Research Director, Inc.: Exclusive Sept. PPM Analysis For New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas

Top-5 Markets

The SEPTEMBER numbers are out? Dang, that means summer is officially over. That also means The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC., along with the crunchers of numbers from XTRENDS, have to stop binge watching NETFLIX and get back to work. Thanks, NIELSEN. This particular survey covered 8/16 through 9/12 and featured a long holiday weekend, back to school daze, and the beginning of NFL hostilities. Let’s see what happened …

NEW YORK: Gotta Lite?

The charge of the lite brigade continued as iHEARTMEDIA AC WLTW (LITE) captured the 6+ flag and managed to lengthen its marketwide lead (7.1-7.5). As a matter of fact, the next three stations were in their exact same positions as when we last saw them. ENTERCOM Classic Hits WCBS-F was #2 but with its highest share in over a year (6.3-6.4) while EMMIS Urban AC WBLS remained at #3 (5.3-5.6). iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WHTZ (Z100) was flat and steady at #4 (4.8-4.8). SBS Tropical WSKQ (MEGA) moved up to #5 despite being down for the second straight survey (4.6-4.3). It was inches ahead of two stations that improved their lots by moving up to #6. Those were ENTERCOM News WINS-A (4.2-4.2) and iHEARTMEDIA Classic Rock WAXQ (Q104.3) (4.1-4.2). Things were not as rosy for ENTERCOM Sports WFAN (THE FAN), which had its lowest score since APRIL (4.7-3.9) to fall four places to a tie at #9.

Another ho-hum month for WLTW as it ended a two-book 25-54 slide but continued to dominate the rest of the field. WHTZ returned at #2 and was joined by EMMIS Top 40/R WQHT (HOT), which advanced from #5 with its best outing in over a year. That said, the pair of runners-up were over two shares behind the leader. WCBS-F was flat but slid to #4 while WBLS moved up to #5 with its second straight up book. WSKQ slid three places to #6 as it ended a rather robust five-book surge. It was just ahead of iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKTU, which remained in seventh place but with its highest mark in over a year.

WHTZ and WQHT continued to duke it out for the 18-34 crown. Z100 was #1 for the fourth straight survey but posted its lowest total since the swans were doing swan things. WQHT was off slightly at #2 but the gap between the two stations was under a half share. WLTW moved up to #3 with its best book since APRIL. WSKQ ended a run of two straight flat books as it slipped to #4. iHEARTMEDIA Urban WWPR (POWER) was up slightly but was still forced to take a step back to #5. ENTERCOM Alternative WNYL (ALT 92.3) had its best outing since JANUARY to move up to #6. The station was a share shy of cracking the top five.

WLTW regained its modest 18-49 loss from last month to lead the demo for the twelfth book in a row. WQHT moved up to #2 with a slight increase and this pushed WHTZ down to #3 as it had a small decrease. WCBS-F moved up to #4 with its best book since MAY while two stations met headlong at #5. WSKQ took a step backward with a modest loss while WWPR took a step forward as it ended a three-book slide.

LOS ANGELES: Same As It Ever Was

Not much changes in this town as the same five stations were in the top five 6+ for the eighth book in a row. For the fifth straight survey, iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KBIG (MY FM) led the way (5.6-5.5) and maintained its half-share lead over #2 ENTERCOM Classic Hits KRTH (K-EARTH) (5.1-5.0). iHEARTMEDIA AC KOST took sole control of third place with its first up book since MARCH (4.6-4.7). ENTERCOM Rhythmic AC KTWV (THE WAVE) moved up to #4 as it, too, landed its first up book since MARCH (4.2-4.6). BTW – there were several flat books in there for both stations. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KIIS (KISS) slipped to #5 (4.6-4.4). The next closest station to the top five was iHEARTMEDIA Talk KFI-A, which remained at #6 but with its lowest share in exactly a year (3.8-3.7).

The status remained primarily quo 25-54 as the top four stations were unchanged from last survey. KBIG was #1 for the sixth straight survey despite a slight decrease. #2 KRTH was also off slightly and the two stations were separated by a little more than a share. KIIS repeated at #3 while KOST returned at #4. Both stations had slight decreases. There was a new member of the top-five club as SBS Spanish AC KXOL (MEGA) posted its best share in over a year to advance two spaces to #5. It was just ahead of ENTERCOM Adult Hits KCBS-F (JACK), which slipped to #6 with its fourth down book in a row. It, in turn, was just ahead of UNIVISION Spanish Contemporary KLVE (K-LOVE), which slipped to #7 with a slight decrease.

