Triton celebrates International Podcast Day
September 30th is International Podcast Day. To celebrate, Triton Digital has pulled some key metrics that demonstrate the growth of the podcast industry since last year’s celebrations.
Since September 30, 2020 they found that:
• Triton served over 4 billion downloads in more than 80 countries around the world
• The US accounted for 60% of all those downloads, holding the top spot over every other country
• Iran was the country that saw the most significant growth in podcast downloads, by 3500%, followed by Turkey at 552%, then India at 524%
• 85 Countries have seen growth in the number of podcast downloads
• The most popular Omny hosted content is News at 22%, followed closely by Comedy as well as Society & Culture at 21%
• Categories that have garnered the largest advertising spend programmatically include: Sports (18%), News & Politics (14%) and Hobbies & Interests (13%)
• There was a 37.2% increase of listeners who listened to podcasts via a smart speaker
• However, 88.38% of podcast listeners, tuned in through their mobile device
More information about #InternationalPodcastDay here.
Real Crime: Adam Shand on the new home for true crime at LiSTNR
Real Crime is the new home of Walkley Award-winning investigative journalist Adam Shand and his true crime podcasts. The brand will feature three new verticals: Real Crime Feature, Real Crime Interview and a new series Real Crime – Australian Detectives.
Podcast Week‘s Trent Thomas caught up with Shand to talk about the Real Crime brand and what to expect from his new show.
The name comes from Shand’s company Real Crime Pty Ltd, which he said stems from him not fitting into the true crime genre anymore.
“I’ve been doing true crime now for 20 plus years. What I’m finding over time is the true crime isn’t so true! We’re seeing a lot of people who just use the true crime banner, it’s like Google detectives or something. They go to newspaper sites, they go to coroner’s files, or wherever they can and they create these narratives. So many times I’ve seen mistakes and distortions happen because of that. What I’ve always tried to do is go to the source.
“I feel like the true crime banner doesn’t really encapsulate what I’m doing anymore, particularly when I’m also working with the State Police Force in New South Wales on active cases. We’re looking to differentiate from what I think is becoming two men on a couch kind of podcasts. You can hear the flicking of The Daily Telegraph in the background as the research notes. Over five years we’ve been building our house style at LiSTNR, and just finding the best way to get it to our audience.
“The three feeds we’ve created – features, interviews and Australian Detectives – is an easier way for our listeners to find the content. At the same time, we’ll be taking stories off the state crime command feed to republish as features where we think they meet the DNA of our features.”
Real Crime with Adam Shand comprises all of Shand’s work, including The Trials of the Vampire, ATM Boy, In Plain Sight, Lawyer X, The Great Qantas Hoax, Packer’s Gold, Lucille Butterworth, and the award-winning NSW Police State Crime Command series Lost at Sea. Shand’s interview series includes The Real Chopper, Control, Jailhouse Lawyer and the most recent War on Ourselves based on the Afghanistan War accusations. Shand said that this new content feed will make it easier for listeners to keep up with the cases.
“It’s a new way of looking at our features and the new material coming up. These stories are dynamic. My other complaint about true crime is it tends to be ‘okay, we’ve done our story and here is our little thing’ and that’s it. Real crime is not like that, it’s evolving. I never stop investigating, never stop taking calls and never stop trying to get a result. We wanted a way to make sure our listeners were aware when there were new developments coming up that we could put into new episodes.”
Shand said that the process of structuring Real Crime like this took over five years of work as the podcast industry and true crime genre continued to evolve.
The new series Real Crime – Australian Detectives features the nation’s best investigators talking about iconic cases they have worked on, giving step-by-step insider accounts of how the crimes were solved and the criminals brought to justice. Shand said that getting the first-hand perspective from the detectives really separates his work from the average true crime show.
“Most of them have never spoken. Over 20 years I’ve built up networks of people who trust me to tell their stories for the first time. Police don’t try to correct the record, they do their job and move on. There’s a public interest in how cases are solved and the nitty-gritty of them. Some of the more fanciful assumptions and speculations of the media can often turn to facts. We’re trying to get these stories re-unvarnished through interviews with the people involved.
“A good example is that there was a famous shoot out at Melbourne airport in 1992. Robbers came to steal cash from the Ansett freight terminal and the team leader of that special operations group actually shot the main robber dead and he’s never spoken about it. Explaining how that happened and the planning is a step up and another league from what I’ve been doing in true crime.”
Abbie Chatfield talks opening up on It’s A Lot podcast
Abbie Chatfield, the host of Nova podcast It’s A Lot, spoke with Podcast Week‘s Tess Connery for a feature that will be published tomorrow.
Below is an excerpt for Podcast Week discussing whether or not it gets easier being as vulnerable as Chatfield is in the podcast when there is a large audience listening.
“It does get easier. It’s the podcast in conjunction with Instagram and being on two reality shows, and also doing a lot of interviews,” said Chatfield. “Every day I’m talking to someone, whether it’s on the podcast or on my stories. After a while you kind of push boundaries a bit more – and more, and more – then you’re like, ‘oh actually, nothing matters!’. Obviously, as long as you’re not being offensive or hurtful, but nothing matters in terms of taboo topics.”
