Programs about influential musicians Sly Stone and Fela Kuti are among the 2026 Peabody Award winners announced late Wednesday (April 23). This year’s winners will be honored at a ceremony on May 31.
The documentary Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius) and the podcast Fela Kuti: Fear No Man were both honored in the arts category. Other winners included Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the long-running late-night talk show which survived a perilous moment this season; Pee-Wee as Himself, a documentary about the children’s entertainer who appealed to audiences of all ages; and Heated Rivalry, the envelope-pushing TV series about gay hockey players that had a broader cultural reach than anyone could have predicted.
Winners were chosen by a unanimous vote of 28 jurors from more than 1,000 entries across television, podcasts/radio and the web in entertainment, news, documentary, arts, children’s/youth, public service and interactive/immersive programming and media.
“The winners of the 86th annual Peabody Awards reflect Peabody’s mission to honor storytelling that has the potential to change culture,” Jeffrey P. Jones, executive director of Peabody, said in a statement.
Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson directed Sly Lives!, of which the Peabodys said: “More than a music documentary or bio-doc of one of the most successful bands of the 1960s and 1970s, the film interrogates the personal and professional costs that artistic success has on groundbreaking Black artists such as Stone, especially when no roadmap exists for how they should navigate the pressures and anxieties of being such artistic firsts.” Questlove won both an Oscar and a Grammy for his 2021 documentary Summer of Soul (…or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised).
Jad Abumrad produced Fela Kuti: Fear No Man for Audible. The Peabodys said the podcast “explores the life of musical genius Fela Kuti, using his story as a lens to examine themes of liberation, civil resistance, and the history of Nigeria. Through more than 200 interviews and a blend of entertainment and education, the podcast highlights Kuti’s impact while incorporating the voices of women in his life and showcasing his musical works as anthems for freedom.”
Kuti is widely regarded as the father of Afrobeats. The musician, who died in 1997 at age 58, received a posthumous lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy earlier this year and will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a musical influence later this year.
Stone, who led Sly & the Family Stone to three No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Everyday People,” “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)” and “Family Affair,” has already received both of those honors. The band was inducted into the Rock Hall in 1993, their first year of eligibility. Stone received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2017.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! was suspended for a week last September following a controversial remark by Jimmy Kimmel about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Kimmel’s program has received 14 consecutive Primetime Emmy nominations for outstanding talk series (or in a predecessor category, outstanding variety series), but it has yet to win.
The Peabodys said of Jimmy Kimmel Live!: “While ABC’s late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! has been on the air for 23 years, this season proved unprecedented in American television history as the show found itself ‘suspended’ indefinitely by the network due directly to pressure from the Chairman of the FCC. Kimmel, a persistent critic and scathing ridiculer of President Donald Trump, was taken off the air, then reinstated after public uproar arose from across the ideological spectrum about the comedian’s First Amendment rights. Kimmel’s return to air was a master class in public apology for the comments about Charlie Kirk that supposedly got him suspended while nevertheless, and doggedly, asserting his rights to criticize the president and MAGA movement that sought to silence him.”
The Peabodys said of Pee-Wee as Himself: “The two-part HBO docuseries Pee-wee as Himself explores the life of Paul Reubens, who, while battling cancer, participated in extensive interviews with filmmaker Matt Wolf without revealing his diagnosis and while often trying to direct questions, raising the issue of who gets to define his narrative. By examining the contradictions in Reubens’ life as a queer performer and the layers of his public persona, the documentary presents a complex portrait that challenges notions of authenticity.”
The Peabodys saluted Heated Rivalry by saying: “Heated Rivalry is a Canadian drama series that explores how two major league hockey players navigate their fears, cultural differences, and burgeoning love amid the pressures of their sport and society. Adapted from Rachel Reid’s novel, the show balances complex themes of sexuality and emotional connection, inspiring fans and promoting non-toxic masculinity, ultimately making what was arguably the biggest cultural impact in television this year.”
Heated Rivalry won outstanding new TV series at the GLAAD Media Awards on March 5 in Los Angeles.
Entertainment titles won 11 awards. Documentary followed with 10, including two in the arts category, along with five for news, four for interactive/immersive programming and three for radio/podcast. Of the 34 total wins, HBO Max received the most awards with six, followed by Apple TV+, Disney+, Hulu, Netflix and PBS, each with two awards.
The winners of the 86th annual Peabody Awards will be celebrated on May 31 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. As previously announced, actress and podcast host Amy Poehler will receive the Peabody Career Achievement Award; director, producer and screenwriter Sterlin Harjo will receive the Peabody Trailblazer Award; multiple Oscar- and Emmy-winning creator James L. Brooks will be honored with the Peabody Industry Icon Award; and historic programmer PBS KIDS will receive the Peabody Institutional Award.
Here’s a full list of winners of the 2026 Peabody Awards.
