Compiled by Tess Connery and Grace Gollasch
Blowing the lid off of the scientific world with The Science Briefing
LiSTNR and the Royal Institution of Australia (RiAus) have teamed up for the second time, this time bringing listeners The Science Briefing. Previously, the pair launched Huh? Science Explained.
Hosting The Science Briefing is applied mathematician, fluid mechanist, and science writer Dr Sophie Calabretto, as well as scientist-journalists from Cosmos magazine.
Podcast Week’s Tess Connery spoke to Calabretto about making the latest in science stories accessible to everyone.
With Huh? Science Explained hitting people’s headphones in April, Calabretto says that there is one major difference between the two podcasts.
“Science Explained will pick a topic anywhere in science, and they will do a little explainer.
“The difference with The Science Briefing is that we’re talking about science that’s in the news. Our first episode was about the James Webb Space Telescope – we’re taking these really cool things that are happening in science and then unpacking those for people.
“It’s a slightly different format, as well. I know what we’re going to be talking about, I’ve got a bunch of questions and I grill the Cosmos journalists. Then they explain in very fine detail all of the cool things that are happening about that that current topic.”
Dr Sophie Calabretto
Taking listeners into the weird and wonderful world of science is no small task, and Calabretto says that picking a topic every week requires going through a few main criteria.
“We look at what the Cosmos journalists have been doing – they’re constantly trawling through the world of science and looking at all the cool things that are happening. We essentially pick from those.
“We go, right, what’s the coolest thing? What’s the most interesting? What’s something that we’ve never heard of? What is something that we think a lot of people would be interested in, but they just don’t know they’re interested in it yet? That’s the way that we settle on a topic.”
The language used in science writing can be overwhelming at times for those who don’t deal with it often. Calabretto says that it’s important to the team at The Science Briefing that the podcast is one that anyone can jump into.
“We really wanted to make it accessible.
“We really like to start from the ground up: what is the topic? What is the science behind it? We really put an emphasis on explaining it in a way that literally everyone can engage with, because science is something that everyone should be able to engage with.”
Ultimately, Calabretto says that her dream for the pod is that it becomes something people listen to and think ‘science is really cool.’
“I get a little bit sad when people don’t love science and math! What I want people to take away is just how exciting and pervasive science actually is in our lives – science is everywhere!
“What I hope to do is just get science to more people. I want them to take away that science is relevant to them, and that science is something that they could do as well, if they wanted to.”
[Listen to The Science Briefing here]
Podcast Ranker July 2022: Hamish & Andy take #1, The Teacher’s Trial enters top 3
Triton Digital’s Australian Podcast Ranker has been released for July, giving insight into the Top 100 Podcasts as well as the Top 10 Publishers in Australia. The survey period was from 1 July through 31 July, 2022, as measured by Triton’s Podcast Metrics measurement service.
The Top Podcast Ranker and All-Australian Top 100 Ranker are ranked by monthly listeners, in accordance with the latest IAB Podcast Technical Measurement Guidelines.
For this reporting period, the top three publishers were ARN’s iHeartPodcast Network Australia, LiSTNR (SCA), and Audioboom.
This month marks the 27th month that ARN’s iHeartPodcast Network Australia has taken the #1 spot.
Hamish and Andy
In the top spot overall once again is Hamish & Andy (LiSTNR (SCA)), making this the fifth consecutive month the title has held the crown. Rounding out the top three are Audioboom’s Casefile, and News Corp’s The Teacher’s Trial – the follow up to the successful The Teacher’s Pet podcast.
The biggest overall lift this month came from ARN’s Revisionist History, jumping 61 places to land at #48. Every episode of the podcast re-examines something from the past – an event, a person, an idea, even a song – and asks whether we got it right the first time.
Participating publishers in the Australian Ranker include Audioboom, ARN’s iHeartPodcast Network Australia, DM Podcasts, Equity Mates Media, Hidden Brain Media, LiSTNR (SCA), Motorsport Podcast Network, News Corp Australia, Nine, NOVA Entertainment, Podshape, Schwartz Media, Sports Entertainment Network (SEN), Stitcher Media, TOFOP Productions, The Chaser, Wavelength Creative, and West Australian Newspapers.
[The July Podcast Ranker can be found here]
iHeartPodcast reports 2.40% conversion rate in advertising effectiveness
ARN’s iHeartPodcast Network Australia has more than double the global benchmark for conversion rates in advertising effectiveness, according to the latest results from the Q2 Podsights Benchmark Australian Report.
The report examines data gathered from April 2021 – June 2022. Key findings from the benchmark report and additional analysis include:
• The conversion rate, which is the percentage of listeners exposed to an ad who then visit a brand’s website or app, on ARN’s iHeartPodcast Network Australia is 2.40%, compared with the Podsights global average of 1.17%.
• iHeartPodcast Network’s advertising conversion rates continue to be higher than social and digital channels, including Google Search, Facebook, Twitter and more
• Advertisers continue to use premium real estate in podcasts, with 93% of podcast advertising campaigns utilising either the pre or mid-roll.
• iHeartPodcast Network Australia recorded 5.26 million listeners in June 2022, resulting in 24.4 million downloads equating to an average of 4.6 downloads per listener.
Podsights brings the tools of digital reporting and attribution to podcasts, enabling clients to monitor and measure the effectiveness of podcast advertising in real-time using a specialised dashboard. These capabilities are included in every iHeartPodcast Network Australia campaign.
