“Law & Order” To Debut True Crime Podcast Series
A collaboration among iHeartPodcasts, Universal Television, and Wolf Entertainment, unscripted “Law & Order: Criminal Justice System” is scheduled to premiere next Thursday (8/22). It marks the first venture into investigative journalism for the “Law & Order” franchise. iHeartPodcasts president Will Pearson tells TALKERS, “Listener interest in true crime continues to flourish with new stories constantly being sought out across platforms. ‘Law & Order’ is a legendary series. It’s an honor to team up with UTV, Wolf Entertainment, and executive producer Elliot Wolf to develop this original slate of podcasts.” Wolf Entertainment’s EVP/digital Elliot Wolf is co-creator of the upcoming Amazon Prime series “On Call.” He comments, “We’re thrilled to join forces with iHeartPodcasts and UTV to bring the real stories that have shaped our criminal justice system, the bedrock of the ‘Law & Order’ brand, to life. The goal coming in was always to push the boundaries of audio storytelling. This series delivers on that while still being deeply informative and entertaining.” The series will consist of four seasons, each with 12 episodes. The first season will be hosted by former Brooklyn homicide prosecutor Anna-Sigga Nicolazzi and will focus on the American mafia in New York City during the late-1970s.
Radio. The company says that in his new role, Goforth will collaborate closely with local Hubbard Radio markets to enhance sales strategies for existing podcasts. And as part of the Hubbard Radio corporate team, he will create new podcast initiatives and strategic partnerships, to build an even more robust podcast network. Hubbard EVP and chief financial officer Dave Bestler says, “We fully understand and embrace the evolution in our business from radio to audio. We are creating must-hear content in all eight of our Hubbard Radio markets, and listeners are increasingly accessing our content on-demand. John will help expand our podcast offerings, while growing revenue with the podcasts we already have.” Goforth comments, “I couldn’t be more excited to join the amazing team at Hubbard and help grow their already impressive portfolio. It’s thrilling to be at the intersection of local and national in the podcast space. As we’ve seen in other channels, cracking the code on local is the key to explosive growth.”
and “Wake N’ Jake” are joining The Dan Patrick Podcast Network, effective immediately. “Jimmy’s Three Things” is hosted by Jimmy “Jomboy” O’Brien (left) and “Wake N’ Jake” is hosted by Jake Storiale (right). Dan Patrick says, “Moments with Jimmy ‘Jomboy’ O’Brien and Jake Storiale are rarely predictable. I love entertainment that surprises and informs, which makes ‘Jimmy’s Three Things’ and ‘Wake N’ Jake’ great additions to my podcast network.”
First” are #2 and #3, respectively, with NBC News’ “Dateline NBC” at #4. Other talk radio-related podcasts of note include The Daily Wire’s “The Ben Shapiro Show” rising two spots to #7, iHeartPodcasts’ “Stuff You Should Know” up two places to #9, and Dan Bongino’s “The Dan Bongino Show” up one spot to #11. 
the companion podcast to SundanceTV’s powerful true crime documentary series, “It Couldn’t Happen Here.” Along with key crew from the TV series as her co-hosts, Burton Morgan dives deeper into the cases covered on the show featuring never-before-heard archives and a behind-the-scenes lens of how the team tackles these head-scratching and heart-breaking stories. The “True Crime Story: It Couldn’t Happen Here” podcast encourages everyone to get curious, get involved, and ask how they can help when it appears the system has failed.
remained at #9, Cumulus Podcast Network’s “The Dan Bongino Show” rose one spot to #11, and FOX Audio Network’s “FOX News Hourly Update” fell one spot to #16. Other data from Podtrac from this report includes: 1) U.S. unique monthly audience increased for all but one of the Top 20 publishers in August 2023 over July 2023; 2) The average U.S. unique monthly audience for the Top 20 publishers was up 13% month-over-month and down 3% over July 2022; 3) Total global downloads for the Top 20 publishers were up 7% month-over-month and flat year-over-year; and 4) The combined audience for the Top Sales Networks was up 15% month-over-month.
the history making adventure of a lifetime, blowing the lid off the Iran-Contra scandal and almost taking down the Reagan presidency.” Former New York Times bureau chief Stephen Kinzer states, “During the 1980s and 1990s, Cookie Hood was the single driving force behind the most successful television coverage of Central America that appeared across the United States. ‘Journalista’ is a series of stories over four decades in the making and will entrance each listener to the realities of what really happened during that time.”
According to Podtrac’s latest stats, the average U.S. “Unique Monthly Audience” for the Top 20 publishers dipped 3% month-to-month, but improved by that same percentage compared to June 2022. “Total Global Downloads” for the Top 20 publishers remained steady month-to-month; however, it declined 3% versus this time last year. The combined audience for the Top Sales Networks was up 5% month-to-month. The top ten podcasts by US Unique Monthly Audience (June 2023) are: “The Daily” (New York Times); “Dateline NBC” (NBC News); “Morbid” (Wondery); “Up First” (NPR); “NPR News Now” (NPR); “SmartLess” (Wonderly); “The Ben Shapiro Show” (Daily Wire); “Stuff You Should Know” (iHeartPodcasts); “Pardon My Take” (Barstool Sports); and “The Dan Bongino Show” (Dan Borgino). With a US “Unique Monthly Audience” of 31,625,000 (and 833 active shows), iHeartPodcasts is the top podcast publisher. It is followed by Wondery; NPR; NBC News; New York Times; Daily Wire; The Walt Disney Company; Barstool Sports; Vox Media; and PRX.
The first episode of the weekly true crime podcast “The Girlfriends” aired yesterday (Monday, 7/10). It’s a collaboration among iHeartPodcasts; Novel; and NO MORE, a global nonprofit dedicated to ending domestic and sexual violence. NO MORE chief executive officer Pamela Zaballa states, “We are proud to partner with iHeartPodcasts and Novel to raise awareness of domestic violence and help survivors find the support they need. At NO MORE, we strongly believe that media and entertainment can play an important role in changing the culture that has allowed the epidemic of domestic violence to persist. We’re grateful to iHeartPodcasts and Novel for using this powerful story to help fuel real and lasting change.” Distributed by iHeartPodcasts, “The Girlfriends” tells the true story of a group of women who formed a club to put a murderous ex-boyfriend behind bars. The podcast illuminates ways women unite to protect each other when systems of justice fail them.
of staff often meant instability and near-daily internal leaks to the press. Now, the new iHeartPodcast ‘The Whistleblowers: Inside The Trump Administration,’ co-produced with Best Case and Ark Media, will dive headfirst into the chaos to bring listeners the inside story of the people behind some of the most explosive government revelations in American history.” Taylor is a bestselling author and the former chief of staff of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. He first wrote anonymously, but later revealed himself as the author after publishing the #1 bestseller A Warning in 2019. Each episode focuses on a different “whistleblower” including Reality Winner, Andrew McCabe, Alexander Vindman, Olivia Troye, Dawn Wooten, Grant Turner, and Stephanie Grisham. 
audience of 24.1 million from 214 shows, followed by NPR at #3 with a unique monthly audience of 18.9 million from 49 shows. Meanwhile, The New York Times’ “The Daily” was the #1 ranked podcast (based on unique monthly audience), followed by NBC News’ “Dateline NBC” at #2, and Wondery’s “Morbid” at #3.