Podcast innovation & creativity celebrated at the

Podcast innovation & creativity celebrated at the 2023 ACRA AwardsOctober 2023

The internationally acclaimed The Children in the Pictures podcast (LiSTNR, SCA) has been named Podcast of the Year at the 34th annual Australian Commercial Radio & Audio (ACRA) Awards tonight in Sydney.

Abbie Chatfield has been named the inaugural Podcast Host of the Year for the ‘It’s A Lot’ podcast (LiSTNR, SCA).

There were seven podcast & digital ACRA awards this year, with new awards added to reflect Australia’s growing love of podcasts as well as the popularity of podcasts from broadcast radio, including stand-alone content.

The winners of the national commercial radio and audio awards were revealed at a gala event attended by 1,000 radio personalities and executives from across the country. The ACRA Awards celebrate excellence in commercial radio broadcasting and audio across eight categories including entertainment, news, talk, podcasting and sport. This year the awards also celebrated 100 years of radio in Australia.

Ford Ennals, Chief Executive Officer of Commercial Radio & Audio, organisers of the Awards, has congratulated all finalists and winners on their achievements.

“The ACRA Awards recognise the talent, commitment and passion that goes into making radio the enduring and influential medium that it is, and I thank our winners and finalists for their outstanding work,” said Mr Ennals.

“The commercial radio industry is growing and evolving in a very exciting way – with new audio forms and new digital platforms. Australia is a global leader in podcast listening, with 43% of the population listening monthly, up from 40% in 2022.

“Approximately one in 10 Australians age 12+ listen to a podcast every day with weekly podcast listeners averaging five episodes per week.”

The winners of the 2023 podcast and digital ACRA Awards were:

Podcast Host of the Year: It’s A Lot; Abbie Chatfield, LiSTNR, Sydney, NSW, SCA
Best Podcast by a Radio Show: Bianca, Ben & Lakey, Lift the Lid Podcast; 90.9 Sea FM, Gold Coast, QLD, SCA
Podcast of the Year: The Children in The Pictures podcast; Akhim Dev, Emma Lancaster, Belinda Lopez, Jennifer Goggin, Simon Nasht, Romy Sher, Darcy Thomson, Bonnie Lavelle; LiSTNR, Sydney/Melbourne, SCA
Most Innovative DAB or Podcast or Podcast Format: TikTok Trending on iHeartRadio; TikTok Trending Team, iHeart, National, ARN
Best New Talent – Podcast: Matty Mills “Not So PG”; Nova Podcasts, Sydney, NOVA Entertainment
Best Podcast Producer (Show): Matt White, Stories of Origin, 9Podcasts; Sydney, Nine Radio
Best Podcast Producer (Audio): Darcy Thomson, The Children in The Pictures; LiSTNR, Melbourne, SCA

The ACRA Awards were hosted by some of Australia’s most popular radio stars from across the networks and featured live performances from Australian artists. First nations world music star and proud Gamilaraay man Mitch Tambo opened the Awards, with performances by 21-year-old proud Coodjinburra man Budjerah and singer-songwriter Mia Wray. The legendary Ian Moss from Cold Chisel closed the Awards.

“The 34^th annual ACRA Awards highlighted Australia’s vibrant radio and audio industry, celebrating outstanding talent in 80 awards across eight categories, including talk, news and sport, entertainment and talent, music and podcasting,” Mr Ennals said.

"This year there were 372 finalists, with entries received from 260 metropolitan and regional radio stations.
Commercial radio is thriving across Australia and stations outside the metropolitan areas were well represented at the ACRA Awards with more than 200 finalists from country and provincial stations.”

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