FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
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Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Eva Longoria, Kit Harington, Kevin Hart, Doja Cat, QuestLove, Hoda Kotb, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ashley Johnson, Jon Stewart, Ed Helms, Snoop Dogg, Björk, Steve Yeun, Netflix, Lemonada and iHeartPodcasts Among Winners of Second Annual Signal Awards
Audible Recognized as Inaugural Signal Company of the Year
Over 130,000 Votes Cast During Public Voting Period for Listener’s Choice Awards
Winners to be Celebrated with Reception at The Bowery NYC on October 23, 2023
NEW YORK, October 10, 2023 – The Signal Awards, celebrating the world’s best podcasts, today announced the Winners for its second annual honors. Some of the world’s most influential, entertaining and informative voices are taking top prizes, including Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Eva Longoria, Kit Harington, Kevin Hart, Hoda Kotb, Doja Cat, QuestLove, Jill Scott, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ashley Johnson, Jon Stewart, Ed Helms, Snoop Dogg, Björk, Steve Yeun, Kevin Pang and Miranda Keeling. Notable podcasts such as HBO’s The Last of Us Podcast, The Slowdown, Netflix is a Daily Joke, Operation: Tradebom, And That’s Why We Drink, Growing Up Powerful and She’s a 10 Times 5 are also receiving Gold Awards for exceptional work.
“2023 was a huge year for podcasts, as worldwide listenership continued to skyrocket and new trends emerged,” said Signal Awards managing director Deondric Royster. “The winners of the second annual Signal Awards represent the best of the industry: those who are pushing boundaries, telling important stories, encouraging laughter, and reaffirming the overall power of podcasting and its ability to connect to listeners all over the world.”
The first-ever Signal Company of the Year was won by Audible, earning the most honors across all categories. With 37 total wins, Audible received nods for Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast, The Sesame Street Podcast, Mandela: The Lost Tapes, Origins, American Football, The Goop Pursuit and more.
During the public voting stage, podcast fans cast over 130,000 votes for the Signal Listener’s Choice award. Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend, HBO’s The Last of Us Podcast, Mobituaries with Mo Rocca, Small Town Dicks, Barely Famous, And That’s Why We Drink and Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls were among the podcasts receiving the most public votes.
With nearly 2000 entries received in only its second year, Signal Awards is already one of the largest honors for podcasts in the world. Organizers noted the diversity of companies entering great podcasts, including global media heavyweights like Warner Bros. Discovery, ABC News, Audible, SXM Media, WaitWhat, Apple, Netflix, Al Jazeera, iHeart Podcasts and Stitcher Studios to pioneering companies like Paramount Amazon, Vox Media Podcast Network, Tenderfoot TV, Lemonada, Crooked Media and Realm.
Reflecting the medium’s reputation for being informal and authentic, a number of shows were selected as Winners for Best Indie Podcast including Like You: Mindfulness For Kids, Fireside with Blair Hodges, Humans of Purpose, Undiscarded: Stories of New York and Curios Matter Anthology.
Live recorded and video podcasts continue to be popular tools of the industry, with more and more notable voices taking to the medium every day. The Official Game of Thrones Podcast House of the Dragon, Questlove Supreme, Soul & Science Podcast | Shake Shack CMO Jay Livingston and Paul Giamatti’s CHINWAG with Stephen Asma – SO YOU THINK YOU’RE A STARSEED? were all recognized as Winners for shows in the Best Live Podcast Recording category.
Signal Award Winners were selected by the Signal Academy, which included Founding Jurors Jody Avirgan (Host, This Day in Esoteric Behavior); Ray Chao (GM of Audio, Vox Media); Rachael King (CEO and Co-Founder, Pod People; Maya Watson (Head of Global Marketing, Clubhouse); Michael Gluckstadt (Director of Podcasts, HBO & HBO MAX); Anna Hossnieh (Executive Producer, iHeartRadio Comedy); Jenny Kaplan (Co-Founder and CEO, Wonder Media Network); Deray McKesson (Host, Pod Save the People / Co-founder & Executive Chair, Campaign Zero) and Nikki Silva (Co-Host, The Kitchen Sisters Present from PRX).
Signal Awards Winners will be celebrated with a reception at The Bowery NYC on October 23, 2023.
To see the full list of Signal Winners please visit www.SignalAwards.com.
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About The Signal Awards
A new, comprehensive award initiative for podcasts, the inaugural Signal Awards will recognize the breadth of Podcast and Digital Audio work from around the globe by honoring the organizations, brands, and professionals creating and shaping the industry. The hope is that by honoring and championing this work, The Signal Awards can help set a standard of excellence and play a significant role in supporting the future of the podcast industry.
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Signal Awards Winner Highlights
Best Daily Podcast – Shows
- The Slowdown – APM Studios
Best Commute Podcast – Shows
- Netflix is a Daily Joke – Netflix
- On Purpose with Jay Shetty – alignPR
- And That’s Why We Drink – Metro Public Relations
Best Experimental Podcast – Shows
- Stopping To Notice with Miranda Keeling – Fresh Air Production
Best Host (Current Events) – Shows
- The Problem with Jon Stewart: The Official Podcast – Apple TV Podcast
Best Indie Podcast – Shows
- Undiscarded: Stories of New York – CitizenRacecar & The City Reliquary
- Curious Matter Anthology – Knightsville Workshop
- Humans of Purpose – Humans of Purpose
- Fireside with Blair Hodges – Fireside
- Like You: Mindfulness for Kids – Perpetual Motion
Popular Culture & Variety – Shows
- Jill Scott Presents: J.ill the Podcast – Jill Scott Presents: J.ill the Podcast
Best Exclusive Content + Experiences – Shows (Listener’s Choice)
- Small Town Dicks – Paperclip Ltd.
