This is an archived page from 2018. Find out more
The first iHeartRadio Podcast Awards will be held at the iHeartRadio Theater in Los Angeles Friday, January 18, 2019 at 8 p.m. Listeners will vote for their favorite podcasts online in 22 categories. Listeners are allowed to vote five times every day. There will also be a panel of judges from Gimlet, iHeartMedia, NPR, Parcast, PRX, Tenderfoot TV, Wondery and others who will pick winners in five categories.
The awards will be hosted by Holly Frey, co-host of Stuff You Missed in History Class, iHeart host Charlamagne Tha God, and Bobby Bones.
The 90-minute event will 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. Atlanta Monster, Dirty John, Hardcore History, Joe Rogan, Radiolab, Serial, Slow Burn, Stuff You Should Know, The Daily, and The Habitat are nominated for Podcast of the Year. Surprisingly, Adam Curry’s No Agenda podcast is not up for any awards. Curry, who hosts No Agenda with John C. Dvorak, has hosted the popular podcast for many years.
iHeart says nominees include podcasts from all creators, distributors, and platforms — not just those developed by or available on the iHeartRadio Podcast Network.
The panel of podcast industry leaders, that will determine the winner in the five major categories, are Marc Smerling, Crimetown; Jake Brennan, Disgraceland; Alex Blumberg,Gimlet; Conal Byrne and Chris Peterson, iHeartMedia; Aaron Mahnke, Lore; Anya Grundmann, NPR; Max Cutler, Parcast; Owen Grover, Pocket Casts; Maggie Taylor, PRX; Chuck Bryant and Josh Clark, Stuff You Should Know; Holly Frey, Stuff You Missed in History Class; Donald Albright and Payne Lindsay, Tenderfoot TV; Sim Sarna, Unqualified Media; and Hernan Lopez, Wondery.
Those five major categories are: Podcast of the Year, Breakout Podcast, Best Branded Podcast, Best Social Impact from Podcast/Host, and Podcast Innovator Award.
Fans can vote for their favorite podcasts beginning Monday, October 22 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 filled with unique celebrations from the iHeartRadio Theater Los Angeles.
Earlier this year, Blubrry CEO Todd Cochrane announced his 2018 Podcast Award Winners.