NPR Senior Podcast Challenge: Official Rules

These are the rules for the 2026 NPR Senior Podcast Challenge: If you're looking for the College Podcast Challenge, click here, if you're looking for the 5th-12th grade competition rules click here.

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. OPEN ONLY TO UNITED STATES RESIDENTS AGE SIXTY-FIVE (65) OR OVER. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED.

1. SPONSOR. The NPR Senior Podcast Challenge (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 (the "Sponsor").

2. OVERVIEW. The Contest is a podcast submission contest where seniors sixty-five (65) and older can submit an audio file they have created for an opportunity to have the winning podcast discussed in a news segment that will appear on an episode of NPR's All Things Considered or Morning Edition. Up to eight (8) finalists will be chosen, of whom 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 will have their Submission featured on NPR across multiple platforms. By participating in this Contest, each participant agrees to be bound by these Official Rules and to the decisions of the Sponsor and the judges selected by the Sponsor, which are final and binding on all matters relating to the Contest. The Contest will operate as described below, on or about the stated dates:

● The Contest 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. To be eligible, submissions must be submitted in accordance with Section 4 of these Official Rules.

● The Contest judging period begins on December 1, 2026, and ends on or about January 15, 2027. Eligible submissions will be reviewed by up to two (2) panels of judges selected in the sole discretion of the Sponsor, and will be judged in accordance with Section 5 of these Official Rules. Eight (8) Finalists, including one (1) Grand Prize Winner (as described in Section 5 below) will be selected.

● Sponsors will attempt to contact each Finalist and the Grand Prize Winner, or an alternate if necessary, on or about January 15, 2027, and in accordance with Section 6 of these Official Rules.

● The Finalists and Grand Prize Winner will be publicly announced on or about February 1, 2027.

3. ELIGIBILITY. The Contest is open only to U.S. residents age sixty-five (65) and over (each an "Entrant"). Entrants may submit jointly with other Entrants. Each Entrant must be at least sixty-five (65) years of age at the time of entry. Void in all jurisdictions other than those stated above and where prohibited or restricted by law. This Contest is subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

The following individuals are not eligible to enter: (a) employees, representatives, agents, directors, and officers of the Sponsor and its parent, subsidiary, or affiliated companies, member stations, and other parties involved in the administration of the Contest; and (b) each of the immediate family members or other persons living in the same household as such excluded individuals.

Entry constitutes each Entrant's certification that the Entrant meets the eligibility requirements set forth in these Official Rules. The Sponsor reserves the right to verify and confirm each Entrant's compliance with eligibility requirements. An Entrant may be required to submit further information to assist in the judges' verification of eligibility. Winning a prize is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements set forth herein.

4. 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"). The Submission must be both "original" (as defined by copyright law) and unique (meaning it must have been created for the sole purpose of entering the Contest). Submissions must comply with the following requirements:

● Submissions must be between three (3) and eight (8) minutes in length.

● Submissions must be created specifically for the Contest.

● Submissions must be the original work of the Entrant(s).

● Submissions must not be generated, in whole or in material part, by artificial intelligence tools (including generative AI image, text, audio, or design tools). Incidental use of software features that include AI-assisted functionality (e.g., auto-cropping, spell-check, color correction, or file cleanup) that do not generate original creative content is permitted, provided that all creative concepts, designs, and expression in the Submission are the Entrant's own original work.

● Submissions must be uploaded by the Entrant to SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor (in any format acceptable to those platforms) with the ability to download the Submission enabled.

● Submissions must comply with, as applicable, SoundCloud's Terms of Use, Podbean's Terms of Use, or Anchor's Terms of Service.

● Submissions must not include any music created by anyone other than Entrant(s) as further described below.

● Submissions must not contain material that violates or infringes another's rights (including, but not limited to, material that violates privacy, publicity, or intellectual property rights).

● Adjusting to retirement or life on a fixed income.

● New adventures -- travel, learning opportunities, career opportunities, or artistic endeavors.

● Health concerns and the challenges of health care costs.

● Dealing with the loss of a spouse or partner.

● Stories of family history or reflections on a long life or career, or association with historical events.

● Original reporting on any topic that interests you.

Submissions may not include any material that infringes the intellectual property rights of any person. Please be respectful of copyright and trademark laws.

