First ABC Podcast Makes Jump To Radio With New Weekend ‘Start Here’ Edition.

President Trump has been known to post messages on social media late at night and throughout the weekend, creating headlines in his wake. With that in mind, ABC Audio is launching a weekend edition of the morning news podcast “Start Here,” which will be available as an hour-long weekend show for radio stations.

“The expansion of Start Here into radio programming underscores ABC News’ dedication to delivering engaging, insightful journalism and commitment to meeting audience demand for high-quality, trustworthy reporting anytime, anywhere, and on any platform,” Liz Alesse, Vice President of ABC Audio, said in a release. “We’re excited to introduce new listeners to Start Here, extend the show’s multiplatform reach, and further solidify ABC News’ leadership in the audio space.” The hourlong weekend edition of the series will be double the length of the weekday edition, giving host Brad Mielke more time for in-depth conversations with ABC News correspondents, experts, and newsmakers.

The radio edition of “Start Here Weekend” will be available to ABC News Radio affiliates beginning Feb. 21. The network says it will send the radio version to stations on Friday afternoons, giving them flexibility in when it airs during the weekend. The expansion of the series from podcast to radio is the first of its kind for ABC Audio, which says the aim is to grow audience access to the series across the audio space.

The morning news podcast space has grown crowded in recent years, but the Mielke show is among its old guards. It debuted in March 2018. ABC says the show is the third-most downloaded of all major ABC podcasts and has retained a highly engaged audience show. “Start Here” maintains the highest listen-through rate of any ABC podcast.