PodBlog #7 - February Podboard Preview
This week on the PodBlog, we'll take a sneak peek at this Wednesday's big drop of the February Podboard: The latest and most definitive list of the top-100 shows in Podcasting!
*** There are still a few hours left to cast a PodBallot for your favorite Podcast this month. So, cast your votes in these waning hours to help your favorite Pod make a last-minute run on February 2021's Podboard***
Big shifts in the top-30
While we prefer not to give away exact rankings so that you'll come back on the 3rd to see the definitive list, the PodBlog that publishes before each month's new Podboard will be a preview of what you'll see on that upcoming Podboard.
This February could see a shakeup at the top. Code Switch, while garnering the most votes over the last few months, may have given way to another NPR show that has overtaken the top spot as of this writing! See if there's a new #1podcast or if CS makes a final hours push to retain the top spot this Wednesday the 3rd...
CS's drop is far from significant, however, as they're coming in, at worst, as the #2 Pod this month. Code Switch has clearly become one of the legacy Pods alongside staples like RadioLab and This American Life. As we've said before, there isn't a more important Podcast in the world than Code Switch. Congratulations on a totally epic and earned run to the top of Podboard, with legit staying power too. This Podcast is loved!
Legacy shows falling from the top spots is a theme this month. Shockingly, Podcasts like The Daily, This American Life and the Bill Simmons Podcast (none are currently appearing in February's top-10 - WOW!!!) are suffering their most precipitous drops down the Podboard since we launched, making room at the top for great Pods with smaller listenerships and allowing for Indie shows to break through on the back end. ***Keep voting for your friend's show, or the show that nobody else has heard of and you'll help it to reach March's Podboard*** I can't say if this is an actual trend that could mean that the behemoth podcasts are losing listeners, but I can say that PodLand listeners are broadening their horizons by trying out podcasts that are not consistently atop the algorithm generated lists at Spotify and Apple. This is super sweet news for independent creators that are trying to gain a foothold. WE LOVE YOU, INDIE PODCASTS... KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!
Sandip Roy is rising, both of his podcasts are Pod charting alongside a rising interest in the Press Box from The Ringer; HumaNature is continuing to climb the Podboard charts with a growing voter base and (hopefully) listenership over at Wyoming Public Radio; the New York Times' Caliphate has had a resurgence in interest and votes after NYT revealed that one of the subjects of the Pod fabricated their story about engaging in terrorist activities. The Times added a new episode that is the first in the podcast's feed since originally airing in 2018, that examines NYT's editorial failings. Rukmini Callimachi and the team still deliver an amazing Podcast series, no matter the revelations that have recently come to light. I'm just glad to have a reason to re-listen!
Additional highlights to look out for on Wednesday are the leapfrogging of a former This American Life producer's new show, Heavyweight, over his old show, TAL. Few narrative Pods are more deserving of the the pupil overtaking the master than Jonathan Goldstein surpassing (if only briefly) Ira Glass. We've talked about Heavyweight here before, it's amazing. Especially the Moby episode from the first season; Rabia Chaudry's podcasts, Undisclosed and The Hidden Djinn continue to garner votes and chart highly on Podboard, they sure do deserve the love of PodLand listeners and voters! The two shows also couldn't be more different: one is a true crime show that explores wrongful convictions and the other a show about ancient creatures and the lore that pervades nearly every culture. Get yourself some listening on all these shows and keep the PodBallots coming!!
KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR THE SHOWS MAKING THEIR PODBOARD DEBUTS, INCLUDING ONE IN THE TOP-50! The latest and most definitive Podboard for February 2021 drops this Wednesday
Healthy Competition amongst Podcasts is good - Stay Inspired, Keep Listening and Voting
So your Podcast fell off the definitive list of the 100-best shows in Podcasting at podboard.org? Don't let it get you down, help the show get more listeners and votes next month. Tell your fellow listeners to cast their PodBallot today!! Healthy competition is great for creators and fans alike. And the legacy Pods aren't going anywhere, so all of the smaller shows need to keep it up while basking in the glory of having overtaken Podcasts that may have served as inspirations for you to start your own show. Our love of Podcasts is forever and our choice for favorite show is fluid. Keep listening and trying new shows, and keep voting here at Podboard. That's true ESPECIALLY when it comes to listening to, and voting for that new independent show that you just discovered!!! Help other people find your favorite new Podcast by voting for the show at Podboard. Celebrate Podcasting and the creators behind the Pods. Help your favorite show get new listeners, discover new Pods - all here on Podboard. Why do all of that? Because Everything I Know I Learned from Podcasts.