Lotus Communications has announced a promotion for Larry Mac, where he’ll now serve as the Director of Operations and Programming for the company in Tucson.
Mac has spent the past 19 years with the organization. He will continue to host afternoons on 96.1 KLPX. With his new role, he’ll provide oversight for La Caliente 92.1 & 95.7, La Buena 94.3, MixFM 94.9, ESPN Tucson, Hank FM 93.3, and 102.1 KFMA.
“I’m excited to take on this new challenge with Arizona Lotus and continue building great radio across Southern Arizona,” said Mac. “I’m grateful to Lotus Corp and General Manager Dee Anne Thomas for the trust and opportunity, and I look forward to working closely with Enrique and his team to strengthen our programming and connection with listeners.”
“We’re excited about the continued growth of our Spanish-language and General Market stations under this collaborative leadership structure,” added Lotus Arizona General Manager Dee Anne Thomas. “Larry brings more than 19 years of experience and a deep commitment to our Tucson operations.”
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Barrett Media’s Top 20 of 2025 series continues with a look at news media’s top digital shows. To learn of upcoming results or revisit some of the different categories we’ve already presented, visit this website, subscribe to our newsletters and/or follow us on X, Facebook, LinkedIn and other social channels. At the conclusion of this series, I will record videos for each area of the Top 20 to address key takeaways. The videos will be posted on the Barrett Media YouTube page so be sure to subscribe.
If this is your first time checking out our Top 20 series, welcome. What makes our Top 20 unique is that the votes are decided by media industry movers and shakers. Twenty three (23) executives from 18 companies took part in the voting process. Our voting committee work in podcasting, research, news television, and ownership/CEO roles. I appreciate each of them making time to provide their input.
As you review these results, please remember that they represent the collective feedback shared by our industry voters. Barrett Media does not vote in this process. Our role is to assemble the group, collect the votes, and present the information.
Important Information
#1 – These results are based on 2025’s performance. 2026 changes have no effect on the voting.
#2 – Our voting process is similar to how writers cast votes for awards in professional sports. A first-place vote equals twenty (20) points. A 20th place vote equals one (1) point. We do this to keep things balanced and avoid situations where the results favor one or two companies.
#3 – The criteria for our voters included Quality of Show (the ear test), Multi-Platform Reach/Strategy, Chart Positions, Monthly Downloads, and Ability to Create Buzz. Keep in mind, our voters live in different cities, work for different groups, have different tastes, and value certain factors higher than others. This is not a perfect system but it’s one we feel good about using to showcase the industry’s best.
#4 – A total of 158 shows were eligible for voting consideration in the News Digital Shows category. Shows in this category prioritize news, politics, business, and cultural conversations. Most of these programs are digital-first shows with little or no additional distribution via radio or television. Some have the benefit of larger distribution but are exceptional digitally regardless of their employer or the platform.
And the Winner Is…
The Joe Rogan Experience. Spotify’s hit show continued to dominate the news media landscape. Over 20 million subscribe to the show’s YouTube channels, downloads are reportedly around 200 million per month across all platforms, and the amount of buzz produced across social media and mainstream print, TV and radio by the show set it apart from an impressive field of programs. Congratulations to Joe and his team on the well deserved recognition.
I want to thank Dylan Barrett for creating the artwork for this series. Now without further delay, here are Barrett Media’s Top 20 News Digital Shows of 2025.
Additional Notes:
The Joe Rogan Experience won this category handily by forty (40) points. Rogan also scored the most first-place votes, seven (7).
Spots 21-25 belonged to The Bulwark Podcast w/ Tim Miller, No Spin News w/ Bill O’Reilly, The Michael Knowles Show, Up First, and The Sage Steele Show.
The closest battle was for seventh place where Ben Shapiro edged Megyn Kelly by one (1) point.
Of the 158 shows to appear on submitted ballots, six (6) received at least one 1st place vote.
BM Top 20 of 2025 Remaining Schedule:
Music Radio = February 23-27 and March 2-4.
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He’s pragmatic, approaches America’s problems with tough love in mind, and is almost always right. Adam Carolla is more than just a podcast host. He is an American treasure with two New York Times best-selling books, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and an IMDb profile bigger than President William Howard Taft’s waistline.
“I’m pragmatic. I come from a pragmatic world. If you come from a world where you build, you tend to be pragmatic,” said Carolla, a featured host at PodcastOne. “You tend to look at things as they are. You don’t dream about what they could be. And you have to figure out the logistics of them and how to pull it off.”
Carolla, who’s been working in the media industry since the 1980s, didn’t start his adult life behind the mic. Instead, he worked in the extremely pragmatic world of construction. “There are lots of rules when it comes to building, and you have to follow those rules whether you like them or not, or agree with them. You just have to follow them.”
He gave a prime example of how pragmatism from the construction world applies to politics today:
“I’d go to people’s houses when I worked in construction, and they’d say, ‘Oh, I want to take this wall out and that wall out. I want one big great room. One big wide-open room.’ And I would say, ‘Well, we’ve got to pick up the load for the second floor, so we’ve got to put a post down at some point.’ They’d say, ‘No, I want it to be wide open.’ And I’d say, ‘Yeah, I know, but we’ve got to put a post in to pick up the load for the second floor.’ And they’d say, ‘Well, I don’t want to do that.’
