Research Director, Inc. Presents Exclusive December PPM Analysis For New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, S.F., Dallas

Top-5 Markets

As you read this, the incessant parum-pa-pum-pumming of CHRISTMAS music has faded into the background. Yet, as we explore the DECEMBER survey in greater detail, we are faced with the remnants of what BURL IVES and his evil minions have wrought. The book ran from NOVEMBER 9th to DECEMBER 6th and, besides the jolliness of it all, we also dealt with the long THANKSGIVING weekend. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – in our kerchief – and the math moguls from XTRENDS – in their cap – invite you on another journey into NIELSEN world.

NEW YORK: Twinkling Lites

Not that they needed the help, but iHEARTMEDIA AC WLTW (LITE) flipped the SANTA switch at the beginning of the second week of the survey, and all that added egg nog fueled the station to its highest share of the year (7.0-8.8). ENTERCOM News WINS-A remained at #2 but ended a very strong four-book surge (6.3-5.8). The hits just kept on coming at ENTERCOM Classic Hits WCBS-F. The elves were not even a nuisance as the station moved up to #3 with its best book since AUGUST (5.5-5.7). EMMIS Urban AC WBLS slipped back to #4 (5.8-5.6) while SBS Tropical WSKQ (MEGA) advanced to #5 (4.6-4.7). One of the possible casualties of all the holiday ruckus was iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WHTZ (Z100). The station had its lowest share in over a year (4.4-4.2) yet moved up to #7. No YANKEES, no numbers. That is what appears to have driven ENTERCOM Sports WFAN-F (THE FAN) down three places to a tie at #8. The station had its lowest share since JULY (5.2-3.9).

WLTW was #1 25-54 for the eighth book in a row as the power of the Claus handed the station a huge increase. WCBS-F became the sole occupant of second place with a small increase. WBLS moved up a couple of places to #3 as it ended a three-book slide. It was tied with WHTZ, which slipped back a spot with – again – its lowest total in over a year. iHEARTMEDIA Urban WWPR (POWER) slid back to #5 with its smallest share since APRIL. It was a good month for iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKTU. The station was up three places to #8 with its best showing since AUGUST.

Why even those jaded, pesky Millennials dig the big guy. WLTW zoomed to the top of the 18-34 share with a massive increase … though it was not quite on par with last DECEMBER. WWPR remained #2 by the slimmest of margins while two stations moving in opposite directions collided at #3. EMMIS Top 40/R WQHT (HOT) was up a slot with a flat performance while WSKQ dropped from the lead with its fourth down book in a row. WHTZ also fell – to #5 – with its smallest share in over a year.

WLTW had its fourth straight up book with the 18-49 crowd and captured the crown for the second month in a row. WWPR remained at #2 but with its lowest mark since APRIL. WQHT moved up to #3 and closed the gap on its arch nemesis with a small increase. WSKQ remained at #4 with its lowest share in a year and was joined by WHTZ, which took a step backward. It was almost a three-way tie at that spot as WCBS-F had its best share in over a year and was as close as could possibly be.

LOS ANGELES: It’s Beginning To Sound A lot Like KOSTmas

iHEARTMEDIA AC KOST took the polar plunge during the first week of the survey and it appeared to work out quite nicely for the station. If you consider almost doubling your 6+ share that is. Needless to say, KOST was #1 (4.4-8.7). The remaining top five players were seemingly unaffected by all the holiday hoopla. True, iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KBIG (MY FM) dropped back to #2 but it was flat (5.9-5.9). ENTERCOM Classic Hits KRTH (K-EARTH) became a loner at #3 but also had its first up book since JUNE (4.4-4.8). iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KIIS (KISS) did take a small hit (4.8-4.5) as it dropped to #4. ENTERCOM Urban AC KTWV (THE WAVE) was flat and calm at #5 (4.2-4.2). The only other station above a four-share was iHEARTMEDIA Talk KFI-A and it was flat at #6 (4.1-4.1).

Those TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA records certainly have some power behind them. KOST more than doubled its 25-54 share and, like coursers, it flew from a tie at #7 to #1. KBIG stepped back to #2 with its lowest share since MAY while KIIS dropped back to #3 with a slight decrease. KRTH moved down to #4 but had its best book since JUNE. UNIVISION Spanish Contemporary KLVE (K-LOVE) inched up to #5 with a small increase while SBS Regional Mexican KLAX (LA RAZA) dropped three places to #6 as it ended a three-book surge. ENTERCOM Adult Hits KCBS-F (JACK) dropped to #7 with a small decrease.

