Category Archives: Uncategorized

The Evolution of Digital Media and the Creator Economy (With “Your Brand Amplified” Host, Anika Jackson)

Leave a reply

By Rob Greenlee

I’ve been around digital media long enough to be skeptical of the phrase “this changes everything.” Most things do not. They repeat, evolve, and come back in new packaging.

But every so often, you can feel the real shift. Not because a new app launches, but because audience behavior changes, distribution changes, and the business model underneath it all gets rewritten.

That’s why I’m excited for this conversation with Anika Jackson hear below. We’re going to unpack what’s truly evolving in digital media right now, what’s repeating from the past, and what creators need to do to stay in control as the creator economy becomes more platform-driven, more video-driven, and more AI-accelerated.

I’ve watched the cycles, and I’ve lived the transitions

My career started in marketing, radio, and customer acquisition. Early on, I saw that the internet was not just a new way to distribute content, but a new opportunity for content marketing. It was a direct channel for customer or audience relationships. When creators can build a direct connection with an audience, content stops being “promotion” and becomes the bridge that creates trust, loyalty, and momentum.

That belief is what pulled me from traditional radio into podcasting and platform work. I have spent years inside the infrastructure of media and creator ecosystems, and I have also built independently as a creator and strategist. That combination gives you a clearer view of what is hype and what is structural.

Media is no longer about categories; it’s about direct community relationship building

Radio, podcasting, streaming, and video on many platforms like YouTube, Shorts, and other social content in text/images. Those used to feel like separate lanes. Now they overlap constantly. A “podcast” might be an audio and video feed, a YouTube show, a short-form clip engine, a newsletter, and a community touchpoint all at once.

Audiences do not wake up thinking, “I’m going to consume a podcast today.” They wake up wanting something that helps by sharing inspiration and opportunities for life improvement, entertains, or just emotionally connects. They will take it in the format that fits the moment.

Creators who win are the ones who can package the same core value across multiple formats without losing their voice.

Video podcasting is not new; it’s a comeback with better delivery infrastructure

Here is the part that gets lost in today’s industry debates. Video has been part of podcasting since the earliest days on Apple Podcasts. Major media companies distributed video via RSS for many of the early years of Podcasting, then the medium prioritized audio. There were media startups and major media networks built around RSS video-first and video-only shows long before the current hot trend of “video podcasting” became a newer catchphrase increasingly linked to video streaming, not downloads.

So when Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and Spotify push deeper into video via a streaming rather than a download model, I do not see much new. I see a return, upgraded with modern streaming, modern ad systems, and better discovery mechanics.

What has changed is the platform incentive. Video produces stronger discovery signals, deeper measurement, and more automated monetization options. That is why it is accelerating again.

AI is both an accelerant and a mirror

AI is the biggest accelerant we have ever seen in content creation, and it also acts like a mirror. It amplifies what is already true.

If you have a clear point of view, AI helps you move faster and scale formats. If you do not, it helps you produce more volume, but it still lacks meaning.

The creators who thrive will be the ones who use AI as an extension of human judgment and creativity, not as a replacement for it. I also see real upside here for creators with disabilities and for solo creators with limited budgets. AI can expand presence and production capability in ways that used to require full teams.

The real fight is ownership

As AI gets better, the most important question becomes: who owns your digital self?

Your voice, your likeness, your archive, your back catalog, your distribution access. If you do not actively claim ownership and set boundaries, platforms and tools will gladly define them for you.

Creators need to think like asset owners now, not just content producers. Control of IP and distribution options is what protects your future opportunities.

The consistency problem still matters more than the tech

One truth has not changed. Most shows do not last.

Creators burn out because the show is isolated from a larger mission or business outcome. When a show is connected to a bigger purpose, your content becomes an engine. It feeds your brand, your offers, your community, your partnerships, and your long-term momentum.

That is why strategy matters as much as production.

What’s next is informed flexibility

The next few years will be messy in a productive way.

AI will accelerate everything. Video will keep pushing discovery. Platforms will keep tightening control. Monetization will keep shifting.

The creators who win will not be the ones who perfectly predict the future. They will be the ones who stay observant, test intelligently, protect ownership, and keep their work anchored in something human: trust, connection, clarity, and creative intent.

About the Author
Rob Greenlee is a Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and global new media leader who bridges podcasting’s roots with its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com, NewMediaShow.com, and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.

Apple Podcasts Officially Embraces Video Podcasts Again

1 Reply
By Rob Greenlee – Get Help Rebooting or Starting a New Show Podcast here

I am very happy, and I want to congratulate the Apple Podcasts team on choosing an innovative path to better embrace video, which was very much needed in the market.  Yet at the same time, it created another point of conflict with many who view all podcasting as RSS-based, as this new video deployment aligns only slightly with open RSS standards.   