“So then I’d say, ‘Okay, well, we can pass in a big piece of steel, like an I-beam or something. We can span it, but that’s going to be really expensive and hard to do.’ And they’d say, ‘Well, I don’t want to do that.’”
“And I’d say, ‘Well, those are your choices. Not a world where you dream of a super open room with no post and no I-beam. It’s just rules, and physics, and gravity. We’re going to have to live in that world, and we’re going to have to make decisions based on that, with that in mind, not a world that you dream of.’”
“Now, politicians are all dreaming of a world with no ICE, defund the police, and open borders, because no one’s illegal. But that’s a dream world you guys are living in.”
“We have to come up with a world where there are consequences, gravity, and rules. We have to work within those parameters, not the parameters of your dreams.”
Consequences, rules, parameters, whatever you want to call them, Carolla believes following these ideals is just one way to show tough love.
“Tough love is just love. For example, I want my boy to be in good shape, so every morning we’re going to do 30 push-ups together before he goes to school. Then you go, ‘That’s a little tough, isn’t it?’ And it’s like, ‘No, but that’s love.’”
Carolla reasoned, “Love is, I’m not going to let my kid have a donut for breakfast. I’m going to make him scrambled eggs. Then you go, ‘Yeah, but the kid wants a donut and is actually crying now because he’s being told to eat the scrambled eggs.’ That’s tough love, but that’s love.”
“Doing what everyone wants to do all the time, and giving people what they want, sometimes at their own detriment, that is not love. That’s being soft, and it’s also being nice.”
He went on to say, “Letting homeless people expire on the street, giving them clean needles, and creating safe injection zones is not love. Scooping them up and putting them somewhere so they don’t overdose, so they can beat their habit, is tough love, but it’s really love.”
While Carolla is extraordinarily humble about his success, his impact on the industry is undeniable. His industry debut came in 1996 as co-host of Loveline with Drew Pinsky. He later helped create several shows, including The Man Show, Crank Yankers, The Car Show, and The Adam Carolla Project. Many of these programs aired on different networks, including MTV, SPEED, and TLC, showcasing his ability to connect with a wide range of audiences.
He is also an accomplished voice actor, lending his talents to characters such as Super Death on Family Guy, Wynnchel (the éclair) in Wreck-It Ralph, and Commander Nebula in the Buzz Lightyear of Star Command series and video games.
His creativity not only defined a generation’s appetite for television, but also proved that no one can be pigeonholed into a single media role or ideology if they are willing to challenge their own ideas.
For those who believe they are lucky, funny, and creative enough to follow in Carolla’s footsteps, his advice is simple: “Find your voice. Make sure you have something to say. If you don’t have something to say, don’t bother. There are enough people just talking with nothing to say. We don’t need more of that.”
Once you find your voice, Carolla believes you need to refine, nurture, and develop it. “It’s not just about talking,” Carolla said. “It’s about trying to distill what your voice actually is. Be your own biggest critic and try to poke holes in your own theories.”
He added, “Find other people whose voices you appreciate. Tell them your theories and your thoughts. Let them hear your voice and critique it. Find cracks and fissures in your ideas, and test them with people who may not be like-minded.”
Testing ideas with people who are not like-minded is essential, Carolla explained. “You need to build a little muscle through some grappling. You can’t just have people falling down when you touch them. There needs to be back and forth. And you need to strengthen yourself and your ideas. Being in an echo chamber is probably not a good way to do that.”
The Adam Carolla Show is available Tuesday-Friday on all digital audio platforms. As of January 26th, the show now provides same-day distribution of the podcast to SiriusXM’s ‘The Megyn Kelly Channel’ (111).
Carolla also continues to perform standup across the country. For a list of upcoming dates, go here. Adam remains in business with PodcastOne on distribution and advertising of his show. The two sides recently agreed to a multiyear contract extension to continue their working relationship.
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There has never been a moment like this. Within 14 days, an artist performs at the Super Bowl halftime show, wins a Grammy for Album of the Year, posts 170 million U.S. streams in seven days, holds six of the Top 10 streamed songs in America…and doesn’t have one song in the Top 40 on mainstream radio.
If you program pop radio in America and you’re not playing Bad Bunny, we need to talk.
The 170-Million-Ton Elephant in the Room
Let’s start with my least favorite subject: math.
170 million streams in one week in the United States (and not during Super Bowl week, for the doubters). Six of the Top 10 streamed songs in America. That’s mainstream. You know, the way your sales team describes your format.
Yet 222 reporting CHR stations have chosen to not give double digits spins to the biggest artist in America. Chosen to say, “not for us,” or “he doesn’t wave the Top 40 flag.” Maybe you missed that during the Super Bowl Halftime Show he had dozens of flags waving.