How about this for leap o’ the month? KOST advanced from #13 to #1 18-34 as it – again – more than doubled its previous share. KBIG remained #2 as it got back half of last month’s loss. KIIS dropped from the Rudolph position to #3 with a flat showing. iHEARTMEDIA Alternative KYSR (ALT 98.7) stepped back to #4 with a slight decrease. ENTERCOM Top 40/M KAMP (AMP) moved into the top five for the first time in over a year. With a slight increase. KRTH made the second biggest leap o’ the month as it jumped from #14 to #6 with its highest share in over a year. It was not a particularly good month for the Urban stations. MERUELO Top 40/R KPWR (POWER) dropped to #7 while iHEARTMEDIA Urban KRRL (REAL 92.3) fell seven slots to #11. Both stations had their lowest shares in over a year. 

While not as dramatic as the previous demo, KOST did quite well 18-49. The station again more than doubled its share as it rose from #8 to #1 in the demo. KBIG dropped to #2 with its least productive outing since FEBRUARY while KIIS slid back to #3 with another flat performance. The two previous occupants of the #3 position dissolved their partnership and moved down the chart. KRTH ended up at #4 but with its highest total in over a year while KYSR slipped to #5 with a small decrease. KLVE also slipped – to #6 – with its smallest share in over a year.

CHICAGO: Holiday Lites

If you thought what KOST did in LOS ANGELES was amazing, wait until you see what SANTA brought to Chi-town. iHEARTMEDIA AC WLIT (LITE) made its annual pilgrimage to the NORTH POLE before the book began and brought back a heaping helping of ratings. The station more than tripled its share (2.8-8.5) as it soared from a tie at #12 to #1 6+. iHEARTMEDIA Urban AC WVAZ (V103) remained at #2 (5.9-5.7). As happens every year at this time, HUBBARD Hot AC WTMX (THE MIX) lands on SANTA’s naughty list. The station dropped from the top spot to #3 with its first down book since MAY (6.3-5.5). ENTERCOM News WBBM-A slid to #4 (5.0-4.7). This next one is a little hard to figure. With about three days left in the book, ENTERCOM Classic Hits WJMK became ENTERCOM Rhythmic AC WBMX (104.3 JAMS). The net result was that the station had its best book in over a year (2.4-4.4) as it made the huge leap from a tie at #23 to #5. The two stations previously tied at #4 remained an item but lowered their expectations to #6. They were ENTERCOM Country WUSN (US 99) and UNIVISION Regional Mexican WOJO (QUE BUENA). Both went 3.9-3.7.

These are video game numbers. WLIT went from #21 to #1 25-54 thanks to Mr. Grinch as it again more than tripled its previous share. WTMX stepped back to #2 as it ended a strong four-book run. WJMK/WBMX was a lord a’ leaping as it rose from #20 to #3 – more than doubling its previous share. WOJO slid back to #4 despite posting its largest number in over a year. WVAZ dropped three places to #5 with its lowest total since MARCH. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKSC (KISS) slid to #6 with its lowest share in over a year and was tied with rival ENTERCOM Top 40/M WBBM-F (B96), which was down slightly.

The drama continued 18-34. WLIT moved from #15 to #1 while WJMK/WBMX advanced from #16 to #2. You don’t see that very often (the understatement of the year). iHEARTMEDIA Urban WGCI went from #1 to #3 with its lowest score since AUGUST. WOJO slid back to #4 as it ended a three-book surge while WTMX fell three places to #5 with its least productive outing since MAY. WBBM-F had its lowest share in over a year to drop to #6.

WLIT more than tripled its 18-49 share while WJMK/WBMX was close to doing the same. As a result, LITE moved from #16 to #1 while JAMS rocketed from a tie at #19 to #2. This may have given WTMX whiplash as it dropped to #3 as it ended its four-book run at #1. WOJO fell two places to #4 with a slight decrease while WGCI slid to #5 with its lowest number since MARCH. WKSC dropped to #6 with its lowest mark in over a year and was tied with WBBM-F, which was off slightly.

SAN FRANCISCO: Not So Fast, Claus

SANTA playing second fiddle to the guys from Car Talk? BONNEVILLE AC KOIT went full Frosty at the beginning of the second week of the survey. The results were dramatic as the station had a massive 6+ increase (4.5-6.8). Alas, that was only good enough for second place as KQED INC. N/T KQED remained the lead reindeer, though it did lose a good portion of last month’s huge increase (8.6-7.7). ENTERCOM News KCBS-A slipped to #3 (6.7-6.4) and then there was everyone else. iHEARTMEDIA AC KISQ (THE BREEZE) remained at #4 but stalled a bit (4.3-4.1). iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KIOI (STAR) held steady at #5 but with its lowest share since AUGUST (4.2-3.8). The mover of the month was iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/R KMEL, which jumped seven spaces to #7 with its best book since – ironically – the last HOLIDAY survey (2.6-3.2).

