The 2ND Annual Signal Awards WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

The winners for the second year of the Signal Awards, which honour the best podcasts in the world, were revealed today. 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 are among the speakers winning top honours.

The Slowdown, Netflix is a Daily Joke, Operation: Tradebom, Growing Up Powerful, She's a 10 Times 5, HBO's The Last of Us Podcast, and others are also honoured with Gold Awards for their outstanding 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 32 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.

Support Podwires and our independent podcast producers