Maybe you think he’s not a pop artist. You must have forgotten that “pop” is short for popular (unless you’re in the Midwest).
Too Busy Playing What’s Being Worked & Not What’s Working
Radio has drifted from “what’s hot?” to “what’s being serviced?” The promo rep has become more effective than most programmers.
Programmers, in many cases, are reacting to label priorities, airplay pressure, comfort, fear, and corporate programming mandates (culpable de los cargos).
Instead of responding to actual demand, actual audiences, actual cultural relevance, and dare I say it, actual data. Ah, there’s that unarguable math thing again.
Fans watch Bad Bunny perform at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival’ photo credit: Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
So what is it?
Is he underplayed because the songs are in Spanish? Is it because he’s operating outside traditional label machinery? Is it fear of alienating a perceived core demo?
Here’s what we know:
America is not confused. America is not hesitant. America is not waiting for the song to come back in your callout.
“But Phil, My Market Is Different.”
Ah yes. The classic: “My market is different.”
You’re right. Your market only has five Bad Bunny songs in its Top 10 streamed songs. The other market has six.
Pull the local streaming charts in almost any CHR market. You’ll find him at the top. Multiple times. Multiple titles. Multiple albums.
The audience already voted. You just haven’t counted the ballots (not that ballot boxes are ever rigged).
Those Who Get It
Let’s give credit where it’s due. Jazzy Jim Archer — I’m a fan — at KMVQ has Bad Bunny spinning 60+ times a week.
iHeart has well over a dozen mainstream Top 40 stations playing him in double digits, right in line with their newly announced podcast partnership with Bad Bunny. The types of people I heart are people who heart all types of people.
For the other 200+ Top 40 PDs not playing Benito, you are making your station’s relevance finito (and, yes, I know that’s Italian; “how dare he put three languages in the same article!”).
The Language Barrier
Yes, his songs are in Spanish. So?
Streaming eliminated language as a barrier. TikTok did that. Netflix did that. K-pop did that. Reggaeton did that. Heck, “Macarena,” “Gangnam Style,” “La Bamba,” and “99 Luftballons” did that, decades ago.
Remember when you played “Despacito” and “Gasolina”?
Sidenote: “Despacito” was the most-streamed song of 2017 and tied the record for most weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 (16 weeks). So there must be more at play here than the language objection.
The Political Climate Argument
“We don’t want to appear political.”
When did playing a global superstar become a political stance? Let’s not pretend neutrality is a strategy.
Taylor has a political view. Bono has a political view. Bruce Springsteen has a political view. Nicki Minaj has a view. Right Said Fred has a political view. Do we need to stop playing them?
The Independent Label Theory
Another theory: he’s not being pushed in traditional ways.
No promo army. No call blitz. No coordinated “add week” theatrics.
Translation: programmers have to make an independent decision. That’s uncomfortable for some. We’ve built a system where “worked” often trumps “wanted” (no pun intended).
The Real Risk
Every time you ignore an artist this big, you train your audience to go somewhere else.
When a listener opens Spotify or Apple Music and hears what they want immediately, then gets in the car and doesn’t hear it, you’ve just reinforced the perceptual idea that radio is behind.
This is bigger than Bad Bunny. This is about programming philosophy, you know, that thing you used to have to submit with your resume when you were looking for a job.
Have we reached a point where politics matter more than product? Where labels matter more than listeners? Where traditional matters more than remarkable?
I don’t believe programmers are ignorant. I don’t believe they’re arrogant. But I do think some are trapped inside systems built for a different era.
Not Playing Bad Bunny Is Bad Programming
When 170 million weekly streams say “play this,” and the programmer says, “we’re not sure,” the audience answers, “cool! We’ll go somewhere that is.”
And that, my friends, is how $20 at a time terrestrial radio funds its own competition.
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When Barstool Sports announced their partnership with FOX Sports last summer, many speculated on what to expect. The agreement meant that Barstool would have a weekly presence on the network’s flagship college football pregame show, Big Noon Kickoff. The other aspect of the agreement was a two-hour morning program curated, hosted and produced by Barstool for distribution on FS1. A month prior to the agreement announcement, T-Bob Hebert joined the Barstool Sports brand with some unsettling nerves about what his role would be.
“I had all these show ideas that I was ready to pitch. Then my first day working there, Big Cat [Dan Katz] called me and said they [Barstool] have a deal in the works with FOX that they feel I’d be a great fit for,” said Hebert. “That was a wild pinch myself moment. On my first day of work, I was basically told that there could be a potential national show on FS1 that they wanted me to be the host of.”
Months later, Wake Up Barstoollaunched on Labor Day, leading into the first week of the NFL regular season. The show is hosted by a rotating cast of Barstool Sports personalities, with Hebert serving as the most consistent presence. Hebert is no stranger to hosting morning programming. Prior to joining the digital content factory at Barstool, he hosted morning radio on 104.5 ESPN Baton Rouge for several years.
Leaning on his experience in morning radio helped Hebert adapt to the new structure his role at Barstool would provide. He says the best thing about working for Barstool is how collaborative and creative the entire staff is, with everyone pulling in the same direction and finding new avenues for content with nearly no restraints on support.
