• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, May 9, 2023

Heading into this week's IAB Podcast Upfront (May 11) news and information veracity ratings service NewsGuard announced a new service rating the credibility of podcasts to help advertisers and streaming platforms support brand-safe and trustworthy podcasts.

NewsGuard began developing the new podcast rating service more than a year ago when controversy surrounding false information about the COVID-19 pandemic spread by Spotify's "The Joe Rogan Experience."

At that time, NewsGuard said it already was in discussions with at least two agency holding companies about the service, but did not disclose which.

NewsGuard did not disclose which, if any agencies, have agreed to utilize the new podcast service, but it said it utilizes a similar methodology of professional journalists fact-checking and rating the veracity of information that it are the basis for its web and TV news ratings services.

"The podcast ratings include a trust score from 0-10, overall risk level, metadata fields, and a detailed written explanation of the podcast’s content and record of credibility and transparency," NewsGuard explains in this week's announcement, noting that the service will rate the top 200 news podcasts on the largest streaming platforms by January 2024.

NewsGuard said it has already "partnered" with three of the largest podcast streaming platforms.

The podcast service's rating criteria utilizes a score of 0-10 based on the following elements:

• Does not regularly convey false, unchallenged information: 4 points

• Conveys news on important topics responsibly: 3 points

• Is not dominated by one-sided opinion: 1 point

• Discloses, or does not have, a political agenda: 1 point

• Differentiates advertising and commercial partnerships from editorial content: 1 point