All Access Exclusive: May PPM Analysis

Exclusive Analysis Of N.Y., L.A. And Chicago

RADIOCRUNCH principals KEVIN MCCABE and ANTHONY ACAMPORA are back with the latest PPM demo analysis from MAY.

New York

CLEAR CHANNEL: The company dominated the 25-54 money demo, landing the top-four stations. AC WLTW retained the #1 position, while Top 40 WHTZ (Z100) and Classic Rock WAXQ switched positions and now rank 2nd and 3rd respectively. Rhythmic AC WKTU -- which has undergone a musical adjustment -- rose to 4th place.

The same four stations also topped the 18-49 demo -- albiet in a different order: Z100, WLTW, WKTU and WAXQ. However, sister Urban WWPR (POWER 105) came in 6th 18-49, giving CLEAR CHANNEL five of the top six.

CBS: Top 40 WXRK (92-3 NOW-FM) has yet to take hold. The station slid from 10th to 12th 18-34. It eas up slightly, from 17th to 16th 18-49 and 20th to 19th 25-54. Musically, CLEAR CHANNEL moved WKTU more current-based and has left NOW with less of a music hole between Z100, WKTU and POWER 105.

Good news for Classic Hits WCBS-F, which moved into 6th place 25-54 and achieved its best shares since SEPTEMBER 2008.

The launch of METS baseball has fueled Sports WFAN-A, which soared from 15th in MARCH to 8th in APRIL to 7th in MAY 25-54.

YANKEES baseball also aided News WCBS-A as they rose from 14th to 12th 25-54. AC WWFS (FRESH) is just short of the top 10, but moved from 12th to 11th 25-54

EMMIS: Rhythmic WQHT (HOT 97) has also undergone a tightening of music rotations, spinning their power rotation songs quite a bit more. HOT ranked a solid 2nd 18-34, beating out rival WWPR (which ranked 3rd in that demo). HOT 97 also rose from 6th to 4th 18-49 and was the only non-CLEAR CHANNEL station in the top 6.

Urban AC WRKS was down for a fourth straight month, sliding to 9th place.

AAA WRXP has seen a bit of a bump since the format change of Rock WXRK to Top 40, and was up in share for a fourth straight month. WRXP tied for 17th 25-54.

CITADEL: Good news for Hot AC WPLJ -- which jumped from 10th to 8th and landed its best month since DECEMBER. 'PLJ also leapt from 9th to 6th 18-49.

Talk WABC tied for 17th 25-54.

Others: INNER CITY Urban AC remained the Urban leader 25-54 -- ranking 5th in MAY (off from 3rd in APRIL) ... SBS Tropical WSKQ dropped for a fifth straight month -- falling all the way from #1 in JANUARY to 10th in MAY. Sister Spanish Contemporary WPAT ranked 16th. 

Los Angeles

Both CBS and CLEAR CHANNEL had some great stories to share in MAY, with the battle between Top 40 rivals heating up and the demise of EMMIS '80s KMVN sending some listening to other places. CLEAR CHANNEL owned the top-3 spots 25-54.

CLEAR CHANNEL: Despite the competitive onslaught of CBS rival KLSX (AMP RADIO), Top 40 KIIS bounced back nicely in MAY, taking the #1 position among adults 18-34, 18-49, and 25-54. While KIIS shares were down from before AMP's launch, KIIS held up very well and the Top 40 shares in LOS ANGELES have expanded.

Hot AC KBIG (104-3 MY-FM) slipped back to 2nd 25-54, but remained extremely strong. MY-FM was also 2nd 18-49 and 5th 18-34.

The loss of '80s-based KMVN was sure to help CLEAR CHANNEL's wall of women radio stations. AC KOST was up for a 4th straight month and climbed to 3rd 25-54 ,giving CLEAR CHANNEL the top-3 stations 25-54 in L.A.

One station that likely benefited the most from KMVN's flip is Rhythmic AC KHHT (HOT 92-3). The station has undergone a musical transition, leaning more upbeat and adding more Freestyle and Disco to its music mix. KHHT soared from 18th to 11th 25-54.

Alternative KYSR (98-7) moveed from 14th to 12th 25-54, 13th to 10th 18-49, and 9th to 7th 18-34, as it only trails CBS rival KROQ in the latter demo by a hair.

Unlike NEW YORK, we have no AM stations inside the top 10 in L.A. 25-54. However, CLEAR CHANNEL Talk KFI-A leads the AM facilities and ranked tied for 12th in the cell.

A boost for Sports KLAC thanks to the NBA playoffs for the LAKERS saw the station deliver its best 25-54 ratings ever in PPM.

CBS: While CLEAR CHANNEL had the top-3 stations 25-54, CBS actually had more stations (four) inside the top 10 in the demo.

Adult Hits KCBS-F (JACK) climbed to 4th place 25-54, tying for its third-best ratings performance in the meter. JACK has seen growth since KLSX flipped from Talk to Top 40 and '80s-based KMVN went away.

Alternative KROQ remained a solid 7th 25-54, and 6th in both the 18-49 and 18-34 cells. KROQ's lead over KYSR is smallest 18-34, but it still won 18-49 and 25-54 by a decent margin.

