Abbie Chatfield and Brittany Hockley’s podcasts may be among those in danger of being shut down amid reports that listeners are tired of hearing “absurd” content from former reality TV contestants complaining about “rich girl problems.”
A number of former reality TV stars and Australian celebrities have jumped on the bandwagon in recent years and started their own podcasts, but it is said that not all of them have been equally successful.
The Bachelor star Abbie, 29, hosts the LiSTNR It’s A Lot Podcast, where she talks about everything from her relationships to politics and feminism.
Meanwhile, Brittany and her best friend Laura Byrne often talk about their personal lives and pop culture on their LifeUncut podcast with iHeart.
According to insiders, the Australian podcast scene is set for a major shake-up, pointing to celebrity-hosted podcasts.
“There are rumours within three of Australia’s largest podcast platforms that changes are coming, with one category currently under scrutiny,” a radio insider exclusively told Daily Mail Australia after tracking the popularity of podcasts on LiSTNR, Nova Podcast and iHeart Radio.
“It appears former reality stars who have made the switch to podcasting are facing a blow across the Australian radio industry.”
“The long list of former reality TV stars who have started podcasts in the past four years is being cut short, with Abbie Chatfield, Brittney Hockley and Laura Bryne among the dwindling numbers,” another source added.
It is said that it is ‘internally known’ that many producers no longer wish to work on Australia’s long list of celebrity podcasts.
Abbie Chatfield’s (pictured) and Brittany Hockley’s podcasts could be among those in danger of being shut down amid rumours that listeners are fed up with hearing ‘absurd’ content from former reality TV contestants and that they harp on about ‘rich girl problems’
Producers also criticized the “absurd” content of many celebrity gossip podcasts.
“The content of these programs is mind-bogglingly absurd,” claimed one former program director.
“I don’t know if I’m more annoyed by the fact that they want to know what kind of toilet paper they’re using, or by their self-proclaimed rich-girl problems.”
Insiders claim the Australian podcast scene could be facing a massive shake-up, leaving celebrity podcasts at risk of being gutted due to declining listenership (Photo: Brittany Hockley)
Podcasts with ‘extreme views’ are also said to turn off listeners. There are also problems with fact-checking in some gossip podcasts.
Abbie recently took to her show to lash out at former MAFS stars Domenica Calarco and Ella Ding, who also have their own podcast. She hit out at them for interviewing controversial MAFS groom Jack Dunkley on their Sit With Us podcast and not questioning him about his infamous ‘muzzle’ comment.
“We had to tell our clients that some of our talent have ‘extreme views’ and that’s really a turn-off in this category alone,” a Nova source claimed.
Another insider claimed that listeners don’t want to listen to celebrity podcasts because they don’t have the same “integrity” as other informational programs.
“There are many executives who point out that these new, old-school podcasters are not journalists,” they claimed.
“They lack the journalistic integrity that you often see in categories like True Crime, Health and Fitness, News and Sports.
Podcasters with ‘extreme views’ are also said to be turning off listeners, after Abbie went off on Domenica Calarco and Ella Ding on her show, criticising them for interviewing Jack Dunkley
‘While everyone enjoys a bit of gossip, listeners are tuning out en masse because they’re fed up with unfounded gossip. Sometimes, however, the audience feels misinformed.’
“The podcast industry in Australia has not grown to the size that SCA, NOVA and iHeartRadio had anticipated for some of these ‘chatterbox’ podcasts. True Crime continues to grow in popularity, but this part of the industry is proving to be unviable,” another source said.
“The decline in the industry is a clear indication that audiences no longer feel that just because they’ve appeared on a reality show or have 100,000+ followers on YouTube, they should be listened to for every thought that crosses their mind.”
One source denies that Abbie’s podcast is being shut down anytime soon, after she celebrated her highest monthly audience of 315,587 listeners in July and renewed her podcast for a sixth season.
In a recent press release, Grant Tothill, Executive Head of LiSTNR Podcasts, said: “That Hamish & Andy remains Australia’s favourite podcast and Abbie reaches her largest monthly audience is a huge credit not only to Hamish, Andy and Abbie, but also to their teams.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the LifeUncut podcast for comment.