With the growing ubiquity of podcasts as a source of information across various fields, the need to cite them in academic writing or professional writing may arise sooner rather than later. Properly citing the source of your information, such as podcasts, gives due credit to the author (or host in the case of a podcast) and helps avoid plagiarism. Utilizing APA citation style, including APA examples, can ensure consistency and accuracy in attributing these sources, making it easier for readers to locate the original material.
APA Podcast Citation– In a Nutshell
- The APA podcast citation is an ‘author-date‘ citation method where the author’s/host’s last name and the airing period are embedded in the text.
- You can list the executive producers if you do not know the podcast host’s name.
- When doing an APA podcast citation for a video podcast, the words ‘video podcast’ are written in square brackets.
Definition: APA Podcast Citation
The APA reference style is a citation format recommended by the American Psychological Association. It uses the ‘author-date‘ citation method, where the author’s last name and the year of publication appear in the text.
When doing an APA podcast citation, some of the elements included are:
- the host’s name
- the date of release
- the podcast title
- the production studio
- the URL to the podcast page
APA Reference List Entry:
Hobb, R. (Host). (2020-present). The elderlings [Audio podcast]. ABStudios. https://www.ABStudios.com/the-elderlings
APA In-Text Citation:
(Hobb, 2020-present)
APA podcast citation: A whole series
Your reference entry should cover the entire series if you are not referring to a specific episode.
When doing an APA podcast citation for a whole series, here are some of the most important ground rules:
- Obtain and list information about the podcast host. If you cannot find the name of the host, use the name of the producer in parenthesis
- Provide the podcast with (year-present) if the podcast is still being aired
- If the podcast is no longer airing, list the years during which it aired (2016-2019)
- If the podcast started and stopped airing in the same year, provide only that year (2014)
- Use square brackets to mention the type of podcast.
- List the URL or the studio if available.
| APA Format | Host's/Producer's last name, Initial(s). (Host/Producer). (Year when it first aired-present). Podcast Title [Audio podcast]. Studio Name. URL. |
| APA In-Text Citation | (Host's last name, years active) |
APA Reference List Entry:
Monterey, J. (Host). (2017-present). The dust of dreams [Audio podcast]. ANGH. https://www.anghstudios.org/the-dust-of-dreams
APA In-Text Citation Example:
(Monterey, 2017-present)
APA podcast citation: Video podcast
When doing an APA podcast citation for a video, the referencing is done similarly to the audio podcast. The only difference is that “Video podcast” is written in square brackets instead of “Audio podcast.”
| APA Format | Host's last name, Initial(s). (Host). (Years range). Podcast title [Video podcast]. Studio Name. URL. |
| APA In-Text Citation | (Host's last name, years active) |
APA Reference List Entry:
Reggiano, P. (Host). (2019-2021). The siege of pale [Video podcast]. TMBoTF. https://www.tmbothstudios.org/the-siege-of-pale
APA In-Text Citation Example:
(Reggiano, 2019-2021)
FAQs
To cite a podcast in APA style, you need to list the author of the podcast, followed by the label of ‘host,’ the date during which the podcast aired, the title of the podcast, the name of the studio/production company, and the URL to the podcast if it is available.
To highlight a specific moment in the video or audio source, include a timestamp in an APA podcast citation from the start of the cited part. E.g., (KWO, 2019, 3:24)
With APA podcast citation, the host of the podcast is listed as the author, followed by a label identifying their role, e.g., Greene, D. (Host). If the different episodes have different hosts, you can again list the series’ executive producer with a label identifying their position.
If you want to reference a certain episode, list the episode number after the title in parenthesis.
