The Short Stack
A taste of what's hot in podcast and streaming tech, and at SoundStack HQ.
What’s a political ad worth to audio publishers? The Short Stack
Edition 36 • June 2026
We know those ads can mean a lot of revenue, with many campaigns happy to increase spend to get their message heard in a critical cycle (including the one we’re well into now). But, as always, balance is just as critical. It’s revenue gain on one side and protecting a show’s integrity on the other, so audiences keep getting the experience they cherish. Podcasting and pure-play streaming stations occupy a distinct place here: the FCC doesn’t regulate political advertising across those channels. Terrestrial broadcasters who also stream their content generally err on the safe side and adhere to FCC rules....
Audio ad control isn’t game…until it is!! – The Short Stack
Edition 35 • May 2026
Apart from their closest friends, partners, children, and maybe a few select family members, who do podcast publishers love more than their audiences? Granted, when Jackson Browne sang the above in “The Pretender,” he probably wasn’t talking about podcast audiences, and not just because podcasts wouldn’t be invented for another 28 years. But you get the point: audio publishers love their listeners for all that listening and support. So when it comes to generating as much ad revenue as possible....
Pondering podcast ads with Axios, Katz, and KUT in Austin
Edition 34 • April 2026
Nothing gives our business concrete direction quite like hearing directly from our partners. That can come from check-ins and getting active feedback on what we’re developing. And sometimes hearing what they have to say on stage – in front of an audience, in conversation with other industry players – can reveal their perspective in other ways.
The cycle of trust in audio – The Short Stack
Edition 33 • March 2026
I’m sure that when The Fixx wrote that hit, they had no expectation of it being used one day in an audio-tech newsletter. Well here you have it! Apart from merely keeping great pop songs alive, the line seemed relevant to something I'm thinking about in advance of our Podcast Movement/SXSW panel next week: the cycle of trust in audio.
The proof is in the programmatic pudding – The Short Stack
Edition 32 • January 2026
The new year is just getting started and there are already plenty of initiatives in play that bode well for the bright future of audio. Many of them, of course, revolve around ads – and within that, programmatic ads.
WBGO takes action to sustain public radio – The Short Stack
Edition 31 • December 2025
When we interviewed WBGO’s Steve Williams back at the beginning of the year (along with leaders from KCRW and KUT), the conversation focused on station collaboration as one way to help take some of the static out of public media’s growth trajectory.
People power in audio AI – The Short Stack
Edition 30 • October 2025
The subject of embracing AI in audio with caution dominated the conversation at “The Evolution of AI in Radio and Podcasting,” an excellent panel at NAB Show NY last week featuring our friends Sheryl Worsley (Bonneville’s VP of Podcasting), Jon Accarrino (founder of Ordo Digital), and our own VP Matt Kellogg.
More ways podcasting gets bigger ad budgets – The Short Stack
Edition 29 • September 2025
First things first: for the less-technically inclined, what is HLS? Put simply, it makes podcast delivery smoother by breaking up episodes into small chunks before delivering to a listener, instead of trying to deliver a large, single file all at once. It gets the world closer to saying bye bye to buffering for good.
Audio first…with more options to grow – The Short Stack
Edition 28 • July 2025
The debate is everywhere. That Times article took it to the nature of podcasting itself: “At the highest level, the audience for video podcasts is simply people who consume podcasts. ‘Who is watching these?’ said Eric Nuzum, a podcast strategist. ‘A person who loves podcasts who happens to be near a screen’.”
Audio moves to the big stage - The Short Stack
Edition 27 • June 2025
So, I was thrilled to see audio making serious noise this past week at Cannes. We all showed up; a range of businesses – from networks and tech companies to big media and myriad creators – were all there making a case for this format that relays stories and information like no other. And, similar to Possible, Advertising Week, and other “big shows,” it’s significant that this is happening at Cannes.