Interview or Talk Show – Shows
- Gold Minds with Kevin Hart – Hartbeat
- Most Interesting Person You’ve Never Heard Of Podcast – Corner Booth Media
- Wiser Than Me – Lemonada Media
- Profoundly Pointless – Profoundly Pointless
- Gal on the Go Unplugged, Encouraging You to Live Boldly! – Gal on the Go Unplugged
Comedy – Shows
- Gold Mind with Kevin Hart – Hartbeat
Documentary – Shows
- Teaching Texas Shows – Wonder Media Network
- The Catch – Season 2 – Foreign Policy
- Admissible: Shreds of Evidence – VPM Media Corporation
- Operation: Tradebom – Apple TV Podcast
- DDx: Abortion as Healthcare (a Miniseries) – Figure 1
History – Shows (Listener’s Choice)
- Mobituaries with Mo Rocca – Paramount
Best Hosts – Shows
- Wiser Than Me – Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Lemonada
- Beef with Bridget Todd – Next Chapter Podcasts
- Dark History host by Bailey Sarain – Audioboom
- Mind of a Monster: Jeffrey Dahmer – Michelle Ward – Warner Bros. Discovery
- Reality with King – Carlos King – QCODE
- Ten Percent Happier with Dan Harris – Wondery
Best Conversation Starter – Shows
- She’s a 10 Times 5 – She’s a 10 Times 5 Podcast
- The Sunday 7 Conversation Starter – Draft Doris
- Do the Pot – How to Do the Pot
True Crime – Shows (Listener’s Choice)
- And That’s Why We Drink – Metro Public Relations
Kids – Shows (Listener’s Choice)
- Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls — Rebel Girls
Best Video Podcast – Branded Shows & Advertising (Listener’s Choice)
- Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend – Samsung Electronics – SXM Media
Television & Film — Individual Episode (Listener’s Choice)
- HBO’s The Last of Us Podcast – Episode 3 – “Long, Long Time” – Warner Bros. Discovery
Best Guest – Individual Episode
- Michelle Obama – The Light Podcast: “Barack is My Home” with Oprah Winfrey (Ep. 8) – AUDIBLE
- HBO’s The Last of Us – Ashley Johnson – Warner Bros. Discovery
- On Purpose with Jay Shetty – Tom Holland ON: How to Overcome Social Anxiety & Beneficial Life Lessons You Can
- Questlove Supreme – The Oriel Co.
Best Writing – Individual Episode
- The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman – “Chapter Eight: Thin Lines” – Antica Productions
- Ep. 126 The Barn – Ballen Studios
- VR Gloves: Where air guitar meets a Nintendo flop, meets the future of remote surgery – Setapp
Best Guest – Individual Episode
- The Official Game of Thrones Podcast: House of the Dragon, “Live from GOT Fan Con with Kit Harington” – Warner Bros. Discovery
Arts & Culture – Individual Episode
- Hungry for History with Eva Longoria and Maite Gomez-Rejón – iHeartPodcasts
- Origins – Tobe Nwigwe – Audible
- The World’s Greatest Italian Beef – Kevin Pang – America’s Test Kitchen
Lifestyle – Individual Episode
- Biscuits & Jam – Hoda Kotb Is a Southerner – Dotdash Meredith
Best Conversation Starter – Individual Episode
- Did Mac Dre Really Go to Prison Because of His Lyrics – KQED
- Beyond 6 Seconds: Dissociative Identity Disorder with Amber Louise Ainsworth – Beyond 6 Seconds
Interview or Talk Show – Individual Episode
- Wish I Knew: Peter Beck – Bessemer Venture Partners
- Skip Intro – Steven Yeun – Netflix
- What the Hack: Jill Schlesinger Hits the Reset Button – Loud Tree Media
- Milk Drunk: The Podcast – Meghan Trainor & Emily Oster: Redefining “Best” Parenting – Bobbie
Music – Individual Episode
- Origins: Doja Cat – AUDIBLE
Interview or Talk Show – Individual Episode (Listener’s Choice)
- Barely Famous Podcast x Kat Stickler – PodcastOne
Most Innovative Audio Experience – Limited Series & Specials
- Björk: Sonic Symbolism – Archetype
Advice & How To – Limited Series & Specials
- Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast – AUDIBLE
Advice & How To – Limited Series & Specials (Listener’s Choice)
- Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast – AUDIBLE
Best Editing – Limited Series & Specials
- Culpable – Tenderfoot TV
- Into America: Street Disciples – MSNBC
- Long Shadow: Rise of the American Far Right – Long Lead
- Heretic in the House – The Shalom Hartman Institute
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – Limited Series & Specials
- The Idiom – SBS
- Free From Desire: Asexual in the City of Love – Paradiso Media
- Women of Europe – Deutsche Welle
History – Limited Series & Specials
- SNAFU with Ed Helms – FilmNation Entertainment, Pacific Electric Picture Company, Gilded Audio, iHeartRadio
Best Original Score or Music – Limited Series & Specials
- Lake Song – Make Believe Association
Best Writing – Limited Series & Specials
- Growing Up Powerful – Rebel Girls
- CAN YOU DIG IT? – A HIP HOP ORIGIN STORY – PB & J Productions
- SNAFU with Ed Helms – FilmNation Entertainment
- Into America: Street Disciples – MSNBC Into America Podcast
- High Strange – Tenderfoot TV
Music – Limited Series & Specials
- Snoop Dogg W+M – AUDIBLE
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