Podcast Guests Are Paying Up To $50,000 To Appear on Popular Shows (bloomberg.com) 30
People will confess all sorts of things to podcasters, from their unpopular political beliefs or embarrassing romantic mishaps to their worst fears. But there's one revelation certain guests will never disclose -- namely, that they're paying thousands of dollars just to be interviewed on the show. From a report: Welcome to the golden era of pay-for-play podcasting, when guests pay handsomely to be interviewed for an entire episode. In exchange, the host gets some revenue, fills out the programming calendar, and might bag a future advertiser. Determining exactly how widespread the practice is can be tricky. Disclosures, if included at all, might last only a few fleeting seconds in an hourlong interview, and various hosts use different language to describe the nature of such relationships. What percentage of shows accepts payment in exchange for airtime is also difficult to say. According to nearly a dozen interviews with industry sources, it appears the practice is particularly popular among podcasts in the wellness, cryptocurrency, and business arenas.
In an age when social media influencers routinely get paid for mentioning a brand in an Instagram post or YouTube video, this marriage of convenience shouldn't come as a complete shock. Still, not everyone thinks it's a good idea. "As someone who's making money for that type of advertorial content, it should be disclosed," says Craig Delsack, a New York-based media lawyer. "It's just good practice and builds trust with the podcaster. It can't be the Wild West." US regulators also agree that consumers might be misled when they don't know a media mention only occurred in exchange for compensation. Even so, the phenomenon appears to be thriving in podcasting. Online platform Guestio has raised more than $1 million to build a marketplace devoted entirely to brokering paid guest appearances. On Guestio, the flow of money sometimes reverses direction, and a podcaster provides payment to land a particularly coveted guest such as boxer Manny Pacquiao, who charges $15,000 for an appearance.
In an age when social media influencers routinely get paid for mentioning a brand in an Instagram post or YouTube video, this marriage of convenience shouldn't come as a complete shock. Still, not everyone thinks it's a good idea. "As someone who's making money for that type of advertorial content, it should be disclosed," says Craig Delsack, a New York-based media lawyer. "It's just good practice and builds trust with the podcaster. It can't be the Wild West." US regulators also agree that consumers might be misled when they don't know a media mention only occurred in exchange for compensation. Even so, the phenomenon appears to be thriving in podcasting. Online platform Guestio has raised more than $1 million to build a marketplace devoted entirely to brokering paid guest appearances. On Guestio, the flow of money sometimes reverses direction, and a podcaster provides payment to land a particularly coveted guest such as boxer Manny Pacquiao, who charges $15,000 for an appearance.
Man I'm old (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: Man I'm old (Score:2)
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The fact that corruption is common doesn't mean we shouldn't be talking about it. Undisclosed advertising in media is evil. I don't think there should be a law, but someone should be doing the undercover journalism thing to prove which podcasters and other "influencers" are doing this so we can all ignore them.
One thing with a new field is they start re-inventing everything from scratch. Often this is great and leads to innovation, but they also re-invent the ethics and that tends to create some really sketchy behaviour.
Even without laws I doubt you'd get much payola in radio anymore, there's just too wide an understanding that it's wrong. But podcasts? It's a lot easier to convince yourself that you're not doing something wrong.
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When it was OTA broadcasting, a factor was that the public owns the (extremely limited) spectrum, and therefore could regulate it.
Regulation of private media is an entirely different matter, and also the way it works (who is getting paid for what exactly) seems different to me. However, the ethics are exactly the same in my opinion. Most media, even Slashdot, does COI disclosures in articles for example.
Who's going to pay for that journalism? (Score:2)
This is exactly what Gawker did. Tabloid journalism to pay the bills for the real jo
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It's more like those TV shows where they have someone on for an "interview", but it's really just an advert for the thing they are selling. New movie they are in, book they just published.
One of the differences with podcasts is that it's not always done just to hawk some new thing they are selling, these days it's as likely to be an opportunity to get their rhetoric over. They are promoting themselves or their ideas as a brand, and maybe they have their own podcast, or are standing for election, or make mon
Infomercials are nothing new (Score:2)
Maybe (Score:2, Interesting)
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I do, but it's like with the clinical thermometers. Once you've used it on an asshole or two, you're not really eager to put it in your mouth.
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The only podcasts I watch are Joe Rogan
If I want to hear opinions from insufferable prats, I come to slashdot. The great thing is that works for you too.
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IQ is in flux and when it comes to Rogan, you fans have your IQ suppressed, lowered, or perhaps the best term is your IQ is retarded by Rogan (and it rhymes!) Fortunately, this is temporary cognitive dissonance so you can return to a functional IQ after a break.
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I didn't know Joe existed until the fools in my life started sending me anti-vax BS and clips of Joe spouting supportive statements. I do know that his statements were being used by the stupid to make idiotic arguments. I don't know or care if he started thinking or if he died of covid.
I feel damaged that I even know who who Kim Kardashian (at least I had to look up the spelling;) life was better when I thought people were discussing some Star Trek characters I hadn't yet seen because new Star Trek sucks.
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I guarantee you Joe Rogan charges some of this guests.
He clearly isn't selling to the highest bidder but the amount of overlap between "This person might be interesting to talk to" and "This person just so happens to also have something they want to sell" is insanely high.
Hint: (Score:5, Insightful)
Hosts with integrity should always report the latter, but you have to listen to all shows with a critical ear and know that there is always an agenda.
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All guest choices on podcasts are designed to make money for the host. In some instances that might be from increasing listeners / viewers, in other instances it might be from a direct payment.
Hosts with integrity should always report the latter, but you have to listen to all shows with a critical ear and know that there is always an agenda.
Only in the sense that all conversations with your co-workers are designed to increase your salary.
I'm sure lots of successful podcast hosts book guests primarily because they want to talk to them, or they think the person has something important to say that their audience would like to hear.
There's a fiscal motivation at some level, but there's a big and fundamental difference between hosts booking to maintain the quality of their show and hosts booking because the guest paid them.
Most of these podcast do go by influencers. (Score:1)
As an advertiser it is rather common to charge for your services and if you can put people a person in front of hundreds of people who will listen to you and your product you better be paying the person that can do that.
Mind trash (Score:1)
Honestly, I don't care about the endless parade of morons with their always buthurt fee fees. The Butthurt Industrial Complex indeed.
Let me know when we reopen our manufacturing sector in the US, so these people will be working in factories and have no time to figure out how to be maximum butthurt.
Fox, CNN, MSNBC 'contributors?" (Score:2)