Thread by @apollopods

Livetweet of the #PM22 opening keynotes start here! Up first: a game of podcasting Never Have I Ever!

Up first for keynotes: @gsoto777 from @edisonresearch presenting data from the annual Infinite Dial, 2022 edition. There was a dip in listenership this year--let's dive into why 👀 (spoilers: it's rona) #PM22

When surveyed, podcast listeners largely said they listen to podcasts at home--but another huge portion of listeners said they listen in the car. And commutes to and from work... uhhhh... well... #PM22

The Share of Ear study showed that at home, 23% of at-home audio consumption was podcasts, and only 10% of listening in cars was podcasts! So maybe we're not really in the car listening market as much as we think--features like Car Play will help that grow, through #PM22

It's impressive that we have such a nice corner on in-hone audio though, especially when home has options like Netflix, video games, etc.

Soto goes on to talk about the importance of one emergent social media platform podcasters can't ignore: tiktok duhhhh #PM22

TikTok is the fastest growing social media platform right now by a pretty huge margin. (Conjecture here but idk if that's necessarily gonna last though?)

But Soto emphasizes being there NOW. The first people there in a niche often succeed the fastest #PM22

Soto goes on to talk about not dismissing video podcasts. They're divisive, but there's huge audiences for them on video-first platforms like YouTube.

Audiences who only listen to video podcasts with the video minimized or in another window are surprisingly abundant! #PM22

YouTube is currently the number 2 service used to listen to podcasts based on this data! 🤯 #PM22

Soto moves on to talk about Gen Alpha (born 2010 ⬆️), the "future FUTURE audience" for podcasts. Start planning for the post Gen-Z gen now for longevity!

30% of parents are already saying their kids 12 and under are listening to podcasts #PM22

Podcasts has "older siblings" says Soto: radio, of course! How do we make podcasts last? How do we plan for our trajectory? We can look at radio as a model and learn--from its success AND its mistakes. Especially re: advertising. #PM22

Compared to AM/FM radio and TV, audiences are less likely to say that podcasts have too many ads... until recently.

That number is growing. We need to work on our ads and how, frankly, annoying they are (see the Sounds Profitable livetweet from yesterday for more) #PM22

https://twitter.com/apollopods/status/1562170045370859523?t=1swBNbgkWIdchSZNOp0Gww&s=19

What's another market we can look at? People in smaller, more rural areas.

But Soto also points out that these audiences tend to skew older, conservative, "evangelical." 🫤

Another opportunity? More women. We should be supporting female voices and hosts! #PM22

Soto starts talking about the Latino Podcast Listener Report! 🎉

Podcast listening by Latinos has been growing rapidly! Absolutely love to see it. It's well past time to elevate Latinx/Latine voices (and we have a panel on that later today iirc!) #PM22

34% of Latinos in the US have listened to a podcast in the last month

37% of Latinos born in the US have

29% of Latinos born outside of US have #PM22

And now, data on Black podcast listeners! Most frequently, Black audiences listen to business/economy podcasts

59% of Black monthly podcast listeners said they would listen to more podcasts if there were more Black hosts! #RepresentationMatters #PM22

The reports on Latino podcast listeners and Black podcast listeners is available on Edison! #PM22
edisonresearch.com/the-latino-pod…

edisonresearch.com/the-black-podc… #PM22

And now, Soto emphasizes: fear isn't necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes you need a dose of reality to Grow Up. Sometimes fear gets you to push your limits: hide and run, or "wear it on [your] sleeve" and embrace who you are 😭👏 #PM22

Without pushing past the fear Soto has experienced, especially as a Latino man, gave him the knowledge and courage to create these Edison reports for Latinx/Latine listeners and Black listeners. Fear is how you learn to be BRAVE! 💪 #PM22

OOOOH next PM will be in lovely Denver 😍 bring me to the mountains baybeeee! 🏞️ #PM22

Up next: Nishat Kurwa of @voxdotcom Podcasts in conversation with Phoebe Judge of @CriminalShow!

