2025 NZ Radio & Podcast Awards get an update

The major changes include: 

• The introduction of an ‘Independent Station of the Year’ for independently owned radio stations
• Sales Team of the Year has been broken out into 2 sub-categories – ‘Metropolitan/Network Sales Team’ & ‘Regional/Provincial Sales Team’ 
• A new podcast category ‘Best Science & Environmental Podcast’ joins the 15 other podcast categories
• We have introduced an age cap for the three ‘Best New Talent’ categories. Entrants must be aged under 35 years at the end of the relevant award year
• Podcast hosts are now eligible to enter the ‘Best New Talent – Presenter’ Award
• There is a change to the local music host categories – local breakfast shows, whether a team or solo host, are now judged together
• We have made submitting the written part of your entry easier as for most categories, you will enter your written component directly into an on-line form 

“Podcasting and other audio content production continues to grow Kiwi’s engagement, and it is important the industry awards recognise all audio.” – Jana Rangooni

NZ Radio & Podcast Awards Committee Chair, Jana Rangooni says “with over 3.6 million New Zealanders using radio every week we are a valued and primary source of many New Zealanders music, news and entertainment.

“Podcasting and other audio content production continues to grow Kiwi’s engagement, and it is important the industry awards recognise all audio.”

Entries open January 27, 2025, and close March 5. Take this time to review the new criteria to ensure a smooth entry.

Remember last year’s introduction of a search tool on our website, allowing users to look up past winners and finalists. Find it here

Finalists will be announced in early April, with winners revealed at the awards ceremony in early June 2025.