The Santa Monica Daily Press’s narrative podcast “A Developing Story” surged to the top of local news podcast rankings at the end of the year, demonstrating how community journalism can resonate far beyond city limits in the digital age.
The six-episode series was the No. 1 position for Local News podcasts on the Goodpods platform and also ranked first among Los Angeles-based podcasts in monthly listener charts. The show has broken into broader national categories, placing in the top 40 on Goodpods’ national Daily News chart and top 60 in News Commentary — a remarkable achievement for a local outlet.
According to podcast index Listen Notes, “A Developing Story” ranks in the top 5% of podcasts worldwide, reflecting an audience that extends well beyond Santa Monica.
Launched in late 2025, the limited-run series tackles one of Santa Monica’s most contentious issues: housing development. While the podcast’s focus on the city’s housing element, density debates and affordability struggles is firmly local, the themes strike a broader chord across California and the nation.
The show uses Santa Monica’s experience to explore challenges relevant to communities nationwide, helping attract listeners outside its home city while staying rooted in local reporting. Each episode leverages the Daily Press’s reporting to make complex topics like zoning laws and the “builder’s remedy” loophole accessible and engaging to the public.
SMDP Publisher Publisher Ross Furukawa said that by tackling the regional housing crisis, the Santa Monica Daily Press has demonstrated the value of local news in providing context and clarity on issues that might otherwise seem distant or opaque, He said the the podcast format allows for nuance and narrative depth, turning municipal matters into relatable stories.
Producing a high-quality podcast while running a daily newspaper requires significant professionalism and dedication. “A Developing Story” was developed and produced by the Daily Press’s small team — including Publisher Furukawa and Editor Matthew Hall — in addition to their regular news duties. Producer and host Brian Peter Falk also devoted significant time to the project.
The series represents the paper’s first venture into narrative podcasting, marking an innovative expansion of its journalism.
“In this increasingly diverse media landscape, it’s important to reach as many people as we can, especially on important issues,” Furukawa said. “Producing a podcast series is a natural evolution of that idea. Plus, it’s storytelling at its best.”
The podcast explores topics including the controversial housing element, the builder’s remedy rules, density, gentrification and affordability. Local Santa Monicans interviewed for the series include Mayor Lana Negrete, former city councilmembers Gleam Davis and Phil Brock, Santa Monica Development Corporation Executive Director Tara Barauskas, and architect and slow growth advocate Mario Fonda-Bonardi.
Falk is an award-winning local filmmaker and journalist whose producing credits include the Robert Redford film “The Conspirator” and last year’s Emmy-nominated PBS original series “Hope in the Water.”
“A Developing Story” marks Falk’s first narrative podcast series.
Falk said he was eager to expand his storytelling repertoire and had always been interested in podcasting.
He said development was an obvious choice for the series as it’s hard to argue that there’s a more contentious topic in California than housing development and the specifics felt like a perfect space for a long-form narrative podcast.
Falk, Furukawa and Hall produced the series, which Falk described as making “a complex issue accessible, personal, and deeply affecting.”
The series is available on all major podcast platforms, including Apple, and can be accessed at www.adevelopingstory.com and https://www.smdp.com/tag/podcast.
editor@smdp.com