Chatfield said that there was a major lesson she’s picked up along the way that helped with opening up.
“I’ve learned that you can change your mind and learn new things through the podcast, and that’s been good as well. At the start, I thought everything needed to be perfect, and I was so worried about asking people the wrong questions or editing out the wrong part. Opinions can change, and the whole point of the podcast really is for the listeners and myself to learn, so I think it gets easier to blurt things out as long as you have good intentions.”
Chatfield’s full interview can be read tomorrow on mediaweek.com.au.
Mushroom Podcasts follow tradition started by Mushroom Records
Mushroom Records was the place music fans went for the latest Aussie rock after the label launched in the seventies. Now Mushroom Podcasts are setting the pace with the best Australian music podcasts.
Three new releases this week: Singer/songwriter Jen Cloher reveals she’s leaving Australia and moving back to New Zealand. Vika & Linda open up about their relationship with Mushroom founder Michael Gudinski and Paul Kelly’s daughter Madeleine discloses her favourite Paul Kelly song.
In Alex Gow’s One Guitar, Paul Kelly provides an insight into his creative process, explaining to host Gow how he wrote a new song called All Those Smiling Faces. Kelly’s eldest daughter Madeleine also reveals her favourite Paul Kelly song – and no, she doesn’t select Madeleine’s Song, which Kelly wrote for her on his 1995 album, Deeper Water.
On Jane Rocca’s podcast, Some of My Best Work, Vika & Linda chat about Michael Gudinski’s early support of the sisters when they first signed to Mushroom, delivering them a platinum record for their debut album Vika and Linda.
Linda Bull recalls how the head of another label told Michael that Vika & Linda wouldn’t do better than a gold album.
“And Michael being Michael, God bless him, I remember hearing that he went, ‘Oh, really? Okay, I’ll prove you wrong!’
Nearly three decades later, the duo has just released their critically acclaimed seventh studio album, The Wait, entering the ARIA charts this week at #2.
Future Some of My Best Work guests include Kram, Josh Pyke and Shane Nicholson who talk about some of their best work. Also listen to past episodes with Gordi, Jack River, Adalita and many more.
The third new episode this week is from Hit Different where journalists Mikey Cahill and Sosefina Fuamoli catch up with singer, songwriter, producer and co-founder of Milk Records, Jen Cloher.
Speaking about her next album plans, Cloher said: “I was actually hoping to go home to Aotearoa because this is the first album where I do sing in te reo Māori. I’m actually in the process of working on a waiata which is all Māori with an amazing artist, Theia.”
Cloher gives the hosts the scoop on leaving Australia! “That’s the other big news. I’m moving back!”
Past Hit Different guests have included Paul Dempsey, Courtney Barnett and Archie Roach – catch up on all the past episodes here.
Listen to new Mushroom Podcasts on your favourite podcast platform every Monday morning.
The Nutrition Couch joins iHeartPodcast Network
The Nutrition Couch has joined ARN’s iHeartPodcast Network Australia. The show is hosted by Australian dieticians Susie Burrell and Leanne Ward. The podcast claims to be the first podcast of its kind to take a fun and evidence-based look at weekly food and health trends. It also helps listeners to stay up-to-date on the latest nutrition news and trending food products. The hosts also provide discussions on real case studies and answer listener questions during the show as well.
Susie Burrell said: “We are thrilled to join the iHeartPodcast Network and have the opportunity to share practical, evidence-based nutrition content to those hungry for it. This partnership means that we can reach a much wider audience who love to hear the latest in the world of food, diets and nutrition from two practising dietitians who live and breathe the latest in health and fitness.”
Ward added: “We could not be in better podcast company with the likes of shows such as Life Uncut and She’s On The Money and we are extremely excited about this partnership and the opportunities it presents. Now, more than ever, it is important that listeners have access to diet and nutrition information from qualified professionals and joining the iHeartPodcast Network means that we can get current, topical and practical nutrition information to more and more people, helping them to live healthier and happier lives.”
Acast adds Jackie Gillies to podcast stable
Businesswoman, psychic medium and cast member of The Real Housewives of Melbourne, Jackie Gillies has launched a new podcast Shine It Up, With Jackie Gillies. The podcast is hosted and distributed by Acast.
The series will offer listeners inspiration and motivation to live their best life as Gillies chats to guests, answers questions, and shares everything going on in her life.
Shine It Up, With Jackie Gillies will also be monetised through ads, sponsorship and branded content which will see Gillies lending her voice and signature shine to brand messages, delivered directly to her listeners.
In the first two episodes, listeners will get a life update from Jackie including a deep dive into her IVF journey with husband Ben Gillies — and, throughout the first season, she’ll continue to provide updates on the arrival of her twins, due mid-October.
[Listen to Shine It Up, With Jackie Gillies here]
