July Podcast Rankings: Call Her Daddy, Ben Shapiro, Pardon My Take

Podtrac, which measures a large selection of podcasts, released its list of the 20 most listened to shows in July.

Overall, not a ton of movement. The big jump was Serial, which moved up 48 — yes, 48 — spots.

July was another significant month for news/political podcasts. Interestingly, the genre faces far greater competition than sports and comedy. Last month, the cable news channels crushed the competition. Fox News recorded its highest-rated July on record; MSNBC and CNN saw significant year-over-year gains.

On the conservative side, the podcast industry is led by Ben Shaprio (5) and Dan Bongino (20). But there is an opening for more. Rush Limbaugh has long been the clear top conservative radio host, but he's far from the medium's only star.

In addition to Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Glenn Beck, and Ben Shapiro host industry-leading daily radio shows.  A radio show doesn't need to match Limbaugh's ratings to be an overwhelming success.

In sports, month after month, Pardon My Take goes uncontested. There is not a competitor within miles. PMT, with its large, dedicated following, doesn't need interesting sports to perform. It even ranked top 10 in June, a month there were fewer intriguing headlines than George Lopez's Saint George.

The humorous sports podcast is growing while sports-talk television circles the drain. (You can see those ratings here.) Big Cat and PFT are to digital media what Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser have been to television.

Barstool's Call Her Daddy, again, finishes in the top five. In August, if it moves, it'll be upward. Today, the sex-talk show crossed over into mainstream conversation via an interview with Miley Cyrus. Already, People and Entertainment Tonight have aggregated the episode.

No, Podtrac does not measure the Joe Rogan Experience. We all know it's the best.

To interview Bobby Burack, contact him on Twitter @burackbobby_.