“It is a building filled with super creative people. I wasn’t sure how the environment was going to be at first, because it’s definitely competitive. Thankfully, it feels more collaborative,” said Hebert. “This place is crazy. If you have an idea, they’re like go do it and we will give you the resources to try it.”
Planning Ahead
It’s been nearly six months since Wake Up Barstool launched on FS1. The program airs live from 8 to 10 a.m. It then replays on the network before The Herd with Colin Cowherd at noon. Unlike many Barstool Sports properties built for a digital-first audience, Hebert said Wake Up Barstool is produced primarily for television.
He credited the football season with giving Wake Up Barstool a strong runway to find its footing in a network-style presentation. Now, with the NFL season complete, the offseason challenge begins. The former LSU Tigers football standout said he looks forward to the test. He plans to build on the foundation established this fall.
“The worst thing that we can do is think that the show is good now, and just keep doing what we’ve been doing,” said Hebert. “We’ve already had a ton of meetings about ways to expand and things we want to try. We’re not afraid of doing things, but I feel good coming out of the football season with an offseason filled with a billion things to talk about.”
The reception from FOX through the beginning of the program has been positive, according to Hebert. He credits the partnership with the network for allowing them to have full reign over the content direction and style of the program. Working in partnership with FOX has also granted exclusive interviews with FOX talent and unique access to FOX broadcast events.
For Hebert, he remains mindful that a television audience on FS1 may not fully align with the Barstool Sports brand. He said his approach is to create a welcoming environment. That mindset holds even when content on Wake Up Barstool leans heavily into insider conversation.
“Things can be so large and take over the entire Barstool workplace that everyone’s talking about. Somebody watching may not have a clue what the f**k we’re talking about,” explained Hebert. “I understand that. We’re doing a better job of translating why things are funny through showing the audience, instead of just referencing it… Sometimes some things are just unescapable and nature of the beast.”
Defining Success
Hebert says the model for Wake Up Barstool was never to try to replicate anything from ESPN’s morning lineup. Although initial viewership reports drew criticism, including from Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy himself, the goal, according to Hebert, isn’t viewership but engagement.
“I don’t know what the numbers are. I’ve never been terribly numbers motivated, but we are a social media clip factory here,” explained Hebert. “My first success metric is am I proud of what we just did? That’s something that can bounce from day to day, but the goal is to have fun and a good time.”
Since launching in September of 2024, Wake Up Barstool has gained over 186,000 followers on social media, earning over 346 million views across Barstool channels in that timeframe. In January alone aided by the NFL and college football playoffs, Wake Up Barstool increased it’s following by 15% while seeing 1.2 million engagements across platforms.
Despite that growing following on social media, one goal for Hebert is finding new avenues to grow the program’s YouTube platform moving into the spring and summer months. So far, he has been impressed with the social media engagement Wake Up Barstool has generated, despite the struggles of early traditional viewership metrics.
“Good social media numbers make me feel good. Because I want to stay on air and keep doing the show. If that element is going well, let’s keep doing that. But it would be really cool to see that the linear numbers are making people happy. Who wouldn’t enjoy that,” said Hebert. “If that’s where you start as your motivation, I personally feel that’s a recipe for disaster creating a show that’s not authentic.”
Be Entertaining
That authentic approach has always guided Hebert, from the locker room at LSU to sports radio and now to building his global persona at Barstool Sports. Although he hasn’t finished his first year of a two-year agreement with Barstool, he still considers the sky the limit and has no plans to move on.
As someone who grew up witnessing Barstool’s rise from the outside, he now has a new appreciation for the brand from the inside. It’s one he feels some in sports media often overlook.
“I think people paint with a broad brush at times about the character of Barstool Sports,” said Hebert. “In my experience, Barstool has a lot of kind-hearted people from all over the country. A ton of different backgrounds and beliefs that are just trying to make something that people want to be entertained by.”
In many ways, Wake Up Barstool is still in its infancy — a show born out of an unlikely partnership between a digital disruptor and a legacy sports network. For Hebert, however, the growing pains are part of the appeal. Building something from scratch, especially under the bright lights of FS1, is exactly the kind of challenge that fuels him.
For Hebert, the mission remains simple even as the platform grows larger.
Be authentic. Be creative. Keep building.
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Between his nationally syndicated radio show and his primetime perch on Fox News, Hannity is on the air for four hours every weekday offering his worldview. That kind of exposure is a gift, but it’s also a trap when launching something new.
That’s why the success of Hang Out with Sean Hannity won’t hinge on reach, promotion, or even curiosity. The audience is already there. What will matter is restraint. There’s no shortage of ways to get opinions from Sean Hannity, and that’s precisely the one thing this podcast can’t become if it wants to matter.
Fortunately, it doesn’t sound like that’s the plan. Early descriptions suggest something closer to a conservative version of Bill Maher’s Club Random than an extension of Hannity’s radio monologues. If that’s the case, there’s real opportunity here. There’s space for a long-form, personality-driven podcast that lets conversations breathe without chasing daily outrage.
