Golden Globes' Podcast Play, The Most Unique Podcast Jobs of 2025 and the Hall of Fame Inductees Revealed.

Behind the Awards: Coming Soon

I've connected with many of the audio and podcast awards featured in this issue and I'm looking to speak with more to bring you insider perspectives on recognition.

If you run an award organization or know one doing interesting work, reply here or reach out on LinkedIn.

Golden Globes Podcast Nominees: “Playing It Safe”

The inaugural best podcast award nominated six titles: Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard, Call Her Daddy, Good Hang With Amy Poehler, The Mel Robbins Podcast, SmartLess and Up First.

The Joe Rogan Experience did not receive a nomination despite topping Spotify, Apple and YouTube‘s weekly podcast charts this year. None of the political podcasts received nominations.

The winners will be announced at the 83rd Golden Globe Awards on January 11, 2026.

Our take: The Golden Globes introduced a “Best Podcast” category without publishing judging criteria and without any visible podcast industry experts on the judging panel. The result was a shortlist dominated by celebrity-hosted shows—Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard, Good Hang With Amy Poehler, and SmartLess—while The Joe Rogan Experience, the most listened-to podcast in America, was excluded entirely. Notably absent as well: high-value productions like Acquired, Twenty Thousand Hertz, and Darknet Diaries that represent podcasting’s creative and journalistic excellence.

These celebrity shows have their place, but the only category they should legitimately compete in is “Best Celebrity Has a Podcast”—not “Best Podcast.”

So what exactly were they judging? Without transparent criteria, it’s impossible to know whether this award recognizes popularity, production quality, cultural impact, or simply name recognition.

The Golden Globes didn’t validate podcasting as a serious medium—they exposed how little they understand it. The category feels less like an award for excellence and more like a branding exercise designed to borrow relevance from podcasting while refusing to engage with what actually drives the industry.

Here are three podcasting jobs that made me stop scrolling this year.

• Senior Manager Podcast at RedBull / Full-time / 2 Year Contract / Austria
• Chief Executive Officer of AudioUK / Contract / Remote in UK
• Apple Podcasts Partnerships & Editorial Manager / Contract / UK & Ireland

Explore these jobs plus our curated library of podcasting resources and examples at SoundsDebatable.com

Podcast Hall of Fame 2026 Inductees

The Podcast Hall of Fame announced its 2026 inductees, and we’re particularly excited to see Mark Asquith, Founder of Captivate (our preferred hosting company) on the list. Asquith has been helping podcasters build their audio influence since 2013 and is known for his customer service-first approach to podcast hosting.

Other notable inductees:

• James Cridland, Editor of Podnews

• Pat Flynn, Founder of Smart Passive Income

The induction ceremony takes place on January 16, 2026 at Podfest Expo in Orlando, Florida.

Shout out to Rob Greenlee, Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame and 2017 inductee, for his continued work elevating podcasting pioneers. We interviewed Rob earlier this year and will be sharing insights from that conversation in our upcoming multimedia series.

Interesting note: Pat Flynn’s YouTube channel Deep Pocket Monster (focused on Pokémon cards) has grown a substantially larger audience than his SPI audience, with nearly 4.5 million subscribers across his two YouTube channels.

Sources: Podnews, Podcast Hall of Fame

Australian Audio Awards Launching May 2026

The Australian Audio Awards will launch on May 28, 2026, combining radio and podcast recognition. The program is a partnership between Mumbrella, Radioinfo, and RadioToday, with RadioToday’s previous podcast awards becoming part of this expanded competition.

I just wrapped a deep discussion with Steve Ahern (Radioinfo, Australian Audio Awards, Asia Podcast Awards) questioning how podcast recognition works, who it serves, and what it misses.

New York Festivals Radio Awards Returns for 2026

The New York Festivals Radio Awards returns for its 2026 competition, continuing a tradition of recognizing creative excellence in audio. Founded in 1957, the awards have evolved from a U.S. regional competition into a global honor.

Categories include radio commercials, branded content, podcasts, public service announcements, and audio innovation. Winners will be announced at a ceremony in New York City.

Sources: New York Festivals Radio Awards

AudioUK Seeks New CEO

AudioUK, the UK trade body representing the audio and podcast industry and organizers of the (APAs), searched for a new Chief Executive Officer. This was one of the most unique podcasting opportunities of 2025—a chance to lead a national trade organization shaping policy, running major awards programs, and advocating for the industry.

The role was remote (UK-based), 3-4 days per week with potential for job share, and the application deadline closed December 9, 2025.

Sources: AudioUK

NYC Podcast Awards Launch

Just days after the Golden Globes podcast nominations, the NYC Podcast Awards (also called “The Libby Awards”) launched in December 2025, positioning itself in direct opposition to “the download-first culture dominating podcasting.

Submissions opened October 1, 2025, with a final deadline of January 10, 2026. The awards are open globally (English language) but the ceremony takes place March 13, 2026 in New York City.

We reached out to organizers and are waiting to receive a comment.

Sources: Podnews, NYC Podcast Awards Official Site