Golden Globe winner Joe Rogan. It doesn't sound right, but it could soon be very real. Beginning with 2026's 83rd Golden Globes awards ceremony will open up a brand-new Best Podcast category. Per Deadline:
Details are few about the criteria for the new category; according to the Globes today, the "top 25 podcasts" will qualify for consideration, with a total of six final nominations for the category. Eligibility requirements for those rankings and other details will be announced in the coming weeks.
Nominations for the 2026 Globes in all now 27 categories will be announced December 8, with the awards to be bestowed during the 83rd Golden Globes on January 11, 2026, when Nikki Glaser returns to host the ceremony airing live on CBS and Paramount+ with Showtime.
"As the world of entertainment continues to evolve, we are excited to recognize new forms of storytelling," Golden Globes president Helen Hoehne said in a press release. "Podcasts have emerged as a profound medium for sharing narratives and building communities across global borders and generations. By celebrating achievements in both audio and visual podcasts, we aim to honor our heritage categories while making room for new voices and formats to be heard."
What a "visual podcast" actually is is still unclear to me. Podcasts are still an emerging medium, and – as a counterpoint to those who might argue the new category dilutes the prestige of the awards ceremony – an accessible one. Anyone can start a podcast about anything – and while this does theoretically open the door to your racist uncle Joe, it additionally allows unknown talent a clear path to the top. At the very least, Helen Hoehne's announcement emphasized and underlined the narrative part of podcasting, so productions that are just disconnected rambling about the state of the world presumably need not apply.
Previously:
• Archaeologist braves the Joe Rogan podcast to counter Graham Hancock's nonsense
• Bernie Sanders killed it on Joe Rogan
• Watch Edward Snowden on the Joe Rogan Experience