Top 40 KLSX (AMP RADIO) stayed red-hot. It moved into 2nd place 18-34, trailing only KIIS. It also jumped into a tie for 3rd place 18-49 (up from 6th in APRIL), and moved from a tie for 12th into 8th place 25-54. AMP has done very well, pulling large numbers of Hispanic listeners -- with a larger Hispanic comp than KIIS and POWER 106.

Classic Hits KRTH had their 3rd lowest rated month and second lowest rank month in PPM, dropping to 10th in the 25-54 demo.

A rough month for Smooth AC KTWV (THE WAVE) -- which fell all the way from 10th in APRIL to 18th in MAY. It was KTWV's worst 25-54 ranker since the launch of PPM.

News outlets KNX-A and KFWB-A ranked 19th and 32nd 25-54 respectively.

EMMIS: Rhythmic KPWR (POWER 106) has been slightly affected by the launch of AMP RADIO. AMP is especially strong with the large Hispanic population in LOS ANGELES. POWER 106 ranked 3rd 18-34 in MAY, trailing both KIIS and AMP -- although the shares were very close. POWER 106 ranked 9th 18-49 and 12th 25-54.

CITADEL: Classic Rock KLOS moved up slightly from 17th to 15th 25-54. Share-wise, the station has been essentially flat since the beginning of 2009. Talk sister KABC-A has yet to see a benefit from the LOS ANGELES DODGERS, which has the MLB's best record. KABC-A came in a tie for 33rd with adults 25-54.

OTHERS: OTHERS: MT. WILSON Country KKGO slides from 18th in APRIL to 22nd in MAY 25-54, while BONNEVILLE Triple A KSWD (THE SOUND) ranked 27th 25-54 for a second straight month … On the Urban tip, MAGIC Urban KDAY ranked 35th 25-54 and TAXI Urban AC KJLH came in 45th. Much of the markets listening by African Americans is actually going to CLEAR CHANNEL Rhythmic AC KHHT (HOT 92-3), CBS Smooth AC KTWV (THE WAVE), and EMMIS Rhythmic KPWR (POWER 106).

UNIVISION: The market's leading Spanish-language broadcaster has seen some decline in the meter in LOS ANGELES, with the arrival of some new competitors.

Spanish Contemporary KLVE did have a good MAY, rising from 9th in APRIL to 5th this month 25-54 and soars from 10th to 3rd 18-49.

However, Spanish Adult Hits sister KRCD (RECUERDO) slid all the way from 3rd to 9th 25-54, and 3rd to 11th 18-49.

Regional Mexican KSCA (LA NUEVA) also slid to its lowest PPM numbers yet, dropping to 15th 25-54.

SBS: The company has the market's leading Regional Mexican outlet with KLAX (LA RAZA), ranking 5th 25-54 and 3rd 18-49.

Latin Urban KXOL (LATINO 96-3) continued its decline, dropping all the way to 14th 18-34 and 20th 18-49.

LIBERMAN: The company has seen Regional Mexican trombo KBUE/KBUA/KEBN (QUE BUENA) slide over the last few months. It dropped from 10th to 15th 25-54, 10th to 12th 18-49, and 6th to 9th 18-34.

ENTRAVISION: Regional Mexican synchrocast KDLD/KDLE (EL GATO) continued to deliver sizably larger numbers than predecessor INDIE 103.1. EL GATO grabbed its highest numbers to date, ranking 17th 18-34 and 22nd 18-49. The music-intensive station has pulled from a number of competitors, most notably QUE BUENA and LA NUEVA.

Spanish Adult Hits KLYY (JOSE) is still the company's best performing station as it ranked 19th 25-54, while Spanish Contemporary KSSE (SUPER ESTRELLA) continued to struggle, ranking 26th 25-54.

Meanwhile, GROUPO RADIO CENTRO Spanish Contemporary KXOS (formerly KMVN) has not made impact at all despite an exortibant outdoor campaign. The station ranked 25th 25-54 in MAY, losing almost 50% of the shares it had as '80s KMVN (MOVIN') under EMMIS.

Chicago

BONNEVILLE Hot AC WTMX (THE MIX) remained the market's top station with Adults 18-49 and 25-54, while UNIVISION Regional Mexican continued to command the top spot in the younger cells.

BONNEVILLE: With a mix of hits both pop and rhythmic, Hot AC WTMX held for a third consecutive month at #1 among 18-49 adults in the competitive CHICAGO market. WTMX widened its lead at the top of 25-54 as it employed a targeted adult music mix from artists such as ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS, KELLY CLARKSON and LADY GAGA.

Classic Rock WDRV (THE DRIVE) had occupied the top spot 25-54 as recently as MARCH 2009, but now ranks 4th in MAY, down from #3 in APRIL. WDRV maintained top 10 18-49 in MAY but slipped from 8th place in APRIL to 9th in MAY. Rock shares are far stronger in the CHICAGO market overall, especially in comparison to NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES.

