Here is the latest RoadMN’s Podcasts Index™ for the News category, dated Tuesday, September 22, 2026. It is not an official Apple/Spotify chart. It is a weighted blend of three public charts: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music.
 |
| Courtesy of RoadMN |
The Daily (New York Times) is #1 by a wide margin (Index 1.1), #1 on both Spotify and Apple and #2 on Amazon. That score is unchanged from last week. Up First from NPR is a stable #2 (2.7).
After that, the news field splits along familiar lines:
- Center/legacy news: The Daily, Up First, NPR News Now (#5), The Journal (#7), Today, Explained (#10), WSJ What’s News (#13), The Headlines (#16), Global News Podcast (#17), The NPR Politics Podcast (#20), Consider This (#21).
- Conservative / talk: The Tucker Carlson Show (#3, 5.2), The Megyn Kelly Show (#6), Candace (#9), The Matt Walsh Show (#11), Morning Wire (#12), The Ben Shapiro Show (#14), The Dan Bongino Show (#15), The Michael Knowles Show (#22), The Glenn Beck Program (#24).
- Progressive / left-leaning: Pod Save America (#4, 5.3), The MeidasTouch Podcast (#8), IHIP News (#18), The Louder with Crowder is actually Crowder at #26 — wait, Louder with Crowder is conservative; The Rachel Maddow Show is #28 and the weakest score on the list (65.0).
Week-over-week movement
Most of the top 10 barely moved. Notable shifts vs. Sept 15:
- The Ben Shapiro Show slipped hard in the composite (9.9 → 17.5), falling from the top 10 to #14.
- The Dan Bongino Show improved (21.1 → 17.8).
- Pivot improved (24.9 → 21.5).
- Reuters World News improved (59.0 → 54.0).
- The Rachel Maddow Show worsened (47.5 → 65.0) and sits last among the 28 listed shows.