It’s true that Apple helped lead the early RSS-based podcasting era with an iTunes namespace extension on top of RSS that included support for video downloads via RSS for many years, along with audio, but Apple also walked away from video discovery in the Podcasts app long ago.

Over time, Apple’s UI and UX treated video like a second-class citizen. Playback behavior and product emphasis clearly catered to audio-first listeners, while video became effectively undiscoverable for mainstream users.

That Video Vacuum at Apple Podcasts Mattered

“Apple’s decision not to actively promote video in its directory experience gave Spotify and YouTube years of runway to become the default destinations for video podcasts. And to be fair, when video creators first wanted free hosting, YouTube was the obvious winner. Podcasting began as an audio and video medium, but creator behavior followed distribution incentives, and the biggest video incentive lived outside Apple’s ecosystem: free file-hosting at YouTube.“

Now, Apple is clearly re-entering the video conversation with a more modern, competitive approach that uses a technical revenue model based on advertising, without Apple getting into the advertising business, which it has historically failed at. Integrated video inside the Podcasts app, powered by HLS, HTTP Live Streaming. Apple says this new experience will let audiences switch seamlessly between listening and watching, go full-screen horizontally, and download videos for offline viewing.

Here’s the tradeoff. Apple is not extending this upgrade through the open RSS model in a way that strengthens the broader ecosystem. Instead, it’s leaning into an API based publishing workflow that requires an Apple Podcasts Connect API key and a participating hosting provider to deliver HLS video. That’s a meaningful step toward platform-controlled syndication, not open distribution.

The Bigger Issue: Two Video Podcasting Systems Now Exist in Apple Podcasts

Apple is effectively creating, or accelerating, a split reality.

  1. Legacy RSS video, MP4 enclosures. Still possible, still supported. Apple explicitly says video podcasts using standard RSS feeds remain available to all creators through many hosting providers.
  2. New HLS integrated streaming video via API publishing. A higher quality, more native Apple experience, but currently gated through a short list of participating hosting partners and an API key workflow.

This is where confusion explodes across the industry. Audio and video are increasingly treated as separate syndication protocols and upload workflows, depending on the platform, including a third option: direct video upload to Spotify and YouTube. These two platforms also support API-based video podcast publishing from a variety of podcasting hosting platforms today. 

This complexity makes distribution management harder for creators to understand and manage, and it does not advance the open RSS model. If anything, it nudges podcasting toward an optional future without RSS. It does offer a video path for creators to the three big video platforms – YouTube, Spotify, and now Apple Podcasts.

And if Apple really wanted to support a future-proof open ecosystem, it could have embraced the Podcasting 2.0 standards track, specifically the Alternative Enclosures specification, so creators could cleanly support audio and video with HLS in a single RSS feed across apps. Instead, we’re seeing the gravitational pull toward platform APIs grow stronger for publishing on these big platforms.

Partnerships, four launch partners are a narrow funnel

Apple says HLS video distribution will be supported at launch by four primary partners: Acast, ART19 (Amazon), Omny Studio (iHeart/Triton), and Simplecast (SiriusXM Media and AdsWizz). 

The Top 3 Largest Audio Podcast Hosting platforms – (1) Spotify for Creators (may never be), (2) Spreaker, (3) Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Podbean, Blubrry, and Megaphone (may never be) are not on the partner list yet.

I hope Apple expands quickly beyond these initial partners, not just for more options, but because limiting HLS video enablement to a handful of large players risks putting many hosting platforms at a competitive disadvantage. That’s not a small ripple. It could also reshape where creators host audio, too, if video becomes a key first driver expectation.

Apple’s hosting provider directory is creating unnecessary confusion

On Apple’s Podcast hosting providers directory page, most providers are currently marked as Not offered for Video, while those four launch partners are marked Offered.

The problem is that many hosts do support video distribution today via a video-only RSS feed and an MP4 enclosure. Apple even acknowledges separately that RSS video remains available through many providers, yet those hosting providers are shown on the partners page as not supporting video in the Apple Podcasts directory platform.

So the directory experience, as currently presented, risks misleading creators into thinking that video podcasts aren’t supported unless they use one of the four big company partner hosting platforms, when Apple really means that the new HLS-integrated video workflow is currently limited to those 4 participating partners.

Apple Can Fix This Simply By Clarifying It’s Messaging

– Video HLS Streaming Enabled, and Video via RSS MP4 enclosure

– Or a note that the Video column refers to HLS publishing eligibility, not RSS video capability.

– The above clarification would prevent a lot of unnecessary churn for podcast hosting companies.

Monetization, A New Lever, But Also A New Tollbooth

Apple is pitching creator control and new monetization upside, including dynamic insertion of video ads, including DAI host-read, and baked-in host-reads will still be allowed. Apple also says it won’t charge hosting providers or creators to distribute content on Apple Podcasts, whether via RSS, MP3, or HLS video.

