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NPR Senior Podcast Challenge
NPR is running the 2026 NPR Senior Podcast Challenge, a podcast submission contest for seniors sixty-five (65) and older to submit an audio file they have created for a chance to have the winning podcast discussed on NPR’s All Things Considered or Morning Edition.
“The submission period begins at 12:00 a.m. ET on August 16, 2026”
The contest is sponsored by National Public Radio, Inc. (“NPR”), a District of Columbia nonprofit corporation with principal offices at 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002, and it is open only to United States residents age sixty-five (65) or over.
The submission period begins at 12:00 a.m. ET on August 16, 2026, and ends at 11:59 p.m. ET on November 30, 2026, with judging beginning on December 1, 2026 and ending on or about January 15, 2027.
Up to eight (8) finalists will be chosen, seven (7) will be awarded a trophy and NPR-branded merchandise (ARV $150), and one (1) Grand Prize Winner will win a trip to NPR Headquarters and have their Submission featured on NPR across multiple platforms.
How to enter
To enter, an Entrant must submit an audio file featuring the Entrant(s) discussing a topic of her, his, or their choosing (the “Submission”), and the Submission must be both “original” and unique, created for the sole purpose of entering the Contest.
Submissions must be between three (3) and eight (8) minutes in length, must be uploaded by the Entrant to SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor with the ability to download the Submission enabled, and must not be generated, in whole or in material part, by artificial intelligence tools.
The rules also state that incidental use of software features that include AI-assisted functionality (e.g., auto-cropping, spell-check, color correction, or file cleanup) is permitted as long as it does not generate original creative content.
In NPR’s public-facing call for entries, the competition is described as asking seniors to “hit 'record' and send them to us, in audio form,” with the grand prize winner brought to NPR headquarters in Washington to watch and listen as the story airs live on Weekend Edition Sunday.
Dates, prizes, and themes
NPR’s contest timeline says sponsors will attempt to contact each Finalist and the Grand Prize Winner, or an alternate if necessary, on or about January 15, 2027, and the Finalists and Grand Prize Winner will be publicly announced on or about February 1, 2027.
“The Finalists and Grand Prize Winner will be publicly announced on or about February 1, 2027”
NPR’s outreach materials frame the contest as building on the NPR Student Podcast Challenge, which since 2018 has introduced tens of thousands of young people to the world of audio storytelling, and it notes that in 2020 NPR launched the College Podcast Challenge.
For seniors, NPR’s examples of what judges may be listening for include “Adjusting to retirement or life on a fixed income,” “Health or the cost of healthcare,” and “The isolation that comes with divorce or the loss of a partner.”
NPR also says the contest encourages stories of all kinds, including personal narratives, in-depth interviews, and fully reported audio journalism, and it directs questions to [email protected].