Hey listeners, I know it might feel like 20,000 Hertz is this big, super established show from some big respectable podcast network.

And most of the time, I'm happy to have people think that our show operates just like my podcasting heroes do,

like Radio Lab or This American Life, or 99% Invisible.

But the reality is, we're a small, independent show with no network or parent

company supporting us. Our team is just a handful of people working hard to keep this show going.

In a normal year, we often barely break even. It pays for its own costs, but for me, this is

pretty much a passion project. And when times are tough

financially, it can threaten to end our show, which actually almost happened last winter.

Now, fortunately, things evened out and were still here, but it was a harsh reminder of just how

fragile this show is. To pull back the curtain a little more,

a few years ago, there was a bubble in the podcast industry,

and that's when our ad revenue was at its highest.

But ever since then, the price that advertisers are willing to pay for a podcast ad has been going down each year.

As a result, we rely more and more on the money we make from our premium subscribers, and

that's where you come in. If you value what we do, and you want to keep hearing new episodes,

then please sign up for our premium feed. Take a minute right now to open up your browser

and type in 20k.org slash plus. If you're on Apple Podcasts, you can just pull up 20,000 Hertz and tap subscribe.

Once you do that and you're subscribed, you'll get our entire catalog with zero ads,

but we still keep the mystery sound in there because everyone likes those. And on top of all of

this, starting in 2026, you'll get the episodes three days early.

I love making this show so much, and I want to keep making it.

But I can't do it without you.

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