But Apple will charge participating ad networks an impression-based fee for delivering dynamic ads in HLS video starting later this year. That’s a big signal. Even if Apple doesn’t charge creators directly, Apple is positioning itself inside the video ad delivery chain.

What I’m watching next

If Apple is serious about embracing video again, the next moves matter more 

– Expand HLS video support beyond four partners quickly
– Clarify the provider podcast partner directory so creators understand RSS video versus HLS video
– Support open standards pathways like Podcasting 2.0 (Podcast Standards Project) “Alternative Enclosure” tag, not just platform APIs for media file publishing, so podcasting doesn’t drift further away from RSS
– Make video discovery inside the app actually discoverable and competitive with the other major video platforms, in the area of UX/UI labeling and search discovery.

Because the real story isn’t that Apple added video. The real story is that Apple is choosing how video enters the podcasting ecosystem, and that choice influences whether podcasting stays open with RSS or becomes an API-based platform-syndicated media model, with RSS as a legacy, declining on-ramp.

About the Author
Rob Greenlee is a Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and global new media leader who bridges podcasting’s roots with its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com, NewMediaShow.com and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.

The Truth About Where Podcasting and New Media Really Stand Today

Leave a reply

By Rob Greenlee

The truth about podcasting and new media today is clearer yet harder than ever: we’ve crossed a point of no return.

The center of gravity has fully shifted away from legacy media and distribution, old gatekeepers, and the idea that traditional media is the ultimate destination for new media creators.

In reality, the momentum has moved in the opposite direction: legacy media platforms are trying to catch up to the digital creator economy, not the other way around.

Spend a day inside the modern media ecosystem, and you’ll see something undeniable. Audiences now consume content on living-room streaming devices, social interest media platforms, and especially YouTube. They want interactivity, presence, personality, and the feeling of connection that just doesn’t exist in passive formats like cable or traditional TV and broadcast radio. Viewers and listeners want to talk back, participate, react, and feel part of a community. That’s where trust is being built today, and it’s happening at a massive scale.

The real business model of new media creators and podcasting has also changed. The show itself is no longer the final product, it’s the engine. A powerful engine, yes, but one that drives something larger: brands, products, events, memberships, and communities built on trust, interest, and value to the individual. Advertising is still a part of the picture, but it’s no longer the main revenue stream. The most successful creators understand this, and they’re using their shows to build fully formed businesses that extend far beyond creating media content.

At the same time, AI is rushing in fast, bringing both excitement and anxiety. Some people have already replaced their podcast listening time with conversational AI for value and help with life challenges. Others are using AI tools for research, prep, editing, and even creating whole new formats that didn’t exist before. Whether we like it or not, AI is publishing thousands of episodes a week now. It’s here, and it’s reshaping the edges of the digital medium.

“For human creators, this is a moment to double down on what AI can’t replicate: lived experience, emotional nuance, personality, and authenticity. That’s where the long-term value lies.“

The bigger question is whether the long standing traditional business model of podcasting is in decline or broken. The answer depends on your perspective. If you’re dependent entirely on ads and operating with legacy-era cost structures, then yes, the economics will feel like they’re collapsing. But if you’re approaching podcasting the way the modern creator class does lean, diversified, platform-native, and audience-first, there’s more opportunity today than ever.

This shift poses a challenge for legacy traditional broadcast media, but not an impossible one. To adapt, they must rethink the most fundamental assumptions they’ve held for many decades. They need to move away from exclusivity and closed systems and meet audiences where they actually are. They must build brands around real people, not institutions. They need to treat YouTube and social interest platforms as core distribution, not secondary windows. And they must embrace AI strategically not as an entire replacement for human creators, but as a force multiplier that can open up new formats that humans would not create and build efficiencies in the creation process.

Most importantly, legacy cable and radio broadcast media must reclaim the value of trust. Trust and relevance is the currency of the modern new creator economy. It’s personal, it’s intimate, and it’s earned one episode at a time. No amount of technology or scale replaces that.

“The future of podcasting and new media is hybrid, open, global, personality-driven, and increasingly shaped by AI. But at the heart of all of it remains the thing that has always mattered most: the human voice, mattering to your community and the human story, and the human connection.“

And that’s the part of the medium that isn’t going anywhere.

About the Author
Rob Greenlee is a Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and global new media leader who bridges podcasting’s roots with its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” , and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.

The Future of Podcasting: AI, Video, and the Evolution of Content Distribution 2025 and Beyond

Leave a reply

By Rob Greenlee

The podcasting industry stands at one of its most pivotal moments since RSS feeds first powered the medium’s growth. The lines between audio and video, creator and audience, and independent and platform-driven distribution are blurring faster than ever. While there’s growing concern about saturation, declining discovery, and market consolidation, there’s also a wave of optimism driven by artificial intelligence, smarter delivery technology, and the reemergence of video as a dominant form of spoken content.

