Judging Guidance for Uni Pod Award

 

Judges are made up but not exclusive to the Uni Pod Festival Advisory Board. Each judge is given a ‘batch’ of entries to listen to and they select their top entries from their allocated batch.  The judges then all listen to these top selections and
discuss via email/online meet which they agree to give the award.   Judges must declare conflicts of interest and
entries will be allocated to judges where there is no conflict.  There is a judging diversity monitoring process to
ensure that judges are diverse and from a variety of backgrounds – this will be
reviewed every year to keep bringing in new people.  If you would be interested in being a future
judge and have industry experience of podcasting and broadcast please email with JUDGE in the subject heading: contact@soundtruism.com
 

The scoring process below is used as a basis for their decisions. 

 

Key Questions asked in the judging process:

  •        How does the podcast serve the community or audience it’s aimed at?
  •        Is there any associated content which brings people in?
  •       How is the podcast different or original?
  •        Is it well researched?
  •        Is it well executed?
  •        Does it leave you wanting more? 

Community Criteria (score 0-5)

How well does the podcast serve its community? Does it incorporate or speak to them indicating a valuable audience connection; does it consider the audience in its tone and content?  Does the podcast connect with audiences through socials or by any other means – live shows or get togethers or a newsletter?

Quality and Originality Criteria (score 0-5)

How original is the podcast idea? Is there originality in guest selection, topics that are spoken about? Is the voice, style or tone of the podcast original in that it is something that is not heard on traditional
radio and broadcast mediums? Does it incorporate original elements within the production or storytelling? What is the audio and video quality of the production? 

Research Criteria (score 0-5)

How well researched is the podcast? What level of planning and preparation has gone into the podcast to research guests, topics and structure the conversation (if it is an interview based podcast).  Has the research extended to diversity of guests included, which looks to expand the guest pool outside its’ own circles to incorporate diverse opinions, thoughts and perspectives? 

Longevity and Success Criteria (score 0-5)

How likely is the podcast to continue to grow and does it have potential to move from strength to strength? Think about potential topics/themes of podcast episodes/seasons. Does the podcast include any of the podcast success indicators below?

  • Audience metrics in terms of follower growth, podcast reach + demographics / episode download figures
  • Quality of audio quality production and content
  • Consistency in publishing episodes
  • Growth in expertise or skill of the podcaster
  • Reviews or positive listener feedback
  • Website traffic
  • Does the podcast have a key sponsor or likely to interest sponsors?
  • Any associated podcast merch or spin-off benefits to the podcaster? (write-ups in the local press or being
    asked to speak on panels or for media interviews for example).     

Total Potential Score 20 

Closing date for entries is April 17th 2026 

Good Luck!