Debbie Millman will receive On Air Fest’s 2025 Audio Vanguard Award, TheWrap can exclusively reveal.
Millman –the host of the long-running and highly acclaimed podcast “Design Matters” and the editorial director for PrintMag.com – will accept the award and be interviewed by Ashley C. Ford on Feb. 20.
“I’ve been coming to On Air Fest since its inception,” Millman said. “In that time I’ve watched the festival grow from a passionate tribe of podcasters and fans into an industry phenomenon, and then some. It is an honor to be accepting this magnificent award from this pioneering organization.”
On Air Fest has presented the Vanguard Award since 2020 in celebration of a digital media thought leader whose work has advanced audio storytelling and created a longstanding legacy.
Millman began her podcast in 2005 on a telephone modem. “Design Matters” was the world’s first podcast about design and the first design podcast distributed free on iTunes. Millman joins a group of previous Audio Vanguard Award recipients that includes Malcolm Gladwell, Audie Cornish, Jad Abumrad, Terry Gross and Ira Glass.
“Debbie’s endless curiosity in people is astonishing. She always finds the magic in their stories and the true creativity in their work,” Scott Newman, founder and festival director of On Air Fest, said. “Debbie Millman is a world class listener, thinker, designer and audio maker. A true vanguard of podcasts.”
On Air Fest 2025 runs from Feb. 19–21 and will also include Anderson Cooper, Anna Martin, Anna Sale, Audie Cornish, Bon Iver, Craig Finn, Daniel Lanois, Dan Taberski, Hunter Harris, Jad Abumrad, James Austin Johnson, Jemele Hill, Kareem Rahma, Krista Tippett, Laraaji, Lonnie Ali, Penn Badgley, Peyton Dix, Rosie Perez, Sam Sanders, Seth Meyers & Josh Meyers, Taylor Lorenz, The Kid Mero and Tonya Mosley.
