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- Feb 13: Joe Rogan has plenty of fans - including one who, in 2017, asked a friend "Could you introduce me, I think he's funny". That person? Jeffrey Epstein. Today, Podnews looks at the Epstein podcast files - shows he listened to, that he was recommended, podcasts he was asked to help pay to make, and even the video podcasts filmed in his house.
- Feb 9: The Daily Beast has signed with Daylight Media for ad sales, distribution and monetization of The Daily Beast's portfolio of podcasts, including The Daily Beast Podcast, Inside Trump's Head and Obsessed.
- Feb 6: The Washington Post cut more than a third of its employees, including more than 300 of its 800 newsroom staff. We gather that their audio department has been "all but eliminated". The flagship podcast Post Reports is cancelled - and did not publish yesterday; the show reached almost half a million people a month, according to Podscribe. The host of the show, Martine Powers, is one of those affected; there are reports that the company has laid-off all but two staffers in their audio team (here are some of those affected). That audio team won two Peabody Awards in 2024; but in December, the newspaper made AI-generated podcasts that were "riddled with errors", but were reportedly launched even knowing that they were a bad experience. The newspaper, which broke the Watergate scandal, was purchased by Jeff Bezos in 2013.
- Feb 4: UK comedy podcast awards The Golden Lobes are open for entries. In 2025, winners included both solo creators and global platforms; the awards now have a wider number of categories (including a 'Best International Show' for shows made outside the UK), and the prize isn't just a trophy, but £5000 worth of prizes.
- Feb 3: A new voice enhancement tool, Voice Regen, has been launched - but this one is different. It's from Waves Audio, an Emmy® and Technical Grammy® Award-winning audio technology company, rather than a random guy with an AI account. The tool provides content creators with instant, professional-quality voice cleanup. It removes background noise, room echo, and fixes uneven volume. Pricing starts for free, but $4.99 currently gets WAV export and 300 minutes a month. It also does video.
Data credits: Podnews newsletter