Podcasting rewards something different than radio and cable news. Listeners don’t press play for structure, clocks, or predictable talking points. They show up for tone, curiosity, and authenticity. That’s where Hannity has to shift gears slightly. The audience already knows what he thinks about Biden, Trump, the media, and the left. They don’t need another venue for the same arguments.
Instead, the podcast needs to lean into conversation over commentary. The best moments in shows like Club Random come when the host steps back and lets guests wander into unexpected territory after getting them to let their guard down. Hannity doesn’t have to agree with everyone, but he does have to listen. That’s a muscle he hasn’t needed to flex much in his existing roles.
And that’s not a shot or criticism as much as an observation. When you’re doing four hours of opinion-based commentary every day, listeners and viewers are showing up specifically for you. When you’re the star of the show, it’s easy to fall back into the trap of making yourself the star when on a conversational podcast.
Another key will be guest selection. If Hang Out with Sean Hannity becomes a parade of the same conservative voices who already rotate through Fox News, the novelty evaporates quickly. Those conversations are familiar. The podcast should aim wider. Cultural figures, entertainers, athletes, business leaders, and even ideological opponents would all add texture. Some of the biggest headlines Hannity draws is when he welcomes those he disagrees with, like conversations with Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) or liberal talk radio host Stephanie Miller.
There’s also value in vulnerability. Hannity the broadcaster is polished and controlled. Hannity the podcaster can afford to be looser. Sharing personal stories, failures, influences, and off-air interests would humanize him in a way his current platforms don’t allow. That’s often what hooks podcast audiences and keeps them coming back.
Pacing mattersm too. Radio trains hosts to fill every second. Cable news is as much about efficiency as anything else. Podcasts benefit from silence, pauses, and moments where nobody rushes to the next thought. Letting conversations drift isn’t a flaw. It’s the feature of the format. If Hannity resists the urge to steer every exchange toward a point, the show will feel more organic.
Having the “Sean Hannity” brand on the podcast backing gives it instant credibility and visibility, but it shouldn’t define the content. The show has to feel distinct from Hannity’s cable brand and radio show. If listeners feel like they’re just getting a stripped-down simulcast without commercials, they’ll check out quickly.
I think the concept sounds interesting. There’s room for a show like this, and room for it to succeed, especially if it offers something different than Hannity’s existing platforms. The appetite for long-form conversation isn’t partisan. It’s personal.
That’s why I’m looking forward to checking it out when it launches early next month. If Sean Hannity treats the podcast as a completely different opportunity rather than another soapbox, Hang Out with Sean Hannity could become a smart addition to the crowded podcast space. If it turns into just another outlet for his opinions, it’ll be exactly that: another way to get something listeners already have plenty of.
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Podcasting has come a long way in just over two decades. The concept was simple, but its impact has been enormous. The idea that a taped piece of audio, ready for anyone to consume on their own time, could become one of the most revolutionary concepts in the history of audio changed everything. It eliminated the shared experience that radio once provided, allowing full control and choice for the user based on personal preference and timeline.
In more recent years, video has become the new normal. Audiences are flocking to podcasts on video streaming platforms like never before. Netflix recognized the massive appeal and began paying large sums of money to top podcasts from Barstool Sports, iHeartMedia, and The Ringer to secure exclusivity for their video products. Platforms see the opportunity, and more money will follow.
However, Monday’s news that Apple Podcasts is embracing the video trend should serve as a warning sign of another industry evolution. One that sports radio can no longer ignore.
There will always be debate about how many people watch podcasts versus consume the audio version of the same product. Every user is different, and so are their habits. Some listen on the go, while others enjoy podcasts like any other form of entertainment at home or in the office.
Without question, the audio side of podcasting had roughly a 15-year head start in shaping consumption habits. For years, it was the only way to consume the product, with every cell phone and computer acting as a personal distribution hub.
However, since Spotify began pushing into video during the pandemic, habits have shifted quickly. Spotify CFO Christian Luiga said Tuesday that video podcast consumption on Spotify has increased more than 90% since the launch of the Spotify Partner Program. She also noted there are now more than 530,000 video podcast shows on the platform.
Since Spotify began its video push, platforms such as YouTube and Netflix have aggressively entered the space, compensating podcasters for their content. iHeartMedia announced last month that it is adding full-length video podcasts to iHeartRadio at no cost to creators. Now Apple, long synonymous with podcasting itself, is fully stepping into the video format as well.
The speeding train of video podcast consumption isn’t slowing down anytime soon.
According to Edison Research in July, 51% of the U.S. population has watched a video podcast. 37% have done so in the past month, and 26% are weekly viewers. Video consumers skew younger, are more racially diverse, and are more likely to use multiple devices and platforms for podcast consumption.
In 2025, Edison reported 158 million Americans as monthly podcast consumers. If more than half are watching on video, what does that say about the health, stability, and long-term future of audio-only podcasting? Netflix isn’t interested in audio. Neither is YouTube. Now add Spotify, iHeartRadio, and Apple to the video revolution.
