Here are the second annual Ear Worthy Award winners. Each winner will have a link to their podcast, and I encourage anyone reading or listening to check out these excellent podcasts and support these indie podcasters.
After our first annual nomination and awards process, we’ve learned from the lessons of 2024. First, we’ve shortened the name from the unwieldy Ear Worthy Independent Podcast Awards to its new, succinct successor — the 2025 Ear Worthy Awards.
Second, we’ve included more voices in the initial nominations process. Last year, it was our board. This year, nominations are based on input from our Board, select indie podcasters, podcast professionals, and our readers.
Third, we’ve streamlined and adjusted some of the categories, focusing on areas where indie podcasts are particularly strong. Lastly, we decided to include only indie podcasts reviewed by Ear Worthy within the last year, specifically from August 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025. Fear not, that decision enabled us to still evaluate over 240 indie podcasts.
At Ear Worthy, we define independent “indie” podcasts as those produced by an individual without support from large podcast networks, such as Spotify, iHeart, Wondery, SiriusXM, or major production studios like Sony or Warner Music. Indie podcasts can belong to a small podcast network, be developed by a non-profit organization, a museum, or a quasi-governmental agency.
Finally, thanks to their podcast community-minded nature, we have two sponsors — lenny.fm and The Podcast Professionals Association (PPA). These organizations are dedicated to supporting independent podcasts.
Here are the winners of the 2025 Ear Worthy Awards.
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Best Politics Podcast The Political Junkie — Ken Rudin Open To Debate — John Donvan Winner The Purple Principle — Robert Peace
There are simply no debates any longer. Everything is an argument and a clash of values.
Open To Debate is the show that models debate, allowing others to learn how to participate. Moreover, because the show is in a debate format, the podcast tends to focus on facts, evidence, and substantiated data.
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