Jottings of note:
Celebration and expansion
The Black Effect Podcast Network was founded five years ago (RAIN HERE), and is celebrating. The network was started by radio/TV host Charlamagne tha God. Eighteen shows were in the production pipeline at that beginning. It now produces over 60 podcasts including The Breakfast Club, perhaps the best known. The network delivers 11 million monthly downloads. By way of celebration, the network itemizes its many accomplishments, which include over 60 shows produced, and genre expansions into Parenting, True Crime, and Literature. The press announcement also mentions collaborations with The Drink Champs POdcast Network, and the soon-to-come The Smoke Podcast Network.
It’s not about size
Scott Simonelli, Founder and CEO of audio research and analytics platform Veritonic, has an answer for any advertiser who wonders, “Is my campaign too small for brand lift?” It’s a decades-old worry, and Simonelli offers a ccrisp answer: “It’s not the size of the campaign that matters; it’s whether the methodology is actually in focus.” Spoken like a true methodology professional, Simnelli identifies where marketers get confused: They mix up budget size with statistical significance. Next, he identifies a signal-vs-noise problem; “a smaller podcast campaign can generate millions of exposures across tightly defined audiences. […] You don’t need binoculars to see what’s right in front of you,” he asserts. “Sometimes the clearest insights come from a closer, sharper lens.” Then, in an analysis consisting entirely of bullet points, he compares traditional methodology with an adaptive AI approach, and calls out the “numbers that matter,” explores why “too small” is the wrong question, and delivers a key takeaway that involves focal lengths. In other words, you have to read it at the source … which is HERE.
October 7, 2025