Do sports radio stations see the writing on the wall?
Sports radio has long played catch-up in the podcast revolution. When Apple began building its industry model, sports radio allowed it to claim its real estate without resistance.
How long did it take broadcast companies to truly understand and develop strategy around time-shifted and on-demand audio?
How many sports radio stations still fail to properly package their on-demand content for a podcast audience?
How many sports radio talents still don’t produce a separate product outside of their daily show?
Now add video to the equation. Are sports radio stations even close to being prepared for this battle?
Not every sports radio brand operates the same way. Some companies fully invest in staff and technology to produce a product that rivals the best video podcasts in the space. Others place a camera in the room and tell staff to figure it out. Still others haven’t attempted it at all, even as consumer behavior clearly shifts toward visual platforms.
Sports radio cannot afford to let this train leave the station the way it did when podcasting first emerged. The megaphone radio still possesses risks becoming an antique as digital innovation continues reshaping audience habits.
The goal of video isn’t to provide an additional option. It’s to change habits. When consumers enjoy their favorite podcast, adding visuals enhances the experience. That enhancement can shift how the product is consumed, even if it doesn’t change whether it’s consumed.
A message to sports radio stations. Video is no longer optional. It’s the expectation if sports radio hopes to compete in an evolving podcast ecosystem. When audiences want to see you, you must be seen. Every research trend shows increasing demand. The question is whether sports radio is paying attention.
The platforms aren’t experimenting anymore. They’re committing, investing, and reshaping habits. And habit drives everything in audio.
Sports radio once owned the daily ritual. The commute. The office. The background noise of a fan’s life. Podcasting chipped away at that control by offering time-shifted convenience. Now video reshapes it again by adding connection, personality, and shareability in ways traditional audio alone cannot.
This isn’t about abandoning radio. It’s about expanding it before someone else replaces it.
The brands that win over the next decade won’t debate whether video matters. They’ll focus on executing it better than anyone else. They’ll understand that visibility drives discovery, discovery drives engagement, and engagement drives revenue.
If sports radio waits for certainty, it will be too late. The certainty already exists.
The audience has shown its hand. The platforms have placed their bets.
The only question left is whether sports radio is ready to play.
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The Trump Justice Department has released a staggering cache of Jeffrey Epstein files — thousands of videos and millions of pages — exposing the inner workings of his secretive, sickening world. And the fallout, from members of this once-untouchable circle losing their jobs to an avalanche of media coverage, has been swift and relentless.
The high and mighty who associated with the late pedophile after his first conviction in 2008 for soliciting child prostitution are falling like a house of cards. The dogged denials by Epstein’s associates, from famous celebrities to power brokers, are folding. Some of them flat-out lied.
Television is lapping up these videos, and it even seems to rival the massive coverage of the heartbreaking disappearance of Today show host Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother, which is now in its third week.
The disturbing private moments and bizarre scenes from Epstein’s homes, his island, and his social circle make for TV rubbernecking, as viewers get a raw glimpse of a previously coddled world. Tabloids have long known that regular readers delight in seeing famous people get their comeuppance. It makes them feel good knowing that at least their lives aren’t that bad.
This is the beating heart of the story — why we can’t look away from the twisted steel of a highway accident. Even when I’m sick of the revelations, with their strange mix of toxicity and titillation, of networking and nude photos, I look. And so do millions of others following the story on TV and the web.
The Epstein coverage is dominated by prominent businessmen, moguls, entertainers, former Harvard president Larry Summers, former Prince Andrew, and a Trump Cabinet official who are now facing the music as part of his sleazy network. Even Woody Allen, perhaps the most famous film director on the planet, got his daughter into Bard College after Epstein appealed to the school’s president. Victims say Epstein introduced them to acclaimed model Naomi Watts at parties and that they saw her on his island.
On Monday, billionaire Thomas Pritzker resigned as executive chairman of Hyatt Hotels, saying that in his dealings with Epstein he had exhibited “terrible judgment.”
Finally, we’re seeing firings, resignations, and investigations of the rich and powerful. The media and public are taking them to the woodshed for fawning over the convicted Epstein.
The larger story has become a fixation for cable news and Sunday shows, all aimed at the mystery of why these members of the elite establishment would aid this despicable child molester years after his 2008 guilty plea.
But it’s not just about bold-faced names outside of politics. Journalists are hitting the administration hard about President Trump and Pam Bondi’s involvement in the Epstein case.
Chris Hayes of MSNBC spent a lot of time on his show discussing the revelation that, according to an FBI interview, Trump called the Palm Beach police chief in 2006 and encouraged him in his investigation of Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
He played a recent clip of press secretary Karoline Leavitt saying she couldn’t confirm or deny the call, but if it happened, she told reporters, “I’m sure many of you are thinking, wow, this really cracks our narrative that we’ve been trying to push for several years.”
Hayes responded: “Totally exonerated? No wrongdoing? Really?”