All material must be original to the persons who create the podcast.

Pre-recorded music may not be used. Entrants may include live performances of public domain songs or non-copyrightable rhythm elements if it is relevant to the story. For avoidance of doubt, for the purposes of these Official Rules, "public domain" does not mean "publicly available;" it means that copyright has expired and the material is no longer under copyright protection.

We encourage Entrants to err on the side of excluding music if the Entrant is not sure whether the music is copyrighted or not. Entries will be disqualified if they contain materials that appear to infringe copyrights, trademarks, or other intellectual property rights of others.

Songs or chants made up by Entrants are acceptable as long as they are performed live on the recording and Entrant notes in Entrant's submission form that the song/chant was composed by Entrant. By submitting an entry, you affirm that you own all the rights to any and all musical content in your submission, including but not limited to: the right to reproduce, distribute, and publicly perform.

For examples of what is and is not public domain work, you may visit https://copyright.cornell.edu/publicdomain.

An Entrant must upload a publicly viewable and downloadable Submission to SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor between 12:00 a.m. ET on August 16, 2026, and 11:59 p.m. EDT on November 30, 2026.

Each Entrant will be required to sign-in to SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor to post a Submission; if an Entrant does not already have a SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor account, that Entrant will be required to create one.

After uploading the Submission, an Entrant must complete the submission form available at https://npr.formstack.com/forms/senior_podcast_challenge (the "Submission Form").

On the Submission Form, each Entrant must provide: an explanation of the Submission (limited to 200 words); Entrant's name, e-mail address, and phone number; a link to the Submission hosted on SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor; a certification that Entrant meets the eligibility requirements stated in Section 3 above and agrees to these Official Rules; and a certification that Entrant agrees that (a) the Entrant will participate in recorded interviews with NPR or NPR member station journalists if the Entrant's Submission is selected as a Winner; and (b) Sponsor and the Sponsor's member stations may use the Submission and any recordings of interviews conducted with the Entrant, on a worldwide, perpetual, gratis and royalty-free basis in any media and for any purpose.

By completing the Submission Form, each Entrant agrees to be bound by NPR's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Each Entrant must comply with all Submission requirements. Entry is not complete until an Entrant has uploaded the Submission to SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor and submitted a complete Submission Form.

An Entrant must completely and accurately submit all required information to enter, and must timely cooperate with all requests for additional information or documents that the Sponsor may request in order to verify eligibility and compliance with these Official Rules.

The Sponsor's clock is the official timekeeping device for the Contest. The Sponsor is not responsible for late or unsuccessful attempts to enter.

Incomplete, corrupted, untimely, or unintelligible Submissions or Submission Forms will be disqualified. If for any reason an Entrant's entry is confirmed to have been erroneously deleted, lost, or otherwise destroyed or corrupted, that Entrant's sole remedy is another entry in the Contest to the extent the submission of an additional entry is deemed feasible by the Sponsor, in its sole discretion.

The Sponsor reserves the right to determine, in its sole discretion, which entries have satisfied the entry requirements and to disqualify any Submission it believes is not consistent with the spirit and theme of the Contest.

AN ELIGIBLE ENTRANT MUST SUBMIT AN ENTRY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THESE OFFICIAL RULES. NO OTHER METHOD OF SUBMISSION WILL BE ACCEPTED.

5. JUDGING. Judging will begin on or about December 1, 2026, and will end on or about January 15, 2027. There will be two (2) rounds of judging. Initially, all Submissions that meet the requirements listed in Section 4 above will be reviewed by a panel of preliminary judges selected in the Sponsor's sole discretion, that will consist primarily of members of NPR's Society & Culture Desk (the "Preliminary Judges"). The Preliminary Judges will judge Submissions on the following criteria:

Does the Submission tell a compelling story or teach us something new and important? Is it structured in a way that makes sense and keeps listeners engaged? Can we easily follow the story you're telling or the information you're explaining? Have you spent time editing — cutting out unnecessary information or repetition and making sure the main ideas come through clearly?

We want to listen to this Submission and hear your voices. Do we hear the unique voices of you and your community? Does it have personality, or does it make us want to "fast forward"? Does it make us laugh or cry or leave us deep in thought — FEEL something? That's what we're looking for.

