Wild Nevadacast Podcast Named
Signal Awards Listener’s Choice Finalist
Voting is open now through October 9, 2025 at vote.signalaward.com
RENO, NV (SEP 26, 2025) – The PBS Reno-produced podcast Wild Nevadacast has been named a Signal Awards Listener’s Choice Finalist. The series is hosted by Dave Santina and serves as a complement to the award-earning television series Wild Nevada.
The Wild Nevadacast episode featuring Mark Maynard earned the Signal Awards Listener’s Choice Finalist status. Maynard wrote and directed Piconland: The Quest for the Picon Punch.
Picon Punch was named the official drink of the State of Nevada in 2025 following legislation signed by Governor Joe Lombardo. A Picon is made with Amaro liqueur, a splash of soda water, grenadine, a lemon twist, and a bit of brandy.
“It’s an unexpected but welcome surprise to have another podcast in the Listener’s Choice category,” said Santina. “After PBS Reno had Refugee’s Daughter in the running last year, we are thrilled to see Wild Nevadacast in this year’s competition. I have a fond memory of recording that episode with Mark Maynard, who was a great storyteller that day AND made an excellent Picon Punch while doing so!”
The Signal Awards, which recognize the podcasts that define culture, champions a diverse range of storytellers, from underground originals to front-page icons.
“For four years running, the Signal Awards has reminded us of the extraordinary breadth of voices and creativity in audio,” said Jemma Rose Brown, General Manager of the Signal Awards. “This year’s Finalists showcase not just great entertainment, but also education, activism, innovation, and joy. These awards are an incredible example of how audio continues to evolve and capture cultural moments in real time.”
All Finalists are now currently competing for the Listener’s Choice Awards, which are voted on by podcast fans around the globe. Fans worldwide are invited to help crown winners in the Listener’s Choice Awards, which saw record participation in 2024 with a 43% increase in voter participation from 2023. Voting is open now through October 9, 2025 at vote.signalaward.com.
Winners of this year’s Listener’s Choice Awards will be announced on October 15, 2025. At this time, the Signal Awards Judging Academy will also announce the winners of bronze, silver, and gold across each category.
About PBS Reno
As of November 2024, PBS Reno is enjoyed by more than 540,000 monthly viewers in northern and central Nevada and northeastern California across several platforms including three broadcast channels (PBS Reno 5.1, Reno Create 5.2, and PBS KIDS on PBS Reno 5.3), a YouTube channel, YouTube TV, online, livestreams, and digital platforms. PBS Reno provides PBS national programming and award-earning, locally-produced content, with many local segments posted weekly to PBS Reno’s YouTube Channel. PBSReno.org provides engaging interactive content, including the video portal at watch.PBSReno.org that streams all locally-produced content and most PBS national content. PBS Reno serves students, teachers, parents and caregivers through immersive educational services including Curiosity Classroom Workshops that bring classroom lessons to life with standards-based lessons and activities. Through the support of local corporations and foundations, as well as thousands of individual members, PBS Reno has been delivering public television and educational services to the communities it serves since September 29, 1983.
About The Signal Awards
The Signal Awards is mission-focused on uplifting the podcast medium by recognizing the most potent, meaningful and unprecedented audio projects being made today. Setting this standard of excellence is The Signal Awards Judging Academy, an esteemed collective made up of the architects, instigators and trailblazers of the medium. Once a year, The Academy collectively listens closely to thousands of hours of audio, selecting the strongest work to be elevated to the status of award-winning.
Signal accepts entries as Shows, Limited Series & Specials, Individual Episodes and Brand Storytelling across a broad spectrum of genre and craft categories including Best Host; Most Innovative Audio Experience; Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion; Best Video Podcast; News & Politics; Best Editing; and many more. You can find a detailed breakdown of award categories here. Each fall, The Signal Awards present Gold, Silver and Bronze Winners, and the listening public votes for their favorite Finalists to take home the additional coveted honor of Listener’s Choice Award in each category. Garnering more than 170,000 public votes in just two weeks from nearly 75,000 fans around the world, 2024’s Listener’s Choice Awards drew the largest voting body in The Signal Awards’ history, reaffirming the growing significance that podcasts and their creators have in listeners’ life patterns and daily routines.
Contact us:
Membership Questions: membership@pbsreno.org
Programming Hotline: programming@pbsreno.org
Phone: 775.600.0555
Address: 1670 N. Virginia St. • Reno NV 89503