He then played a clip of Trump, asked by reporters in 2019 if he had any suspicions about Epstein and young girls, saying, “No, I had no idea.” Why did he forget about his call to police discussing his friend abusing underage girls in a way that was so well known that he later said everyone knew about it?
Democrats are demanding the resignation of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and accusing him of lying after the billionaire was found to have visited Epstein’s infamous island, despite previously denying this to Congress.
CNN’s Jake Tapper said Attorney General Bondi filibustered before the House committee about the Epstein files. “She repeatedly refused to engage on a number of pressing issues, including the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files and her accidental release of information identifying victims.”
The sweetheart plea deal in Florida in 2008 precluded Epstein from facing any federal prosecution, and he served just 13 months. Bondi was Florida’s attorney general at the time.
Tapper challenged Bondi’s deflections as 11 Epstein victims sat behind her. “You were asked about a child rape sex ring. Why would we talk about the Dow?” Bondi called the hearing a distraction from the Dow breaking 50,000.
Tapper then quoted conservative radio host Erick Erickson: “When the attorney general of the United States is asked why she has prosecuted no one related to Jeffrey Epstein, and this is her answer, she should be fired or resign. But neither will happen, which is another reason the Democrats are going to have a good election year.”
There is also pressure on Bondi to publish more Epstein files after she claimed in a six-page letter to Congress that “all” of them have been released.
On State of the Union, three victims couldn’t contain their outrage. Liz Stein, who says she was sexually abused and trafficked by Epstein in the mid-1990s, said, “Over and over and over again, this administration has tried to discredit us. Epstein had a network. It makes my brain explode.”
In contrast, Fox has barely covered the release of additional Epstein information and did not air the hearing live. Much of its reporting emphasizes government statements about the release process, redactions, and legal compliance rather than details from the files themselves. The coverage often spotlights partisan responses — particularly Republican criticism of Democrats’ actions around the files and the DOJ’s defensive posture.
The disclosures have ignited fresh scrutiny in Washington, as lawmakers demand answers while the public grapples with what has been revealed, and what remains hidden.
This goes far beyond mere gossip. It’s democracy in action. We see who was involved and can hold them accountable. Making sure the public knows exactly what went on behind closed doors could prevent future abuses of power — showing that no one is untouchable.
It’s a good thing these secrets didn’t stay buried forever. Bring on more.
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. Sign up for our newsletters to stay updated and get the latest information right in your inbox.
In a world where playlists, algorithms and streaming have taken over, the opportunity for radio has never been greater. Once again we are realizing that despite being more interconnected than ever before thanks to the Internet and social media, humans have never felt more alone or abandoned.
This is especially true with music and music discovery. Despite having access to hundreds of millions of songs via platforms like Spotify, listeners still feel stuck. Smart radio programmers need to take advantage of this clear desire from the audience to feel something real and pivot their approach.
After all, much of radio still has that one thing that streaming and AI doesn’t. A human touch.
iHeartRadio Plays to the Listener’s Heart
iHeart Media recently released a comprehensive study regarding listeners’ opinions of AI. In a memo sent to the entire company, iHeart’s research found that 90% [of listeners] want their media created by real humans. Also nine in ten listeners say human trust can’t be replicated by AI.
As someone who grew up in the social media age and continues to follow and report on it, I can definitively say that their results are entirely accurate.
There is a growing backlash to social media, especially X. The unregulated “AI slop” is often seen in deepfake videos and AI-generated content. Unfortunately, too many people find themselves duped by it. Those negative sentiments and frustrations are now carrying over into other aspects of one’s relationship with media.
For example, we are seeing growing resentment toward the ridiculous number of streaming platforms available. How many times have you scrolled through Netflix, HBO Max and Amazon Prime, and still asked yourself why isn’t anything on?
“Sometimes you have to pick a side, we’re on the side of humans,” iHeart Chief Programming Officer Tom Poleman recently explained in a memo announcing the broadcast company’s new “Guaranteed Human” initiative.
The pivot couldn’t have come at a better time.
“When listeners interact with us, they know they’re connecting with real voices, real stories and real emotion. That’s our superpower,” Poleman continued.
Believing In The Risk
It’s now up to individual program directors to take that human element and run with it. They will never be able to beat the streaming platforms, but maybe they don’t have to. For the most part, the majority of music listeners and potential audience members listen while commuting or at work.
When doing so, they have three basic music-related options. Podcasts, AI-curated playlist streaming platforms (Spotify, Apple Music), and radio.
If radio wants to survive, it should take the best elements of the other two listening options and incorporate them into its broadcast.
The best way to do this would be to utilize human DJs and on-air personalities. The goal should be to bring in an audience through entertainment mixed with education. Essentially, lean into contextualizing the artist and the song. Radio needs to embrace not only playing the artist, but also explaining to the listener why they or their songs matter.
Storytelling Is Key
In recent months, we’ve learned that virality is not sustainable. As great as TikTok once was for music discovery, those 15-second clips have gone to the wayside. You can thank a constantly changing algorithm that even the platform itself doesn’t seem to understand.