We're not judging you on how fancy your equipment is and we don't expect you to be an expert on recording and editing sound, but we hope you'll try. Some Submissions may use sound, or audio, in creative ways. Others may be more of an interview format. If you use sound, does it add to the story you're telling? Did you layer the audio and narration? These are some of the things we'll be looking for.

The Preliminary Judges will select approximately eight (8) Submissions as "Finalists". A panel of at approximately ten (10) judges, including NPR staff and industry experts selected by the Sponsor in its sole discretion (the "Final Judges") will then judge these Finalists and select one (1) "Grand Prize Winner" based on the same criteria as was used by the Preliminary Judges.

6. WINNER NOTIFICATION. The potential Finalists and Grand Prize Winner, as determined by the Final Judges, will be notified by e-mail (via the e-mail address listed on the Submission Form) on or about February 1, 2027, and will be required to respond (as directed) to the notification attempt.

Failure to respond timely to the notification may result in forfeiture of participation in the Contest and, in such case, the Sponsor will select an alternate Finalist or Grand Prize Winner according to the Final Judges' results.

The potential Finalists and Grand Prize Winner may be required to execute and return a notarized affidavit of eligibility or other documents required by the Sponsor within a reasonable amount of time, as determined by the Sponsor in its sole discretion. If a potential Finalist or Grand Prize Winner cannot be contacted by e-mail after the first attempt, that potential Finalist or Grand Prize Winner may be disqualified and an alternate entry may be selected in its place from all eligible entries received according to the judging criteria described above.

The Finalists and Grand Prize Winner will be publicly announced on or about January 20, 2027.

The Sponsor reserves the right to extend or modify the winner notification and announcement schedule as the Sponsor deems necessary, in its sole discretion, to complete the verification process contemplated by these Official Rules and/or to select an alternate Finalist or Grand Prize Winner.

7. PRIZES. Each Finalist, excluding the Grand Prize Winner, will win the following "Finalist Prize": A trophy and a selection of NPR-branded merchandise (ARV $150). The Grand Prize Winner will receive the following "Grand Prize":

● The Grand Prize Winner will be invited to NPR Headquarters in Washington, DC in or around March 1, 2027 to hear coverage of their winning submission live on air on one of NPR's signature programs: Morning Edition, All Things Considered, or Weekend Edition.

● Roundtrip travel for the Grand Prize Winner and up to one (1) guest to Washington D.C., if necessary (ARV: $1,700);

● NPR will air a segment on an episode of NPR's Weekend Edition, Morning Edition or All Things Considered which will discuss the winning Submission; that segment may include portions of the Submission itself and/or recorded audio from an interview with the Grand Prize Winner.

The ARV of the Grand Prize is Two Thousand Three Hundred Dollars ($2,300.00). The total ARV of all Prizes offered in this Contest is Three Thousand Three Hundred and Fifty Dollars ($3,350.00). All amounts are in United States Dollars.

Travel Terms: The various elements of the Grand Prize will be as arranged by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Travel and hotel use must be aligned with Grand Prize Winner's attendance at NPR.

Roundtrip travel to Washington, D.C. is only available from major airports or rail terminals in the fifty United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (via airline or ground transportation, at NPR's discretion, depending on origin).

Any airline tickets or train tickets shall be coach tickets. Hotel accommodations will be for one (1) double-standard room. Other restrictions may apply.

Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to change the dates of travel. Sponsor will notify Finalists/Grand Prize Winners in the event of a change in itinerary.

It is the responsibility of the Grand Prize Winner and their guest to arrive at the airport, station, and/or point of departure on time for their departure and obtain and possess all required travel documents. Sponsor has no responsibility for lost or stolen tickets and/or travel documents, baggage, flight or train delays, or any other occurrences beyond its control.

