Layoffs at Chicago’s podcasting institution

Facing financial challenges, Chicago’s WBEZ is axing its podcast unit. Three shows — Nerdette, When Magic Happens, and Making — have been cut, and offshoot music channel Vocalo will cease production on May 1st. Fourteen people have been laid off, including a handful of business roles at the Chicago Sun-Times, which was acquired by WBEZ’s parent company, Chicago Public Media, in 2022.

Chicago Public Media CEO Matt Moog told staffers in a memo that the organization has suffered from a drop in sponsorship, advertising, and membership revenue. To deal with the shortfall, he says that leadership has decided “to focus our resources on producing accessible, trusted news programming that helps all Chicago area residents make informed decisions, participate in our diverse communities and make the most of our region. Importantly, we must reach our audiences where they are across multiple platforms.” In so many words, it’s the broadcast-to-podcast strategy.

WBEZ’s podcasts haven’t had quite the national profile of some other member station shows, with one big caveat. This American Life started at WBEZ and launched Serial as a spinoff before becoming an independent company in 2015. WBEZ still lists TAL and Serial on its podcast page, and TAL still pays a portion of its revenue to WBEZ. In the past two fiscal years, TAL brought in more money for WBEZ than the rest of its digital sponsorship revenue combined.

Still, the idea that WBEZ can’t sustain its podcast arm is alarming for those at the station. “It’s only been two years since we were big enough and financially healthy enough to acquire the Sun-Times,” WBEZ criminal justice reporter Patrick Smith wrote on X. “We are losing friends and extremely valuable colleagues. It’s outrageous.”

WBEZ joins the ranks of WNYC, KCRW in LA, Colorado Public Radio, and WAMU in Washington, DC, in cutting staff to deal with a sharp decline in sponsorships. WBUR in Boston has not yet taken that step, but its CEO, Margaret Low, put in stark terms how dire the situation is: “Sponsorship dollars won’t return to previous levels. These are not temporary ups and downs. They’re long-term shifts,” she wrote in an open letter to listeners last month.

Like so many other segments of media, public radio is in a crisis and has less flexibility than for-profit institutions to claw its way out. I certainly don’t have the solution, but if any of you in the public media world have thoughts on the path forward, feel free to reach out at [email protected].

As public radio struggles financially, rewatch podcasts are thriving. SiriusXM has tapped former Suits stars Patrick J. Adams and Sarah Rafferty to host a new show breaking down the legal drama. Adams and Rafferty are co-creators and co-executive producers of the project, which does not yet have an announced launch date.

This is a totally unremarkable programming choice except for how it represents a confluence of a few big trends. Rewatch podcasts won’t die and have become a major avenue for out-of-the-spotlight stars to reclaim some fame. After years of precious, eight-episode limited series, audiences are increasingly turning to the medical, legal, and criminal procedurals of old. It’s even royal family-adjacent (will they get the scoop on American Riviera Orchard??). It’s podcasting for the ChatGPT age. I would say that I hate it, but I guess I can’t begrudge SiriusXM giving the people what they want.