Wait, wait … that’s right, SANTA was second 25-54, too. KQED won the demo for the twelfth straight survey but did lose a chunk of share. KOIT was up three places to #2 with a nice big gift from the big guy. ENTERCOM Hot AC KLLC (ALICE) slipped back to #3 with its lowest book since AUGUST. KIOI dropped back to #4 as it lost a little share. KISQ dropped to #5 with a small loss of its own and was tied with iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KYLD (WILD), which was up from #7 with a slight increase. BONNEVILLE Top 40/M KMVQ (NOW) dropped to #7 with a small decrease. UNIVISION Spanish Adult Hits KBRG had its best outing since JUNE as it rose from a tie at #14 to #8.

File this one under “ironic.” Last month KMEL and KOIT were tied at #1 18-34. Then KOIT goes all holiday on the market so, naturally, KMEL had its best book in over a year to remain at #1 while KOIT was only up slightly, thus dropping back to #2. Makes sense. The gap between the two stations went from zero to over two shares. The next three positions were unchanged from last month. KYLD was #3 with a slight increase while KMVQ remained at #4 with a slight decrease. UNIVISION Regional Mexican KSOL (QUE BUENA) held firm at #5 but with a rather large loss of share.

Sorry, SANTA, but you were shut out this time. KQED may have lost a chunk of share but the station still managed to capture its seventh straight 18-49 win. KOIT did move up to #2 with a healthy increase and was waiting for the sugar-plum rush to kick in completely. KMEL also had a rush as it jumped from #8 to #3 with its best book in over a year. KLLC slid back to #4 with a slight decrease while KYLD inched up to #5 with a slight increase. KIOI dropped three places to #6 with its lowest score since FEBRUARY and was partnered with KMVQ, which moved back with a slight decrease.

DALLAS-FT.WORTH: Santa Seeing Double

Looks like we really do have a war on CHRISTMAS. For the second year in a row, ENTERCOM Classic Hits KLUV (K-LOVE) and iHEARTMEDIA AC KDGE (STAR) dramatically altered their formats. They both flipped near the beginning of the survey and did quite well. KLUV moved up from #7 to #1 6+ (4.2-5.2). It was tied with iHEARTMEDIA Classic Rock KZPS (LONESTAR), which was sharing the spotlight for the second straight survey (5.0-5.2). STAR used the holiday magic to fly from a tie at #17 to #4 with its best book since the last HOLIDAY break (2.6-5.0). In between was iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KHKS (KISS), which remained at #3 with its best showing since AUGUST (4.7-5.1). For the first time since the last time SANTA ruled the airwaves, CUMULUS Country KPLX (THE WOLF) was not #1. The station dropped to #5 with its fourth straight down book (5.0-4.8). It was tied with iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KDMX (NOW), which moved up a spot with its best book in over a year (4.4-4.8). CUMULUS Country KSCS dropped three places to #7 (4.6-4.5) while UNIVISION Regional Mexican KLNO (QUE BUENA) fell to a tie at #8 (4.5-4.1).

There was quite the share up in the 25-54 ranks. KDGE zoomed to #1 from #17 by more than doubling its previous share. ENTERCOM Adult Hits KJKK (JACK) was up three places to #2 with its best performance in over a year. KHKS was up slightly but still fell from first to third where it was tied with KZPS, which had its fourth up book in a row. KLNO fell three spots to #5 just by being flat. KLUV made a nice move as it advanced from #12 to #6 thanks to a heavy dose of Der Bingle. CUMULUS Sports KTCK-A (THE TICKET) ended a three-book stay in the top five and landed at #10.

The 18-34 demo was thoroughly unimpressed by all this seasonal nonsense. KDGE moved from a tie at #17 to #8 while KLUV remained at #9 with a small increase. For the third month in a row, URBAN ONE Top 40/R KBFB (THE BEAT) was #1. However, the station was off a bit and SERVICE Urban KKDA (K104) moved up to #2 with a nice gain, which brought the stations dangerously close to one another. KHKS slipped back to #3 with a slight increase while iHEARTMEDIA Active Rock KEGL (EAGLE) flew up to #4 with its best book since AUGUST. The pairing at #4 was no more. KDMX slipped to #5 while KLNO ended up tied at #6.

KHKS was able to hold SANTA off for one more month as the station captured its twelfth straight 18-49 title. KDGE more than doubled its share as it leapt from #18 to #2, which pushed KLNO back to #3. The two previous stations at #4 had decent gains but were no longer considered a duo. KEGL remained in place with its best book since JANUARY while KDMX slipped back to #5 with its highest share in over a year. KBFB fell four places to #7 with a small decrease while KLUV’s seasonal surge drove the station from a tie at #14 to a tie at #8.

The next round of ratings analyses anxiously await your eyes. Stay tuned for more holiday hijinks from HOUSTON, WASHINGTON, DC, PHILADELPHIA, ATLANTA, and BOSTON. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. are on the case!

E-mail: sallan@researchdirectorinc.com
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