What’s a Podcast?: The Revolution Redefined

About What’s a Podcast?: The Revolution Redefined

What’s a Podcast?: The Revolution Redefined is a provocative three-part series that unpacks the identity crisis, evolution, and future of podcasting. Produced by Oxford Road, the leading agency in podcast advertising, and Shaun Colón (Age of Audio), and hosted by industry veteran Allyson Marino, this series goes beyond nostalgia to expose the seismic shifts reshaping the medium. Once an independent, audio-first frontier, podcasting is now being redefined by the rise of video, platform exclusivity, and the battle for control. Featuring candid insights from over 30 industry pioneers—including Ira Glass, Guy Raz, Adam Carolla, and Leo Laporte—this series takes listeners inside the high-stakes tug-of-war that will determine the fate of the industry. As platforms like YouTube and Spotify blur the boundaries between podcasts and video content, What’s a Podcast? asks the hard question: if we don’t act now, will podcasting lose the very thing that made it revolutionary? This isn’t just a podcast. It’s a wake-up call.

Publisher

Media Roundtable

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

31 Mar 2025

Latest episode

8 Oct 2025

Latest episodes

16 of 16 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   8 Oct 2025TRANSCRIPT

   "Stop Apologizing": Lex Friedman on Why Podcasting Will Always Evolve and Why That's a Good Thing

   Lex Friedman discusses the evolution of podcasting, highlighting its unique advertising model and dedicated listenership, in this interview episode.

2. 

   6 Aug 2025TRANSCRIPT

   How We Built This: Guy Raz on Intimacy, Independence, and What's Worth Preserving in Podcasting

   Guy Raz, creator of How I Built This, discusses podcasting's rise to mainstream power and the importance of intimacy with host Dan Granger in this interview.

3. 

   9 Jul 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Podcast to Primetime: How Evan Shapiro Turned Audio into TV and What’s Next

   Media expert Evan Shapiro discusses with Dan Granger how podcasts are expanding into other mediums, highlighting the creator economy and audience connection in this interview.

4. 

   2 Jul 2025TRANSCRIPT

   "Kill the Word 'Podcast'": The Roost's AJ Feliciano on How Video Blew Up the Medium in Every Sense

   AJ Feliciano discusses how video transformed podcasting into simulcasting, allowing creators to distribute content across multiple platforms, in an interview with Dan Granger.

5. 

   18 Jun 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Star Trek in the Basement: Why Podcasting Still Needs its Indie Creators with John McDermott

   John McDermott discusses the importance of independent creators in podcasting, highlighting the value of niche content like discussing Star Trek with friends, in an interview with Dan Granger.

6. 

   11 Jun 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Sounds Definitive - The State of Podcasting with Bryan Barletta

   Dan Granger interviews Bryan Barletta, who defines podcasting and discusses its growth, exploring the popular trends and identity within the industry.

7. 

   4 Jun 2025TRANSCRIPT

   The Podcaster’s Blueprint: How Ira Glass Made Podcasting a Cultural Phenomenon

   Podcast host Dan Granger interviews Ira Glass, the host of *This American Life*, about the creative power of promotion and advertising in podcasting, revealing strategies to protect artistic integrity.

8. 

   21 May 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Podcasting: Why Have We Been Undervaluing a $7.3B Industry? - with Hernan Lopez

   Hernan Lopez reveals the pivotal $7.3 billion valuation of the podcasting industry, emphasizing its significance for business strategy in this interview with Dan Granger.

9. 

   7 May 2025TRANSCRIPT

   "Little Masterpieces for Your Ears" - Understanding Podcasting’s Past, Ensuring its Future

   Host Dan Granger leads Larry Rosin, Hilary Ross Shafer, James Cridland, and Nick Giorgio in a discussion about podcasting's identity crisis and future, exploring its unique appeal as an audio medium in this interview episode.

10. 

    30 Apr 2025TRANSCRIPT

    Audio Gold - Charting the Rise of the MeidasTouch Network with the Meiselas Brothers

    Dan Granger interviews Ben Meiselas, Brett Meiselas, and Jordy Meiselas about strategies to build and expand a podcast into a successful media network, emphasizing the importance of adaptability in the evolving podcasting landscape in this interview.

11. 

    23 Apr 2025TRANSCRIPT

    Redefining Podcasts: Audio, Video, and the Future of the Channel with Larry Rosin (Edison Research)

    Larry Rosin and Dan Granger debate the evolving definition of podcasts in 2025, considering consumer perspectives, industry trends, and the inclusion of video, in this interview.

12. 

    16 Apr 2025TRANSCRIPT

    Charting Podcasting’s Pirate Ship Past with Adam Carolla

    Adam Carolla discusses podcasting's meritocracy and the power of individual voices with Dan Granger, highlighting the industry's focus on ideas and authentic expression in this interview.

13. 

    2 Apr 2025TRANSCRIPT

    Episode 3: The Crossroads – Identity Crisis & the Future

    Industry experts Guy Raz, James Cridland, Dan Franks, and AJ Feliciano explore podcasting's identity crisis in the face of video dominance and platform control, discussing its potential future and audio storytelling in this interview episode.

14. 

    2 Apr 2025TRANSCRIPT

    Episode 2: The Explosion – Mainstream & the Pod-demic

    Industry experts discuss podcasting's rapid growth after Serial, its transformation into a business, and the challenges of overproduction during its mainstream explosion.

15. 

    2 Apr 2025TRANSCRIPT

    Episode 1: The Genesis – The Accidental Revolution

    This episode explores podcasting's origin story, from RSS hacks to iTunes, featuring interviews with ADAM CAROLLA, LEO LAPORTE, and IRA GLASS, revealing how rebels and public radio shaped the medium.

16. 

    31 Mar 2025TRANSCRIPT

    What’s a Podcast?: The Revolution Redefined Trailer

    Host Allyson Marino previews the "What's a Podcast?: The Revolution Redefined" series, which examines podcasting's identity crisis, evolution, and future amid video's rise and platform battles.

Inside a recent episode

"Stop Apologizing": Lex Friedman on Why Podcasting Will Always Evolve and Why That's a Good Thing

Published 8 Oct 2025 · Transcript excerpt

[…] And terrestrial radio is another great example of that phenomenon I'm talking about. It used to just be radio, but then once that light radio existed, we had to have terrestrial radio as a word. So you knew which one we were referring to. So I think of podcasting more than anything else as on -demand spoken word audio. And the fact that there can be video components of it. Great. Video podcasting is fine. I really struggle. I talked about this on another podcast recently. I really struggle with what I think is a misinterpreting of the information in front of us about how people feel about video podcasts. […]

Who has been a guest on What’s a Podcast?: The Revolution Redefined

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Lex Friedman
• Guy Raz
• Evan Shapiro
• AJ Feliciano
• John McDermott

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

6 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 47 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

54

Social presence

94

YouTube

0

Engagement

51

Contact What’s a Podcast?: The Revolution Redefined

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about What’s a Podcast?: The Revolution Redefined