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800.275.2840 MORE NEWS» insideradio.com THE MOST TRUSTED NEWS IN RADIO THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2015 Radio Opportunity: Convert On Latest Good PR. After weathering a decade of slights in the consumer press, radio is notably basking in some positive media coverage. Recent stories in The New York Times and New York Observer suggest that the longtime gloom and doom narrative in the press may be changing to something sunnier—and, incidentally, more grounded in reality, and one the industry can, and should, pounce on. Top kudos came via a recent Observer story, but even the headline—“Radio—Yes, Terrestrial Radio—Is the No. 1 Medium In Terms of Reach”—points to the medium’s continued perception issue. Despite fending off competition from television, satellite radio, iPods and, most recently, streaming music services, the story notes, “Radio is far from dead.” Indeed, Nielsen’s latest cross-platform report of media usage showed 93% of U.S. adults listen to AM/FM radio weekly, compared to 87% watching television and 70% using smartphones. Now that Nielsen has validated radio as the no. 1 reach medium, the pressure is on execs to convert the news into revenues. “Anytime there is a positive message, it reinforces the strengths” of radio, says RAB president Erica Farber. And the latest Nielsen data gives the RAB another piece of positive research to use in talks with advertisers and agencies. Granted, like television, radio is up against a heavily fragmented market, preaching to advertisers who are increasingly attracted to digital media. To win ad dollars, “I would get down into the details,” says Mark McClennan, chairman elect of PRSA, a public relations industry group. “This is why radio makes sense, why it is effective. Talk about the engagement and highlight business benefits it brings to brands.” Emmis CEO Jeff Smulyan echoes that sentiment: “The perception of radio has to change. Nielsen shows we have more reach than anybody.” Getting Reach Message Out—Radio’s No. 1 Task. Several mainstream outlets picked up on Nielsen’s latest cross- platform report on industry reach, with many staying focused on TV’s position. In some of those cases, radio—the current reach leader— seemed relegated to footnote mention. A story in The Wall Street Journal highlighted TV’s strong showing, without even mentioning radio. A New York Times story offered a similar focus (with radio mentioned briefly) while USA Today noted radio’s success, before qualifying it because of its wide availability in cars. The research, and some of the mentions, indicate the early signs of a changing narrative for radio in the consumer press, but the industry has a long route to better communicating its story. “More people listen to commercial radio today than ever before,” RAB president Erica Farber says. “Radio has a significant ROI, because it works.” The RAB amasses its own collection of clippings where radio is featured prominently, including a New York Times article about radio DJs’ reaction to the recent Charleston shootings and a Rolling Stone story pointedly titled “Why Country Radio Still Matters.” Cumulus Media’s CMO Pierre Bouvard took up the cause in a recent blog post, saying the Nielsen research, “highlights the continued role of radio as a mass reach soundtrack for Americans. While TV is declining, radio is the No. 1 way to reach young, working media consumers.” Radio sales reps, he says, may be holding their heads a little higher because “they work for America’s No. 1 mass reach medium.” Westwood One NFL Airings Have Got Game. On any given Sunday, Westwood One’s broadcast of NFL play-by-play is doing better than the week before. That’s the finding of a study the network conducted with Nielsen to show that once the football ratings ball starts rolling, it doesn’t stop. Westwood’s NFL package reaches 6 million listeners aged 6 and older in the first weeks of the season, but unique reach soars 3.5 times, to more than 21 million over the rest of the schedule. Once [email protected] | 800.275.2840 PG 1 NEWS insideradio.com THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2015 the playoffs begin, NFL game action attracts 5 million new, unique listeners. By the end of the year, those 6 million Week One listeners have swelled to 21.2. million. Pierre Bouvard, chief marketing officer for Westwood One and parent Cumulus Media, says one in five men 18-to- 49 are reached by the game broadcasts, per