No refund or compensation will be made in the event of the cancellation or delay of any flights or other means of transportation or travel accommodations. Sponsor has no responsibility for a Grand Prize Winner's inability or failure to accept or use any part of the prize as described herein. The Grand Prize Winner and their guest must comply with all check-in requirements, including the presentation of a major credit card. Unused components of the prize have no redeemable cash value. All airline tickets issued in connection with the prize are not eligible for frequent flyer miles or upgrades and cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion or offer. Travel must be round-trip. Travel is subject to the terms and conditions set forth in these Rules and those set forth by the travel prize suppliers, including but not limited to, the airline's or other transportation provider's passenger ticket contract, and any other rules or restrictions as may be determined in the sole discretion of Sponsor. ALL TRAVEL, INCLUDING FLIGHT AND/OR GROUND TRANSPORTATION AND HOTEL RESERVATIONS MUST BE ARRANGED WITH SPONSOR. ALL TRAVEL RESERVATIONS ARE SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY AND SPONSOR'S APPROVAL. NO CHANGES ARE PERMITTED ONCE ANY TRAVEL RESERVATIONS HAVE BEEN MADE, EXCEPT WITH THE WRITTEN APPROVAL OF SPONSOR. If the Grand Prize Winner is unable to use the prize during the time period determined by Sponsor, the Grand Prize Winner forfeits the prize in its entirety and if time permits, Sponsor will select a substitute winner at random from among all remaining eligible entries. If the Grand Prize Winner is disqualified and there is no time to reasonably select a substitute winner, Sponsor reserves the right not to select a substitute winner and to retain the related prize. In case of prize forfeiture, no further compensation is due to that winner from Sponsor. The Grand Prize Winner is responsible for obtaining travel insurance (and all other forms of insurance) at their option and hereby acknowledges that Sponsor has not and will not obtain or provide travel insurance or any other form of insurance.

Sponsor is not liable for any travel cancelled or prizes forfeited due to a force majeure event (including without limitation, events related to the propagation of the COVID-19 virus). In the event the Grand Prize Winner engages in behavior that (as determined by NPR in its sole discretion) is obnoxious or threatening, illegal, intended to threaten or harass any other person, or that in any way disparages or adversely affects the reputation, image, and/or goodwill of NPR or any of NPR's or its member station's services, products, trademarks, service marks, or logos, NPR reserves the right to terminate that Grand Prize Winner's visit to NPR HQ early, and send the Grand Prize Winner home with no further obligations or compensation whatsoever to the Grand Prize Winner, which may, in NPR's sole discretion, result in the Grand Prize Winner's disqualification from the Contest and forfeiture of any (and/or all) prize(s).

8. PRIZE RESTRICTIONS. Finalists and the Grand Prize Winner will be solely responsible for any and all federal, state, and/or local taxes resulting from acceptance of a Finalist Prize or Grand Prize. A Finalist Prize or Grand Prize cannot be transferred or assigned to another person. No prize substitution or changes are allowed except at the discretion of the Sponsor. A Finalist Prize or Grand Prize cannot be substituted or redeemed for cash. Each Finalist Prize and Grand Prize is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind.

9. GRANT OF RIGHTS. In consideration for an Entrant's Submission being reviewed and evaluated for this Contest, each Entrant hereby grants to the Sponsor and the Sponsor's member stations a non-exclusive, perpetual, worldwide, irrevocable, fully paid, universal license to use, copy, sublicense, transmit, distribute, publicly perform, publish, delete, make derivative works from, or display such Submission, or any portion thereof, in any media now known or hereafter devised and for any purpose.

By entering the Contest, each Entrant agrees that the Sponsor and any of the Sponsor's member stations may use the Submission on a gratis and royalty-free basis in any media and for any purpose, as described herein.

10. ENTRANT REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES, AND RELEASE. By entering, each Entrant represents and warrants to the Sponsor that: (a) the Submission is completely the original work of Entrant(s) and was created solely by Entrant(s); (b) the Submission is an original work and is not copied from any other source or previously distributed or disseminated in any media or format; and (c) the Submission is not in violation of or in conflict with the trademark, copyright, rights of privacy, rights of publicity, or any other rights of any kind or nature of any other person or entity. By submitting an entry, each Entrant agrees to release the Sponsor and its parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries, promotional partners, member stations, and agents, and all others associated with the development and execution of this Contest, and the officers, directors, and employees of each of the foregoing, from any and all claims and liabilities arising from or in connection with participation in this Contest, including, without limitation claims for injury, loss, or damage of any kind resulting from participation in this Contest or acceptance or use of any prize, and claims based on rights of privacy, rights of publicity, false light, defamation, copyright, and/or trademark infringement relating to the submission or exploitation of Entrant's Submission. If an Entrant is a California resident, such Entrant hereby waives California Civil Code Section 1542, which states: "A general release does not extend to claims which the creditor does not know or suspect to exist in his or her favor at the time of executing the release, which, if known by him or her must have materially affected his or her settlement with the debtor."

