Short Sighted Podcasting
Made and Consumed by Bots
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Well This Looks Weird
One thing I’ve learned this week is to think before opening your mouth. You might even do a hint of research. We’ve all heard about Inception Point. This is the company that has AI make 3000 episodes a week and if they get more than 20 downloads it’s profitable.
I heard the Jeanine Wright on the Podnews Weekly Review very boldly explain why her polluting the podcasting space is perfectly fine. I personally think she can go… well, away. They are using Spreaker (so get ready for reports on how big Spreaker is growing. You think? 3000 episodes a week? DUH).
I heard some other respected people talk about there was an uptick in downloads in September (which at first I started to panic) but then I noticed that there were five Mondays in that month (so for me, that’s one episode more than usual, so my monthly stats should be up.
Wait, What?
But then the stat went weird. There was a rise in listen on the web. Almost always (as in 99.999% of the time) Apple is the top app, and in September 2025 web browsers were #1. In my case by 22% (that’s quite a lead).
Typically web based downloads are often bots. Sure people listen on a website, but when there is a noticeable uprise, it’s often bots. So this means….
Masterbotion
We have a company making AI Slop at the pace of 12,000 episodes a month. For them to make money they need 20 downloads an episode. We know there are companies that can inflate your numbers (often with players that preload, or you put a player in some video game, etc). So we have AI Slop Out, and AI Tools eating it up. Seems dumb, but who cares. Let the robots have their fun. Well, there is an innocent bystander here: advertisers.
As much as I say advertising isn’t the best way to monetize, I want advertisers to stay with podcasting. There is a portion of podcasters who make a living with advertisers. I just don’t want 33% of my episodes to be ads. But the advertisers are paying to get in front of PEOPLE not ROBOTS. ROBOTS don’t buy anything.
So when Jeanine Wright puts out slop, and potentially uses “gray” marketing tactics (I have no idea if she is or isn’t, I’m just pointing out anyone doing this could do that) they would make money at the detriment of podcasting as a whole.
I hate when we make decisions based on the advertiser (I prefer to make decisions based on the podcaster, or even better the audience).
If less people hear the ads, they perform worse.
If they perform worse, advertisers will not be willing to pay more.
If podcasters get paid less for ads, well, we’re back to being radio where the content is 33% ads because we need so many ads to make a trickle of income.
Well done Jeanine.
For me, if I stumble across an AI Show from Inception Point, I will be leaving reviews to alert people they are listening to AI Slop. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.
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My Latest Content
School of Podcasting (follow)
From Idea to Launch: How Long Does It Really Take to Start a Podcast?
Ask the Podcast Coach (follow)
AI, Co-hosts, and Keeping it Human
Your Podcast Consultant (follow)
Let AI Do What You Can’t
Building a Better Dave (follow)
Old Habits Die Hard
Stuff That Caught My Eye
Nano Banana is Bananas!
Nick Nimmin made a video demoing Nano Banana which is an AI tool that you can use for anything, but he used it on YouTube videos, and the results were just insane.
They have a free plan if you want to kick the tires.
Osbot Meet 2
If you’re looking for a 4K Video Camera that is easy on the budget, the Osbot Meet 2 is a tiny camera with a tiny price that delivers a crisp image. Keep in mind you can get Camo for $49/year and you can turn you camera into a web cam (mac only)
Relatable CRM
I heard about Relatable CRM. It looks pretty cool (think of a great system to keep up with guests, past guests, etc). They had me until I saw the price of $44/month, they have a 10 day trial. For me, I’m sticking with Less Annoying CRM (real name). I play with Dex (which is great if you’re really into Linkedin). If you’re looking for a system to keep up with people, check these titles out.
Northflow
Northflow is a tool to help you plan and organize your shows. Prices range from $19-$59/month. There are a few well known podcast industry people advising the company, so this may be interesting. Are you using it? I don’t know anyone who is. It is somewhat of a replacement for Notion. According to their website, “Northflow gives agencies, podcasters, and content teams one place for calendars, forms, guest invites, assets, and every step of your workflow.”
Check it out.
What’s Coming In The Future
I’ve got a future episode coming up about doing live streams (and how things have changed since the days of Blog Talk Radio and Skype).
Need Help With Your Podcast?
Whether you’re just starting or a seasoned podcaster, the School of Podcasting can help. Helping podcasters is what I do, and I’ve been doing it since 2005
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Amanda B from 6 Degrees of Cats had this observation (bots making podcasts for bots to listen to, and bots don't buy 'stuff') when I chatted with her for Creators From TrueFans. We optimistically predicted that soon. advertisers will require 'proof of humanity'.