As a result, this has only led to more fatigue among music fans. Algorithms will never be able to tell a story the way personality-driven music radio can.
Music directors need to embrace live and local while also educating their audience. It’s one thing to inform the listener that so-and-so is coming to town for an upcoming tour. It’s another to give fun facts or behind-the-scenes stories about the artist or the songs.
Essentially, take the best parts of the aforementioned podcast listening option and incorporate those elements into your radio programming delivery. Humans will never stop loving being the focal point, i.e., learning something and then being able to tell their friends or family about it.
With so much social media slop full of unhinged comment sections, music fans are becoming extremely exhausted. Social media is literally a combination of a cesspool and a minefield. It’s empowered by an algorithm that has no problem constantly feeding users the same thing over and over.
Radio can serve as the music listener’s escape while also allowing for entertaining discourse and conversation. These methods can ultimately lead to radio becoming a destination for music discovery that doesn’t feel manufactured and forced as streaming platforms often do.
Being part of New Music Friday used to mean something years ago. Now? Not at all. There are simply too many different force-fed playlists and options. However, imagine if you have a human DJ explaining why a new song made a station’s playlist. Conceptualize if you can help an artist build a legitimate following. Imagine bringing legitimacy and validation to not only your station, but the medium itself.
The opportunities are there. It’s just about going out and doing it.
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries.Sign up for our newsletters to stay updated and get the latest information right in your inbox.
After a car crash, the medical side of your life turns into evidence. Every visit, note, and prescription becomes a story about pain, recovery, and limits. Insurance companies read that story line by line. If the timeline looks messy, they argue the injury is minor, unrelated, or already resolved. This is how real injuries turn into low-value claims.
Your goal should not be chasing more treatment, but to get the right care, at the right time, with clean documentation. Here are medical mistakes that can shrink a car accident settlement.
1. Waiting too long to get checked out
Adrenaline can hide pain, so you may try to tough it out. Then a week passes, then two, and you finally book a visit. Insurers love that delay. They argue the crash was minor or that something else caused the symptoms.
Get evaluated quickly, even if it is urgent care. Mention the crash date, where you were hit, and what parts of your body took the force. If you are unsure what to do next, a Houston car accident lawyer can help you keep the early steps focused and well-documented.
2. Downplaying symptoms in the first appointment
A lot of people soften the truth at the first visit. You do not want to complain, and you may still be rattled. The problem is that this note becomes your starting line. If the chart says ‘minor discomfort’ and later you report stabbing neck pain, daily headaches, tingling, or memory lapses, the insurer will call it inconsistent.
Be calm, but be complete. Explain pain location, intensity, and what triggers it. Be sure to also mention dizziness, sleep disruption, nausea, mood swings, and any new fear of driving. Share what you cannot do now that you could do before the crash.
3. Gaps in treatment that make recovery look optional
A long break in care is one of the fastest ways to lose leverage. Insurers treat gaps like proof you were fine, or that the injury was minor. Gaps happen for practical reasons, money pressure, time conflicts, and fear of what it will cost. Still, you should protect your timeline.
Before you leave an appointment, book the next one. Stick to the schedule your provider recommends for therapy and follow-ups. If you miss a visit, reschedule quickly and note why. If money gets tight, request written notes that confirm your diagnosis, restrictions, and next steps. Additionally, avoid stopping care the moment you feel a little better.
4. Ignoring referrals, restrictions, or home instructions
Doing the opposite of what your provider recommends can damage both your health and your claim. Examples include returning to heavy lifting with a lifting restriction, stopping medications early, or refusing specialist referrals without a reason in the chart.
Insurers love noncompliance because it suggests your pain was not real. If a plan is not working, talk to the provider and adjust it together. If side effects are a problem, report them. A documented change is different from a silent quit, and it protects your recovery while removing an easy talking point for the insurer.
5. Getting treated without a paper trail
Insurance does not pay for your pain; it pays for what your records support. If a visit leaves no notes, no diagnosis, and no billing detail, it is easy for the other side to pretend it never mattered. Paying cash is not the issue. The issue is walking away with nothing documented.
In addition, informal care, like massage with no charting, or advice from a friend in health care, does not carry weight. Choose providers who keep proper notes with dates, exams, and progress. Make sure to ask for itemized statements and copies of imaging reports. You should also keep discharge paperwork, work restrictions, and therapy updates.
6. Hiding prior injuries or leaving out key history
People fear being blamed, so they avoid mentioning an old back issue or a previous concussion. Insurers dig through past claims and prior medical records. When they find a hidden condition, credibility drops, and settlement leverage drops with it.
Be truthful, then frame it clearly. Explain your baseline before the crash, including work ability and activities. Ask your provider to document that baseline and the change after the collision. If the wreck aggravated a prior issue, request language that separates ‘before’ from ‘after’ in simple terms.
Endnote
A car accident settlement is about what your records prove and how clean the timeline looks. Start care early, keep it consistent, and follow medical advice while speaking up when barriers appear. Build one simple folder, paper or digital, and add something after every appointment. These small habits can protect your case when negotiations get tight.
