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• Exclusive: Podcast ad load is "flashing a yellow light", suggests new research. The Podcast Study 2026 will reveal in a webinar next Tuesday that the majority of podcast listeners - 54.8% - suggest that there are already too many ads in podcasts: and only 8.6% say that they would tolerate more ads to keep shows free. The research also suggests that social media is three times more effective at helping listeners find new podcasts than ads in other shows.
• Joe Rogan has renewed his agreement with Spotify. He last renewed in Feb 2024, and the show returned to open RSS and YouTube shortly after (and also, we're told, started carrying midrolls at this time). The agreement is thought to be worth $250mn, a figure denied by Spotify last time round; but someone with knowledge of Rogan's numbers and the ad revenue he attracts suggests that it's a profitable deal for Spotify. Podscribe suggests recent shows have contained 15 ads (an 8% adload).
• The winners of the International Women's Podcast Awards were announced. Presented by Tink Media, Freedom Needs a Soundtrack won two awards.

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