Tag: Pandora

This American Life is Now on Pandora

~ Jen Thorpe

This American Life LogoPandora, as you may know, started streaming the amazingly popular Serial podcast in October of 2014. Now, Pandora has added another well known podcast, This American Life. New episodes of This American Life will go live on Pandora on Mondays and can be enjoyed via iOS, Android, tablet, or on the web.

This American Life first went on the air in 1995 in Chicago. Since then, it has expanded to become a popular weekly public radio show broadcast nationwide. Episodes have been heard on over 500 stations and downloaded by more than two million people each week.

Ira Glass is the host of This American Life. The podcast is produced in collaboration WBEZ Chicago (who are also the creators of Serial). Each week, the producers choose a theme and present various stories that fit that theme.

Pandora has put a This American Life Station together for Pandora users who are new to the podcast. Pandora has a selection of past episodes for users to explore.

Interestingly, there is no mention of exclusivity in the press release Pandora released about the addition of This American Life. (When Serial was added, it was said to be exclusive to Pandora.) It is possible to find the newest episode on the This American Life website or to subscribe to it via iTunes.

Serial to Become First Podcast Available on Pandora

~ Shawn Thorpe

Pandora logoMusic-streaming services sure do love podcasts. First, Deezer bought Stitcher. Then, Spotify opened a beta program for podcasts. Even Google, podcasting’s biggest stalwart, will be adding podcasts to Google Play. I guess it’s no surprise then that Pandora, one of the longest running and most successful music streamers, is getting into podcasting, too. But unlike these other services, Pandora is barely getting its feet wet in podcasting’s pool.

If you’re chomping at the bit to add your own podcast feed to Pandora’s catalog, slow down. Pandora isn’t taking open submissions. It’s not sending out private invitations or launching an exclusive beta. Pandora is entering the world of podcasting by adding one show to its platform. If you’ve paid any attention to recent podcasting news, you won’t be surprised to learn that this one podcast is Serial, the This American Life-fueled juggernaut that lit up the hearts and minds of so many pundits over the last year, causing them to gush many words about the so-called “podcast resurgence.”

Pandora will stream the first season of Serial starting on November 24th. And then some time after that (nobody knows when), Pandora will also stream Serial’s much-anticipated second season. The initial announcement of this plan led to some confusion, as many believed that Pandora would be Serial’s exclusive distributor for season 2. But that’s not accurate. Along with Pandora, Serial season 2 will also be available thru iTunes and most other podcast-y places upon its release.