Photo: RNZ / Rebekah Parsons-King
RNZ is the biggest winner for the second year running at the second annual New Zealand Podcast Awards, scooping 13 awards from 25 categories.
The winners were announced today, and podcasts that were made by and/or commissioned by RNZ or Tahi won seven golds, four silver and two bronzes, after 23 nominations.
RNZ again won the gold medal for Network of the Year, for its full slate of podcasts this year, "for the quality of their output", the awards organisers said.
Podcast listeners cast more than 20,000 votes for podcasts this year, and winners were selected by a panel of 32 judges from the media and podcast industry in New Zealand and overseas.
Organisers said this year's judges "were impressed by the high calibre of entries."
"The decision-making process was challenging due to the numerous talented podcasters and producers across Aotearoa who demonstrated exceptional levels of creativity and production quality".
RNZ Podcast and Series Executive Producer Tim Watkin said RNZ's wins "show our commitment to working with the best talent in the country to tell diverse, challenging and compelling stories is a winning one, especially when combined with RNZ's awesome producers and sound engineers.
"From science to sex, and hard facts to lively fiction, RNZ podcasts deliver".
RNZ's award-winners for 2022
Whakamāori and The Elephant in the Bedroom both won double golds.
Māori language podcast Whakamāori took out Best Māori/Pasifika Podcast/Host and Best Education podcast, and the awards organisers said it "made the listener feel part of the whānau".
The Elephant in the Bedroom team James Roque and Chye-Ling Huang scored two golds Photo: Ankita Singh Photography
The Elephant in the Bedroom, a personal study of racism in relationships, by comedian James Roque and actor Chye-Ling Huang, won Best Documentary and Best Sex and Relationships podcast.
Landmark podcast Let's be TRANSparent, about navigating gender transition, won host Joe Stockhausen the Rising Star award.
Joe Stockhausen, named the 2022 Rising Star at the NZ Podcast Awards. Photo: Supplied
The first person showcase Eyewitness won Best History gold, and science and nature programme Our Changing World won two silver, in Best Factual and the Climate Award.
A 1971 shark attack on Barry Watkin is among the first person accounts of life in New Zealand collected in Eyewitness Photo: Courtesy of Barry Watkins
RNZ acting Head of Content Veronica Schmidt said: "It's great to see so many RNZ podcasts - across such a diverse range of genres - recognised."
Across the media-scape
NZ Podcast Awards organisers said they set out to recognise the hard work of producers, media networks, talent, and independent podcasters in the thriving podcast industry in New Zealand.
Stuff's The Commune won Podcast of the Year and The Spotlight Award for its storytelling and sound design, in exploring the Centrepoint commune.
The Listeners' Choice award for the highest audience votes went to Culture Vulture, a show about pop culture that arose from some of the team behind the runaway successful newsletter and Instagram project Shit You Should Care About.
Independent Podcast of the Year was Dear Nature, set up by second year University of Otago student Max Balloch, covering positive stories about science.
Student Max Balloch won Independent Podcast of the Year at the NZ Podcasts Awards for 2022 Photo: Supplied/ University of Otago
Petra Bagust won Best New Podcast for Grey Areas, about growing older in New Zealand and attitudes to ageing.
And Stuff's The Lake received two awards for Creativity and Best Factual Podcast, for its coverage of the treatment of children at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Facility.
The full list of NZ Podcast Awards winners for 2022 can be found: here.
The list of RNZ's 10 NZ Podcast Awards winners for 2021 can be found: here
All of RNZ's podcasts and series can be found: here