KIIS was flat 18-34 but that was good enough to ensure the station’s second straight demo win. Three – count ‘em – three stations were tied at #2. KBIG gave an encore performance with a slight increase while KXOL took two steps forward as it regained almost all of last month’s rather painful loss. MERUELO Top 40/R KPWR (POWER) joined the group as it moved up from a tie at #5 with its best showing in exactly a year. Two other stations were in lock step at #5. iHEARTMEDIA Urban KRRL (REAL 92.3) returned but with its best book since OCTOBER, while KRTH slipped from #3 despite a slight increase. Keep an eye on CUMULUS Classic Rock KLOS. The station just landed its best share since NOVEMBER but has been on a bit of a roll. Over the last four books it has gone from #16 to a tie at #14 to a tie at #12 to #7.

The top three 18-49 stations were the same as before. KBIG won for the ninth book in a row and had its first up book since APRIL. KIIS was off slightly but came in at #2 for the fifth straight survey. KRTH returned at #3 with a slight decrease. KPWR moved up a couple of slots to #4 with its highest score in over a year while KXOL moved up to #5 with a small increase. KOST slipped to #6 with a slight decrease while KLVE dropped four places to a tie at #9 as it returned most of last month’s big increase.

CHICAGO: V Is For …

To say “victory” is so cliché but there really is no other V word that fits. Vanquishing? Vaporizing? Whatever, the fact remains that iHEARTMEDIA Urban AC WVAZ (V103) was the leading 6+ station for the ninth book in a row, though it did just post its lowest share of the run (6.0-5.7). Moving up to #2 was CUMULUS Classic Hits WLS-F, which had its best book in over a year for the third book in a row (5.3-5.4). UNIVISION Regional Mexican WOJO (QUE BUENA) advanced to #3 with its best outing since APRIL (4.8-5.0). ENTERCOM News WBBM-A stepped up to #4 (4.6-4.8) while HUBBARD Classic Rock WDRV (THE DRIVE) careened from #2 to #5 as it ended a very strong eight-book run (5.5-4.4). ENTERCOM Sports WSCR-A (THE SCORE) got a jolt of energy from the CUBS as it moved up to #6 with its highest score since OCTOBER (3.5-4.3). HUBBARD Hot AC WTMX had its lowest mark in over a year (4.9-4.1) as it dropped to #7. 

There was a lot of movement in the top five 25-54 … except at the top where WOJO won for the second book in a row. WLS-F moved up to #2 with another increase and was within a half share of the lead. WVAZ took two steps forward to #3 with a slight increase while WTMX slipped to #4 with its lowest share since the geese were being geese. WDRV slid to #5 with its lowest share since MARCH.

Turmoil and drama were the watchwords 18-34. Except, again, at the top. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKSC (KISS) was off slightly but still won for the second month in a row. The leap o’ the month went to ENTERCOM Country WUSN (US 99), which jumped from #11 to #2 with its best performance in over a year. The top two were less than half a share apart. iHEARTMEDIA Urban WGCI slipped to #3 with a slight decrease while WOJO advanced three squares to #4 with a small increase. ENTERCOM Rhythmic AC WBMX (JAMS) got back a portion of last month’s huge loss and took a five-step leap to #5. CUMULUS Alternative WKQX fell three slots to #6 with its lowest share since MARCH. Two stations exited the top five and ended up at #7. ENTERCOM Top 40/M WBBM-F (B96) was down for the third straight survey while WTMX had its lowest share since APRIL. Another station that took the off ramp from the top five was THE DRIVE, which slid into tenth place with its third straight down book.

For the sixth book in a row, WOJO owned the 18-49 demo. The station had its highest share in over a year and, combined with the loss by #2 WTMX, the gap widened to almost two shares. There was a threesome at #3 and all three stations moved up to make that happen. WKSC took one step forward with a flat performance while WGCI was up two places with a slight increase. WVAZ had a three-spot improvement with its best showing since FEBRUARY. The previous occupant of that position – WDRV – dropped to #6 but the reality was that it was this close to joining the other three.

SAN FRANCISCO: Driving Pledges

No, that is not some obtuse reference to a Greek Week carpool arrangement. It was a reference to the fundraising efforts of the #1 6+ station – KQED INC. N/T KQED. The station finally ended a five-book slide (6.4-6.8) as it increased its lead over perennial #2 ENTERCOM News KCBS-A (5.7-5.3). iHEARTMEDIA AC KISQ (THE BREEZE) continued to be the leading song-based station as it came in at #3 again (4.7-4.6). There were six stations virtually tied at #4. By actual math there were only two. ENTERCOM Hot AC KLLC (ALICE) remained in place (3.8-3.8) while BONNEVILLE Urban AC KBLX moved up from #10 with its highest share in over a year (3.3-3.8). iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/R KMEL slipped from a tie at #5 to #9 with the slightest of decreases (3.7-3.6). In between there were three stations at #6. Refer to the charts for the gory details.