Nielsen, and one out of four men 35-to-64. The study says 78% of the tune-in happens away from home. “At home, the TV screen is seven feet away,” Bouvard said. “In a car it’s the ‘best available screen.’” But 35% listen both in the car and at home, the study found. Westwood One does a Sunday package and Monday and Thursday games, where a lot of the listening numbers add up because it’s the only NFL game scheduled and there’s no competition from home team games. This study only looked at the 48 PPM markets. It didn’t measure the roughly half of the population measured by one-week ratings diaries. And it didn’t count the audience accumulated via Westwood One’s NFL streaming platforms and SiriusXM Radio. It’s Shaping Up To Be a Classic (Hits) Summer. Coming off an uptrend in May, classic hits furtherer strengthened its ratings position in Nielsen’s June survey in multiple markets. In St. Louis, iHeartMedia’s KLOU (103.3) has ousted perennial leader “News Talk 1120” KMOX from the top spot, with a 9.0-11.2 6+ ratings tear. That’s nearly double the 6.0 share KLOU had one year earlier and almost certainly a PPM record for the station. Detroit’s love affair with classic hits heated up in June, with CBS Radio’s WOMC (104.3) trending 7.0-7.3 among listeners aged 6+ to unseat Tigers flagship “97.1 The Ticket” WXYT-FM (8.4-7.1). Minneapolis, too, is riding the growing classic hits tide. iHeartMedia’s “Kool 108” KQQL moved 8.1-8.5, pulling into a first place tie with CHR kingpin KDWB (8.7-8.5). Classic hits continued its perch at the top in Boston, where Greater Media’s WROR (7.7-7.2) kept a 1.2 share lead over country sister WKLB-FM (5.9-6.0). In Philly the format is No. 2 in 6+ and No. 1 in 12+ on CBS Radio’s WOGL (98.1). The format gained ground in Seattle where iHeartMedia’s “95.7 The Jet” KJR-FM padded its ratings by a full share (3.9-4.9). June could be setting classic hits up for another hot summer. Last year the format quietly grew its total audience share by 10% during the summer months. ‘The Mountain’ Climbs Higher in Denver. Rock radio has long had a vice grip on the upper reaches of the Denver ratings. Now a pair of rockers have climbed even higher in the Mile High City. In Nielsen’s June survey, both Entercom classic rock “99.5 The Mountain” KQMT and iHeartMedia adult alternative KBCO (97.3) posted their largest shares of total listeners aged 6+ in more than four years. KQMT advanced 5.7-6.6 to finish first in the market, up from a 5.0 share one year ago. KBCO improved 5.9-6.2 for a second place finish, up from a 4.6 one year ago. Both numbers are station bests going all the way back to at least the Holiday 2010 survey. Denver isn’t the only city where the classics are rocking the ratings like a hurricane. Hubbard Broadcasting’s KSLX-FM (100.7) is No. 2 in Phoenix (5.3-6.1). Not only is that up from a 4.5 one year ago, it’s the station’s best since at least the Holiday 2010 survey. In Baltimore, Shamrock Communications’ “100.7 The Bay” WZBA sailed 4.1-5.2 for its best since August 2013. Classic rock also gained ratings ground in San Diego ( iHeart’s KGB-FM, up 3.4-4.0) and St. Louis (Emmis’ KSHE, 6.1-7.1). Little Station Makes Big Nostalgic Noise? That’s the Chicago Way. In big, brawny Chicago, one wouldn’t necessarily expect a low-power station operating at 87.7 FM (and, in fact, not even technically a radio station) to be making much of a dent in ratings. But classic hits “Me-TV FM” WRME-LP, operated by Weigel Broadcasting, notched a 1.6 share and a cume of 507,000 in Nielsen’s June survey, more than triple what that frequency did when Tribune Media tried to make a sports station out of it. While that number still finds “Me-TV FM” far down the list of rating entries among listeners 35-64, this LPTV station outdraws ones owned by some big media powers, notes Chicago media blogger Robert Feder, including ESPN’s WMVP AM (1000) and Cumulus Media’s WLS AM (890). And so far, it’s doing it without any on-air talent. What’s the formula? “It’s simply exposure to songs that are familiar but people haven’t been hearing much, just a little deeper and very melodic,” says Mark Zander, program director and a Chicago radio veteran who says fertile social media has helped. People who tune in hear what might seem to be an odd mix—Luther Vandross into the Bay City Rollers, for example. But that’s part of the station’s [email protected] | 800.275.2840 PG 2 NEWS insideradio.com THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2015 nostalgic charm.