The State of Podcasting in 2025

The podcasting ecosystem today feels both mature and transitional. Creators are facing real challenges from audience discovery and monetization to the pressure of competing with algorithmically boosted video content on platforms like YouTube and Spotify. Yet the medium remains more vibrant than ever, with audiences seeking authenticity, connection, and storytelling in ways that other media cannot replicate.

Podcasting has always been cyclical. We started with audio and video podcasts in the early 2000s, then narrowed to audio as bandwidth and devices constrained video consumption.

Now, we are returning to a hybrid model. The public expects podcasts to exist wherever they consume content, whether that’s in a traditional RSS player, on YouTube, or integrated into their AI assistant.

The big shift? We are no longer in a creator-first phase. We are in an audience-first era.

The Rise and Redefinition of Video in Podcasting

Video is not just coming to podcasting, it is already here. YouTube, in particular, has redefined what people perceive as a podcast. The traditional boundaries of the format, audio-first and RSS-fed, are being challenged by an audience that increasingly consumes podcasts visually.

That is both a threat and an opportunity. It is a threat because centralized platforms can become new gatekeepers, shifting attention and control away from creators. But it is also an opportunity to innovate, to merge the accessibility of video with the intimacy of audio storytelling.

The platforms that will thrive are those that support both video and audio formats equally and empower creators to distribute, measure, and monetize across both.

Why RSS Must Evolve and Why HLS Could Save It

RSS remains the heart of open podcasting, but it is showing its age. In a world where Spotify and YouTube provide real-time analytics, dynamic delivery, and adaptive playback, RSS-based audio feels static.

That is why adopting HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) could be transformative. HLS allows for variable bitrate delivery, meaning podcasts could automatically adjust quality based on the listener’s connection, similar to how streaming video works. More importantly, it could enable better analytics: detailed listener behavior, completion rates, and more accurate ad measurement.

Without innovation like this, RSS risks being left behind. The podcasting community must embrace smarter delivery protocols to remain competitive and independent.

AI’s Expanding Role in Podcasting

Artificial intelligence is no longer a side tool for creators. It is becoming a creative partner. From automated show notes and social captions to clip generation and content summaries, AI is making it easier for creators to produce high-quality content faster.

But this is just the beginning. Over the next decade, AI will transform podcasting in three major ways:

Automated Content Creation: Entire episodes could be scripted, voiced, and mixed by AI or co-created alongside humans.

AI-Powered Discovery: Instead of searching by keywords, audiences will ask AI assistants for specific themes or moods, such as “Find me a podcast that makes me feel optimistic about the future of technology,” and AI will surface them instantly.

AI-Integrated Experiences: Podcast players could evolve into intelligent media hubs, where listeners interact directly with content by asking follow-up questions, exploring related topics, or buying products mentioned in real time.

While AI will not replace authentic human storytelling, it will amplify it, especially for creators who learn to integrate these tools effectively.

Monetization, Market Differences, and Global Growth

Monetization remains one of the hardest challenges in podcasting. Subscription fatigue, freemium limitations, and market-specific regulations make scaling difficult, especially in emerging markets where cultural and financial barriers limit premium conversions.

Globally, the opportunity lies in diversifying revenue streams, from branded content and memberships to live events, merch, and premium video access. Podcasting’s long-tail nature means sustainable growth will depend less on mass audiences and more on engaged communities.

The Next Wave of Podcast Innovation

To push podcasting forward, especially for entry-level and professional creators, platforms and tools must evolve in a few key areas:

  1. AI-Powered Creative Workflow

Automate editing, show notes, transcript generation, and social clip production while allowing creators to customize tone and prompts.

  1. Adaptive Distribution

Adopt hybrid RSS and HLS delivery to maintain openness while gaining richer data and listener experience parity with major video platforms.

  1. Unified Analytics

Bring together audio, video, and social metrics into a single dashboard to help creators see their full impact across channels.

  1. Smart Monetization

Use AI to recommend dynamic ad insertion opportunities, ideal pricing tiers, and personalized offers for each listener segment.

  1. Voice and AI Assistant Integration

Make podcasts natively discoverable within voice-based ecosystems, from home devices to in-car assistants, using metadata that understands intent and emotion, not just titles.

The podcasting medium is far from stagnant. It is evolving into something bigger, more connected, and more intelligent. The real opportunity lies not just in keeping up with these changes but in leading them.

For creators and platforms alike, the mission is clear: keep podcasting open, innovative, and human, even as AI and automation redefine what it means to create, share, and connect through spoken media.

About the Author
Rob Greenlee is a Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and global new media leader who bridges podcasting’s roots with its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” , and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.