KLLC was flat, stable and #1 25-54 for the second book in a row. However, it was hearing footsteps as iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KYLD (WILD) moved up to a very cozy #2 with its highest share in over a year. KQED slid back to #3 with a flat performance. Those three were pretty well clear of the rest of the field. BONNEVILLE Top 40/M KMVQ (NOW) remained at #4 with a flat book and was joined in that space by iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KIOI (STAR), which moved up two slots with a slight increase. KMEL dropped to #6 with a slight decrease. iHEARTMEDIA Classic Hits KOSF made quite the move as it leapt from a tie at #12 to #7 – pretty much regaining what it lost last month.

What a difference a month makes. In AUGUST KMEL was #1 but took a bit of a ratings hit. Still, it led #2 KIOI by two and a half shares. Different story this time. KMEL remained #1 but with its lowest score since NOVEMBER. Meanwhile, KIOI had its best outing in over a year. The net result was that the two stations are now about a half share apart. KMVQ moved up to a somewhat distant #3 with its best total since APRIL. KYLD slipped to #4 as it ended a two-book surge. KOSF went from a tie at #11 to #5 as it regained all of last month’s huge loss. ENTERCOM Rhythmic AC KRBQ (Q102.1) slipped to #6 with its lowest score since DECEMBER.

For the fourth book in a row, KMEL was #1 18-49. However, it was off slightly and #2 KLLC had a slight increase so the two stations found themselves in a tussle. KMVQ moved up to #3 and attempted to join the aforementioned tussle thanks to its best book in over a year. KYLD slid to #4 as it returned about half of last month’s increase. KQED stepped back to #5 despite a slight increase and was just ahead of KIOI, which repeated at #6 but with its highest share since FEBRUARY.

DALLAS-FT.WORTH: KISSing Machine

Talk about your artificial intelligence … The 6+ race comes in three layers. The top strata continued to belong to iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KHKS (KISS) as the station was #1 for the ninth book in a row (6.6-6.2). Level two belonged – again – to iHEARTMEDIA Classic Rock KZPS (LONE STAR) (5.0-5.3). Then came pretty much the rest of the market as six stations were separated by three tenths of a share. CUMULUS Country KSCS had the honor of repeating at #3 (4.3-4.3) while UNIVISION Regional Mexican KLNO (QUE BUENA) moved up four places to #4 with its best outing since MARCH (3.8-4.2). Two stations moved up and into a tie at #5. CUMULUS Country KPLX (THE WOLF) inched up one place (4.1-4.1) while iHEARTMEDIA AC KDMX (NOW) took two steps forward (3.9-4.1). To show you how congested things are. Last month ENTERCOM Adult Hits KJKK (JACK) and ENTERCOM Classic Hits KLUV (K-LOVE) were tied at #3. This time both stations went 4.3-4.0. They ended up at #7.

Last month KHKS ended a two-book 25-54 slide but could not maintain the momentum. The station was #1 for the ninth book in a row but did suffer a modest loss. KLNO remained at #2 but had a small increase to cut into KISS’ lead. KJKK returned at #3 but with a small decrease. iHEARTMEDIA Active Rock KEGL (THE EAGLE) repeated at #4 with a small decrease but was forced to share as KDMX moved up from a tie at #6 with a small increase. KSCS slipped to #6 with a flat performance.

Both KHKS and KEGL continued to lead the 18-34 way. KISS was #1 as it returned some of last month’s big gain and led THE EAGLE by two shares as the raptor also returned some of last month’s increase. SERVICE Urban KKDA (K104) moved up to #3 with a slight decrease. This pushed KSCS back to #4 as it posted its lowest score since APRIL. KLNO had its share of the #4 position as it moved up a slot with a slight increase.

Though KHKS gave back a good portion of last month’s healthy 18-49 increase, the station was still #1 and led a trio of #2 stations by over two shares. KEGL repeated at the position despite posting its lowest share since MARCH. The other two participants were previously tied at #5. They were KDMX and KLNO. Both had solid increases. KJKK slipped to #5 with a small decrease while KSCS dropped to #6 with a slight loss.

The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. invite you to check out our blog. Think of it as a podcast without sound. You can find it here: https://researchdirectorinc.com/hot-topics/ Sign up! Tell your friends. It’s free and is made without GMOs.

Oh, we’ll back shortly with HOUSTON, WASHINGTON, DC, PHILADELPHIA, ATLANTA, and BOSTON. 

Website: www.ResearchDirectorInc.com
Phone: (410) 295-6619 
E-mail: info@ResearchDirectorInc.com or sallan@researchdirectorinc.com 
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/ResearchDirectorInc. 
TWITTER: @ResearchDirect

« see more Net News