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NPR will be honored with the first-ever iHeartRadio Podcast Pioneer Award at the inaugural iHeartRadio Podcast Awards on January 18, 2019 at 8 p.m. PT at the iHeartRadio Theater Los Angeles. NPR launched its first digital-only podcasting predecessor, All Songs Considered, in April 2000 and officially debuted NPR Podcasts in August 2005 with a full slate of 174 programs, including 17 original podcasts. In less than a year, they reached 13 million downloads for all of their podcast programming and reached more than 80 million downloads by February 2007. Today, NPR has over 40 active podcasts on topics ranging from the day’s news to arts, culture, and science, that reach a unique monthly audience of 16,386,000 (per podtrac).
“When we decided to honor the biggest names in podcasting with our first awards show for podcasts, we knew we wanted to recognize NPR’s unparalleled impact on how millions of listeners consume audio content,” said Conal Byrne, President of the iHeartPodcast Network. “We’re thrilled to be able to honor their trailblazing efforts with our first-ever iHeartRadio Podcast Pioneer Award in January.”
“We are honored to receive the Podcast Pioneer Award. Podcasts have been a major source of innovation for NPR,” said Anya Grundmann, SVP for Programming and Audience Development at NPR. “They have given our reporters the chance to flex their storytelling muscles, pursue creative ideas and longer stories, and play with form in ways not always possible on a daily show. They have also helped us connect with listeners in new ways and helped us evolve our sound.”
Hosted by Holly Frey, co-host of Stuff You Missed in History Class, one of today’s biggest history podcasts; Charlamagne Tha God, nationally-syndicated on-air host and co-host of _The Brilliant Idiots_and _The Breakfast Club_podcasts; and Bobby Bones, top Country radio host and host of the leading country music-focused podcast _Bobbycast_and creator of the Nashville Podcast Network, the event will run 90 minutes and include a live audience with a live stream hosted by on-air and TV personality Mario Lopez. Presenters include Payne Lindsay (Up & Vanished), Aaron Mahnke (Lore), and Jake Brennan (Disgraceland), with more to be announced.
Fans can vote for their favorite podcasts through January 6, 2019 online and socially across Twitter and Instagram. Visit iHeartPodcastAwards.com for a complete list of nominees and voting details. Winners will be announced during the live show and stream.