The principal competitor to WDRV is, of course, EMMIS Rock WLUP -- and THE LOOP got a couple of major boosts in MAY, which could explain WDRV dipping in both demos.

'80s-based AC WILV fell out of the top 10 25-54 in the MAY PPM monthly and is in a three-way tie at #11 with CLEAR CHANNEL AC WLIT (LITE) and CBS AAA WXRT. WILV experienced a steeper decline 18-49 by moving from 9th in APRIL to a tie at 15th. However, it was well ahead of CBS's WCFS in the cell.

CBS: The company landed three of the top-10 stations in the important 25-54 cell.

WUSN surged from 5th in APRIL to #2 18-49 in MAY. Perhaps even more impressive was WUSN's surge 25-54, as it moved from 7th to 3rd in the lucrative demo with decent share growth to go with it. WUSN is one of the standout Country format performers in the PPM world -- and showed the continued appeal of the music in America's 3rd-largest market.

All-News WBBM-A cooled as the CHICAGO weather warmed. After hitting the top of the 25-54 demo in JANUARY and FEBRUARY, WBBM-A placed 5th.

Rhythmic B96 moved to 4th 18-34 in MAY,  up from 6th place in APRIL. There was growth 18-49 for B96 with a jump into the top 10 in MAY -- ranking #10 and up from #12 in APRIL. 

AAA WXRT slipped to #11 in MAY and ties for that position with AC outlets WILV and WLIT.

AC WCFS (FRESH) slipped to #23 25-54 in the MAY results -- down from 21st in APRIL. Other than its #11 ranking 25-54 in the PPM Holiday book from last DECEMBER, WCFS has not appeared in the top 15 this year and has now dipped below #20.

In the top 10 25-54 for a second straight month was Rock-slanted Adult Hits WJMK (JACK-FM). WJMK finished 9th 25-54, and has seen growth since jettisoning STEVE DAHL in mornings and moving to a more tightly focused rock-based approach heavy in the '70s and '80s.

Sports WSCR-A ranked 25th, in a tie with WGRB-A.

CLEAR CHANNEL: For the fourth time in five months, Urban AC WVAZ (V103) was up and held the #2 spot in rank 25-54. It also ranked top 5 18-49.

Urban WGCI ranked 5th 18-34, 8th 18-49, and 14th 25-54.

AC WLIT slid into a tie for 11th place 25-54 -- off from 9th in APRIL, but tied with WILV and well ahead of WCFS. It is not the performer that CC's WLTW/NEW YORK or KOST/LOS ANGELES are, but WLIT has quite a bit more direct competition.

Top 40 WKSC WAs the dominant English-language outlet in CHICAGO among 18-34s. WKSC has ranked #2 18-34 from JANUARY to MAY -- five consecutive PPM monthlies. With its heavily-Rhythmic Top 40 stance, WKSC has stayed ahead of CBS Rhythmic rival WBBM-F (B96) in the 18-34 cell for all of 2009 thus far. WKSC maintained top 5 18-49 but slipped from 3rd place in APRIL to 4th in MAY.

In its final month on the air, Smooth AC WNUA dipped to 24th 25-54.

EMMIS: The big news out of Merchandise Mart Plaza in CHICAGO was the impressive growth in all three demos of Rock WLUP (THE LOOP). WLUP surged from 14th in a tie with WJMK in APRIL to 6th place 18-49 in MAY. In the 25-54 cell, WLUP moved from a 9th place tie in APRIL with WJMK to a 5th place tie in MAY with WBBM-A. WLUP, of course, has a 32-year Rock legacy in CHICAGO -- and EMMIS has brought the station to new heights -- as evidenced by this strong PPM monthly.

Alternative WKQX (Q101) saw growth 18-34 with a move to 14th in a tie with WCFS from 17th in APRIL. Q101 also got a boost 18-49 and ranked 21st.

CITADEL: Classic Hits WLS-F (TRUE OLDIES 94.7) dipped from 6th to 8th 25-54, but remains a consistent top-10 performer.

Talk WLS-A slid for a fifth straight month, moving down from 9th place in JANUARY to 18th in MAY.

UNIVISION: Regional Mexican WOJO continued to claim the top spot 18-34, ranking 3rd 18-49 and 5th 18-49, pulling top 5 rankings across all three demos. That is something only WOJO and WTMX can claim in the WINDY CITY.

Spanish Adult Hits WVIV (RECUERDO) vaulted with its new format, nearly tripling its 25-54 shares from the previous Latin Urban format. RECUERDO was 16th 25-54 this month.

Spanish Contemporary WPPN was steady in 20th place 25-54.

Others: Despite the return of the CUBS, TRIBUNE News/Talk WGN-A still only ranked 16th 25-54.

CRAWFORD Urban AC WSRB got a boost with the addition of TOM JOYNER, rising to its highest PPM shares to date 25-54. However, Urban sister WPWX dropped from 3rd to 9th 18-34 and 7th to 20th 18-49.

SBS Regional Mexican WLEY rose from 14th to 10th 25-54 and 10th to 7th 18-49.

You can reach KEVIN at kevin@radiocrunch.com or ANTHONY at anthony@radiocrunch.com.

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