound design, and how to draw audiences in closer to the story. From creative direction to sound engineering to distribution, learn the tools and tips from the team behind this production.

Actor, writer and star of “Criminal Record” and “The Good Wife” Cush Jumbo (OBE) joins author, radio and TV presenter Nihal Arthanayake in conversation where they explore what it means to be a modern day creative on both screen and audio and dive into why podcasting is the next step for Jumbo’s creative journey.

This session will go behind the scenes of 2024s game-changing companion podcast release, The Traitors: Uncloaked. A first of its kind commission, Uncloaked broke records for BBC TV and BBC Sounds - with 7x more viewers than the slot average and a whopping 4.4million consolidated viewers of the podcast’s live finale. We’ll use this unique case study to examine the future of companion content and what role TV may play in shaping the next phase of podcasting.

True representation in entertainment matters. From pre-production meetings to clicking ‘Publish’, great podcasts develop an unparalleled authentic voice powered by outstanding talent and creativity from a breadth of backgrounds.

It’s what happens when a representative team works together: With diverse hosts, producers, editors, partnership managers all pulling together, a new generation of podcasts blossom with an electrifying authentic voice that appeals to audiences and brands alike.

In this session, Global and production company Lucky 17 come together to discuss, combining creative freedom with podcasting expertise, the importance of elevation and protecting the talent’s vision for the podcast, the untold benefits of a diverse production environment and why brands should let talent script their own host-reads.

Before Buxton, before Porno, and even before Serial, there was No Such Thing As A Fish - a podcast created by four self-confessed nerds that went on to become a bonafide smash hit.

From selling out the Sydney Opera House to releasing a whole year’s worth of episodes on vinyl, the four Fish have consistently broken new ground to remain leaders in an ever increasing global podcast market and their impact on the podcast landscape in the UK cannot be overstated; they were here when it was just fields.

To mark an outstanding run of 10 years at the top of their game, No Such Thing As A Fish hosts, Andrew Hunter Murray and Dan Schreiber join Audioboom's Mike Newman and Shaun Wilson to discuss what it takes to create a worldwide hit show, what they've learnt along the way and how the industry has changed in their decade of success.

Join Matt Willis as he delves into the art of conducting meaningful and sensitive discussions on his podcast while ensuring the well-being of his guests. In this session, Matt shares insights and strategies on how to approach heavy topics with empathy and consideration for the mental health of those involved. From setting the right tone to providing support during vulnerable moments, learn valuable techniques for fostering a safe and respectful environment for impactful conversations. Tune in to discover how to navigate sensitive topics with care and compassion on your podcast.

Sport is culture. Win or lose, sporting moments define eras, illustrating where we’ve come from and who we are today. And in a massive sporting year, podcasts give us space to explore every angle of the stories that enrich the cultural conversation.

In their first public appearance as The Sports Agents, Gabby Logan and Mark Chapman join Global’s Vicky Etchells (Head of News and Factual Podcasts) about the power of sports podcasts in 2024 – and how brands can grab their place in history.

Discover:
How versatile storytelling enhances sporting conversation.
Why podcasts are best to explore the sporting stories great and small in 2024.
The options for advertisers to put their weight behind discussion in a massive sporting year.
The process behind creating valuable IP optioned by TV and film.