Each Entrant further agrees to release SoundCloud, Podbean, and Anchor from any and all liability associated with this Contest or receipt or use of any prizes.

WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, EVERYTHING REGARDING THIS CONTEST IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, SO SOME OF THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY. CHECK LOCAL LAWS FOR ANY RESTRICTIONS OR LIMITATIONS REGARDING THESE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS.

Except where prohibited by law, by accepting a Prize, each winner hereby grants Sponsor and its representatives an irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive and sub-licensable right and license to use, distribute, and publicly display the winner's name and information about the prize award, in any way, at any time, in any and all media, including without limitation, for use in advertising and marketing, without any additional approval or consideration. By accepting a Prize, each winner represents and warrants that they have the right to grant the foregoing license.

11. GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AGREE (I) THE CONTEST PARTIES SHALL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR SPECIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR CONNECTED WITH (A) THE CONTEST OR (B) ANY PRIZE AWARDED, AND (II) YOUR REMEDIES FOR ANY CLAIMS RELATING THE CONTEST ARE LIMITED TO YOUR ACTUAL OUT-OF-POCKET EXPENSES OF PARTICIPATION IN THE CONTEST (IF ANY).

The Sponsor reserves the right to terminate, modify, or suspend this Contest due to any of an act of god; unavoidable accident; epidemic; fire; blackout; act of public enemy; war, riot, or civil commotion; enactment, rule, order, or act of government, governmental instrumentality, or tribunal; strike, lockout, or other labor dispute; inclement weather; the recapture of any time period scheduled for the live broadcast of a program for an event of national importance or emergency; failure of technical facilities; failure of third-party software or services; failure of essential production or technical personnel to appear or be available for production or broadcast; or other cause beyond the Sponsor's control. The Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, illegible, incomplete, damaged, mutilated, misdirected, misdelivered, or delayed entries, or for technical or human errors or failures of any kind in connection with the submission, transmission, processing, or judging of entries.

THE SPONSOR WILL NOT BE OBLIGATED TO AWARD ANY PRIZE THAT RELATES TO OR ARISES OUT OF IMPROPER OR MISTAKEN PRIZE NOTIFICATION, OPERATION, OR FUNCTION OF THIS CONTEST.

THE SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO CHANGE ANY TERM OF THESE OFFICIAL RULES OR TO ADDRESS ANY ISSUE THAT ARISES WITH UPDATES OR AMENDMENTS TO THESE OFFICIAL RULES AT ANY TIME UP TO THE DATE THAT THE GRAND PRIZE WINNERS ARE SELECTED.

ALL DECISIONS BY THE SPONSOR AND JUDGES ARE FINAL AND BINDING.

12. GOVERNING LAW. This Contest is governed by the internal laws of the District of Columbia without regard to principles of conflict of laws. All cases and claims pertaining to this Contest must be brought in a court of competent jurisdiction in the District of Columbia.

13. PRIVACY POLICY. Any personal information supplied by an Entrant to the Sponsor will be subject to NPR's Privacy Policy and the supplemental terms of these Official Rules. By entering the Contest, each Entrant grants the Sponsor permission to share that Entrant's e-mail address and any other personally identifiable information of the Entrant with SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor (as applicable) for the purposes of administering the Contest and prize fulfillment. Each Entrant agrees that the Sponsor may share information submitted by Entrant with the Sponsor's member stations. The Sponsor will not sell, rent, transfer, or otherwise disclose an Entrant's personal data to any third party other than as described above herein or in the Sponsor's privacy policy.

14. OFFICIAL RULES AND WINNER'S LIST. For a copy of these Official Rules, visit npr.org/seniorpodcastchallenge or send a self-addressed, stamped envelope for receipt by November 30, 2026, to: Official Rules, "NPR Senior Podcast Challenge," ATTN: NPR Education Team, c/o National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002. For a list of the Finalists and Grand Prize Winner, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Winners List, "NPR Senior Podcast Challenge," ATTN: NPR Education Team, c/o National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002. Requests received without a self-addressed and stamped envelope will not be fulfilled.

This Contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor. Any questions or comments regarding this Contest should be directed to the Sponsor and not to SoundCloud, Podbean, or Anchor.