Corey Layton, ARN’s head of digital audio, said: “The latest Podsights Benchmark report again showcases the power of podcasts, with Australians following through on Podcast call to actions twice as much as the rest of the world.
“Our talent’s colloquial delivery of advertiser messaging continues to perform well above other social and digital channels,” he added.
iHeart reveals podcast advertising spend grew 72% in second quarter
ARN’s iHeart and Magellan AI have revealed podcast advertising spend grew by 72% year on year and 29% compared to Q1, 2022.
The new data also revealed the top 15 brands advertising for Q2, 2022 across the podcast landscape nationally.
Using the latest in artificial intelligence technology, the report is based on analysing thousands of episodes from 400+ of Australia’s most popular podcasts for Q2 2022 to determine which brands are advertising in the rapidly growing medium.
Amazon was the top podcast advertiser for Q2, followed by McDonald’s and beauty group, L’Oreal.
In Q1, monday.com came in at the top, yet slid to eighth this quarter.
Advertising spend across the True Crime category grew the most rapidly by 205% from this time last year. Other podcast genres to exponentially grow in investment year on year are Kids & Family (up 190%), Technology (up 189%), and Arts (up 180%).
The Q2 list features brands from a broad range of categories including online retailers, finance and entertainment.
Nine unveils two 9Podcasts to compliment the 2023 Summer of Tennis
Nine launched its annual tennis showcase to present the company’s commitment to the sport with new technology and content, ensuring Tennis on Nine in 2023 is an effective marketing platform.
Anne Gruber, Nine’s head of content partnerships – sport, said the tennis audience has a hunger for a constant feed of content and immersion.
Gruber announced that Nine’s digital audio arm, 9Podcasts will be releasing two new Australian Open podcasts – a six-part documentary series Stories of the AO, and a WWOS AO podcast during the Open for fans to catch up on the latest tennis news.
Left to right: Todd Woodbridge, James Bracey, Anne Gruber, Brent Williams, Matt Granger
“The six-part documentary series, Stories of the AO will tell the tales of Australian tennis players who elevated to legend status right here at Melbourne Park at our National Grand Slam.
“And then during the tournament, as play is underway across all the screens on Nine, the WWOS AO podcasts will be the best place for fans to catch up on all the latest tennis news during their morning commute,” Gruber said.
Uniting migrant communities through SBS’s new podcast, Colours of Cricket
SBS has released the first episode of its new cricket podcast, Colours of Cricket.
This new English language audio series offers a South Asian perspective on cricket in Australia, sharing how a love of cricket has brought communities together and could play an important role in breaking down racial and social barriers.
Over eight episodes, hosts Preeti Jabbal and Kulasegaram Sanchayan look at how players from the subcontinent are keeping cricket alive at the grassroots level and how despite underrepresentation at the elite level, they are emerging as the future of the game.
The podcast explores the untold stories of the South Asian connection with Australian cricket over the past 150 years and celebrates the changing colours of cricket in Australia. It also looks at the rising popularity of women’s cricket and tackles difficult issues like racism and infamous incidents on the field.
Launching Colours of Cricket at SBS’s Melbourne studios, cricket legend and former Indian captain Kapil Dev reflected on how the sport offers a sense of belonging in Australia, especially to South Asian migrants.
“People that come from any part of the world can represent Australia. I feel proud, cricket offers unity for those who come to Australia to set up a new life. I think Colours of Cricket is wonderful, what you, [the SBS teams] are doing, I have no words to express.”
[Listen to Colours of Cricket here]
A home run for SEN’s The Run Home with Joel & Fletch
Sports Entertainment Network’s The Run Home with Joel & Fletch was the number one AM radio show in Sydney for podcast downloads for July.
With a total of 257,100 downloads throughout July, the result puts the SEN 1170am program ahead of Ben Fordham Live and The Ray Hadley Morning Show, based on the Australian Podcast Ranker results for total downloads.
In Sydney, SEN featured three times in the top 12 for podcast downloads amongst AM and FM radio shows, including The Run Home with Joel & Fletch ranking third for downloads and eighth for unique listeners.
Overall, SEN registered nine programs within the top 150 most downloaded podcasts, with SEN Breakfast leading the way with 1,035,176 downloads.
Whateley also made the top 150 with 747,901 downloads, followed by The Run Home with Andy and Gazey with 174,648 downloads,
SEN chief executive Craig Hutchison said, “It’s really rewarding to see programs such as The Run Home with Joel & Fletch continue to grow within the digital landscape. Our national audiences continue to consume content where and how they choose, which is fantastic for our listeners, and our partners.”
[Listen to The Run Home with Joel & Fletch here]
Tenderfoot TV and iHeartMedia dive into true crime with new podcast
The newest podcast from Tenderfoot TV and iHeartMedia, Le Monstre, brings to light one of the world’s most horrific true crime stories.
Le Monstre takes a look at a real-life monster: serial killer, pedophile, and kidnapper Marc Dutroux, who later became known as “Le Monstre.” During the 1980s-90s, Dutroux terrorized the country of Belgium, abducting and murdering several young girls. Yet, the country’s local and federal authorities did little to help.
Hosted by Belgium-local Matt Graves, Le Monstre dives into the crimes, investigation, and aftermath of these horrors, known as the “Dutroux Affair,” giving listeners a fresh look at Dutroux and his accomplices (both known and unknown), many of whom are still walking freely today.
The first two episodes of Le Monstre premiere Tuesday, August 23 across iHeartRadio and all podcast platforms, with new episodes launching on Tuesdays.
[Listen to Le Monstre trailer here]
