In Celebration of International Podcast Day iHeartMedia Announces The Return Of The iHeartRadio Podcast Awards

iHeartRadio’s Second Annual Major Live Podcast Awards Ceremony Will Return to the iHeartRadio Theater Los Angeles on January 17, 2020

NEW YORK – September 30, 2019– In celebration of International Podcast Day, iHeartMedia, the No. 1 podcast publisher globally, today announced the return of the iHeartRadio Podcast Awards to the iHeartRadio Theater Los Angeles on Friday, January 17, 2020 at 8 p.m. PT. The second annual live awards event, which will broadcast and stream live across iHeartMedia stations nationwide, will honor the most entertaining and innovative podcasts of 2019 and will span 30 categories, celebrating the incredible talent and wide variety of leaders across the booming podcasting industry.

Last year’s winners at the inaugural iHeartRadio Podcast Awards included Slate’s “Slow Burn” for Podcast of the Year; “Up and Vanished” for Best Crime Podcast; “The Joe Rogan Experience” for Best Comedy Podcast; Marc Smerling, host of “Crimetown” and “The RFK Tapes,” for Podcast Innovator; “Fantasy Footballers” for Best Sports Podcast; and Dax Shepard and Monica Padman of “Armchair Expert” for Breakout Podcast of the Year, among many other categories and winners. The event featured appearances by award nominees, celebrity presenters and other special guests including Mike Tyson, Dax Shepard, Jillian Michaels, Jana Kramer, Topher Grace, Dr. Drew, Becca Tilley, Scheana Shay, Dean Unglert, Vanessa Grimaldi, Jake Brennan, Charlamagne Tha God, Holly Frey and more. NPR was also honored with the first-ever iHeartRadio Podcast Pioneer Award.

“The podcasting landscape has truly grown and is now reaching a mainstream audience,” said Anya Grundmann, Senior Vice President for Programming and Audience Development at NPR. “As a ‘Podcast Pioneer’ we are thrilled to see the range of terrific new programs out there and excited that iHeart has created such a powerful platform to showcase standout shows.”

International Podcast Day celebrates the power of podcasts, which continues to see tremendous growth into mainstream audiences with millions of new listeners. Podcast listenership in the United States alone has grown exponentially with an estimated 17 million more monthly podcast listeners in 2019 than in 2018. Today podcasts reach 90 million active listeners in America, exceeding the listenership of both satellite radio and all major streaming music services. iHeartMedia, which reaches a quarter of billion monthly listeners in the U.S. with just its broadcast radio stations and on-air personalities alone, will celebrate the best in podcasts with existing fans, while also continuing to introduce millions of new listeners to this incredible medium every single day.

“When we introduced the iHeartRadio Podcast Awards last year, we knew we wanted to celebrate the most talented podcast creators out there – the key reason that podcasting continues to grow exponentially,” said Conal Byrne, President of the iHeartPodcast Network. “The response to last year’s awards was amazing. This is the one time of the year that all the most popular podcasters come together to celebrate the community of podcasting truly as colleagues, not competitors. The iHeartRadio Podcast Awards bring everyone into one room – the biggest hosts, producers and distributors – all committed to this amazing podcast medium and to seeing its incredible growth continue.”

Podcast fans themselves will once again decide the winner of the “Podcast of the Year” award through online and social voting across Twitter and Instagram. Nominees will include podcasts from all creators, distributors and platforms, and a panel of blue-ribbon podcast industry leaders, creatives and visionaries will determine the winner across remaining categories including entertainment, comedy, crime, news, sports, food, LGBTQ+, business and more. In addition, this year’s awards will include three Icon Awards -- The Innovator Award, The Social Impact Award and The Pioneer Award. Select category winners will be announced during the live show and stream filled with unique celebrations at the iHeartRadio Theater Los Angeles. More details will be shared soon.

The 2020 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards is part of iHeartMedia’s roster of incredibly successful, nationally-recognized events, including the iHeartRadio Music Awards, the iHeartRadio Music Festival, the nationwide iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Concert Tour, iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina, iHeartCountry Festival, iHeartRadio ALTer Ego and iHeartRadio Wango Tango. For more information visit iHeartPodcastAwards.com.

About iHeartMedia, Inc.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ: IHRT) is the number one audio company in the United States, reaching nine out of 10 Americans every month. It consists of three business groups.

With its quarter of a billion monthly listeners, the iHeartMedia Multiplatform Group has a greater reach than any other media company in the U.S. Its leadership position in audio extends across multiple platforms, including more than 860 live broadcast stations in over 160 markets nationwide; its National Sales organization; and the company’s live and virtual events business. It also includes Premiere Networks, the industry’s largest Networks business, with its Total Traffic and Weather Network (TTWN); and BIN: Black Information Network, the first and only 24/7 national and local all news audio service for the Black community. iHeartMedia also leads the audio industry in analytics, targeting and attribution for its marketing partners with its SmartAudio suite of data targeting and attribution products using data from its massive consumer base.

The iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group includes the company’s fast-growing podcasting business -- iHeartMedia is the number one podcast publisher in downloads, unique listeners, revenue and earnings -- as well as its industry-leading iHeartRadio digital service, available across more than 500 platforms and 2,000 devices; the company’s digital sites, newsletters, digital services and programs; its digital advertising technology companies; and its audio industry-leading social media footprint.

The company’s Audio & Media Services reportable segment includes Katz Media Group, the nation’s largest media representation company, and RCS, the world's leading provider of broadcast and webcast software.

Visit iHeartMedia.com for more company information.