What was Criminal when it started, and what is it now? Judge says the podcast is largely the same despite its meteoric growth. We get a clip of the show, which focuses on LOBSTER THEFT 🦞 which the lobstermen community took into their own hands when the cops didn't care #PM22

Ear ur heart out Yorgos Lanthimos #PM22

Kurwa points out why this is an iconic example of Criminal: it's not just about the crimes, it's about looking inward at our own beliefs, our own ethics, and our own communities

So what sets Criminal apart from other true crime? 🕵️#PM22

Well, for one: they actually care about the families of the victims. What if they were listening? How would they feel?

And Criminal also cares about people "touched by crime," including those convicted of crimes--without judgment (abolition in this lifetime 🤘) #PM22

We all like to think, "That wouldn't be me, that couldn't be me," but that's not real. That's not how and why crime happens.

Criminal asks the audience to think about what they'd do in these situations, and what leads to these choices people make (or are forced to make) #PM22

Kurwa also talks about Judge's other podcast, one of my nonfiction FAVES, @thisisloveshow 😍😭💖💞❤️🥰 and we get a clip yayyy

Emphasis on how personal and humanistic both of Judge's shows are. THIS is what "intimacy" in audio can mean #PM22

We get a question from a This Is Love SUPERFAN, one of Kurwa's besties. Question in summation: "Who are YOU, Phoebe Judge, that you can come up with these stories about love on such disparate topics?"

And yes, that episode on snails did make me cry 🐌 #PM22

Judge's answer? It's not just her. Collaboration is key! Do away with auteur theory: it's about having an amazing team working with you, having a team that inspires and excites you.

But Kurwa doesn't let Judge weasel out of the personal just yet 😂 #PM22

So how does Judge prepare for these two very different shows? For Criminal, Judge only talks to people for about an hour. For TIL, Judge thinks she's doing an hour--but it's often way more!

"I love making Love" Judge says 😂 #PM22

Judge says that hosting on each show made her a better host on each show. She's better to work through and think through things on mic #PM22

How did @thisisloveshow expand making @CriminalShow ? They're both not QUITE about what you think: Criminal is true crime about "the human experience" more than crime; TIL is rarely about romantic love, and more about the expansiveness of love #PM22

So how has Judge pivoted from a hobbyist to a professional, from Radiotopia to Vox, and what made a network so vital to growth?

At a certain audience level, they really needed help with ads and cross-promo. @radiotopia took a risk on Criminal but boy howdy did it work out! #PM22

Notably, Judge worked full time in radio and they tested full time podcasting with cocreator @laurenspohrer. Once Spohrer had a real salary working in podcasting, Judge made the move as well. And this was early in the "what's a podcast?" days #PM22

Now, we don't have to explain what it means to make a podcast--but there's so many more options, meaning it's much harder to get an audience willing to stick with you #PM22

What does Judge wish she knew when she started? "That I'll never be an expert [...] It's constant to keep yourself on your toes"

You will always be learning and growing and changing and adapting as a pro podcaster. You are never done Learning. #PM22

A clip from @laurenspohrer about how amazing it is that she and Judge have worked together for so long without wanting to kill each other 😂

The way they've stayed afloat and excited and collaborative? Direct, clear, honest conversation! #PM22

Spohrer and Judge were always both focused on one thing: making something great. Even when that resulted in arguments and storming out, they always TRUST each other. They are always working towards making something real and beautiful. #PM22

Do NOT be afraid of saying, "This is too long. This is a bad idea. This doesn't work."

Making something great means having to be honest and critical of your own work, especially with collaborators. (Be nice about it though obvs 💖) #PM22

Advice: only work on things you really want to work on. Work on it a lot. Collaborate. Have others listen to it. "Don't waste your audience's time working out" your episode. Do that working out in advance!

Listeners KNOW when you're apathetic. #PM22

Back to the present of @CriminalShow almost a year since joining @voxmediapods

What they needed was infrastructure and support, and that's what Vox did. Vox allowed the Criminal team to just focus on the content, not the day to day tasks that eat up time and energy #PM22

What does Judge see in Criminal's future? Well, first, present: there's a Criminal tiktok now!

And coming up @thisisloveshow will be coming out twice as often YESSSSS 🎉🐌

and we can look forward to more serialized stories, too! #PM22

Final closing thoughts from the emcees: don't be shy!

See you at the next livetweet 🤘 #PM22